Galata Tower, Istanbul, Turkey

Richard told me we were going to visit a wine shop, so we caught the tram to Karakoy.
But when we got there we walked up to the Galata Tower.
Don’t worry, we did visit the wine shop after too. ;d
As I hadn’t known we were visiting a tourist attraction it was a pleasant surprise for me to immerse myself in culture and history. Not quite as pleasant as the wine we drank later, but that’s another story.

The walk up to the Galata Tower definitely made us out of breath. We were both suffering from exhaustion, so we blamed that. It had absolutely nothing to do with us being unfit. Breathless, but well worth it.

The Galata Tower is an impressive old building which has dominated the skyline of
Beyo?lu’s since 1348.
Old it may be, but that’s not to say it hasn’t moved with the times, it has a lift. I’m no fan of lifts, usually preferring to take the stairs, but this time I was a happy that technology could help preserve what little energy I had. The lift doesn’t take you right to the very top, but close enough, with just a few stairs to climb to the panorama balcony.
Not only is the Galata Tower perched on top of a hill, it is also a tall structure, which means it has superb panoramic views of Istanbul.
The panorama balcony, which encircles the top row of windows, is open to the elements, quite narrow and it slopes downwards off the edge of the tower. Scary!
As well as not feeling comfortable in a lift, I’m not overkeen on heights either, so I made good use of the handrail. In my defence, for being a big scardeycat, lots of other visitors were clinging on to the rail for dear life too.
I wouldn’t recommended venturing out on the balcony to acrophobics. I doubt they’d enjoy it.

The Galata Tower was originally called the Tower of Christ. It was the highest point in the city walls of the Genoese colony of Galata.
Unfortunately most of the walls have long gone, but thankfully the tower is still standing.

The upper floors of the Galata Tower are home to a restaurant and nightclub which is more of an entertainment place for tourists than a dance place, with belly dancing shows etc.
Until the 1960s the tower was used as a fire lookout tower.

The balcony at Galata Tower is open daily from 9am to 5pm (7pm in the Summer).
Admission fee, 12 Turkish Lire.

Video of Galata Tower, Istanbul

Click here to view the embedded video.

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