Meet halfway in Istanbul
For a group meeting in Istanbul, the fairest points are usually Yenikapı, Üsküdar, Kadıköy or Mecidiyeköy - hubs where the metro, the Marmaray and the ferries meet. Which one is fairest depends on where everyone starts: togather times each person door to door and finds the spots where nobody is stuck with a much longer trip.
- Metro
- Marmaray
- Ferries
- Trams
- Metrobüs
- Cycling
- Walking
Where groups actually meet in Istanbul
Interchanges that work as a fair midpoint for most groups. togather will not always land on one of these - it answers for your actual starting points - but they are the ones that come up again and again.
Yenikapı
M1A, M1B and M2 metro lines and the Marmaray
The biggest rail hub on the European side, and the Marmaray takes you under the Bosphorus to Asia, so it is the fair answer for a group split across both continents.
Üsküdar
Marmaray, M5 metro line and ferries
The Asian side's main crossing point, linked to Europe by both the Marmaray and the ferries, with the waterfront right outside.
Kadıköy
M4 metro line and ferries to Eminönü, Karaköy and Beşiktaş
The Asian side's social centre, full of places to eat and drink. Fair for a group mostly on the Asian side, or with Europeans who are happy to take the ferry.
Mecidiyeköy
M2 and M7 metro lines and the Metrobüs
Where the main north-south metro meets the M7 and the Metrobüs, which makes it fairer than the old city for a group living around Şişli, Kağıthane or the business districts.
Taksim
M2 metro line and the F1 funicular to Kabataş
The classic meeting point, with İstiklal Avenue right there. The funicular links it to the T1 tram and the ferries at Kabataş.
Sirkeci
Marmaray and the T1 tram
In the old city next to Eminönü's ferry piers, and a good pick when the group wants to end up around the historic peninsula.
Ayrılık Çeşmesi
Marmaray and M4 metro line
The crossing between the Marmaray and the M4 on the Asian side, and fairer than Kadıköy itself for a group coming from further east along the M4.
How to pick a fair meeting point in Istanbul
Istanbul is split by the Bosphorus, and a group that lives on both sides has to decide who crosses. Distance on a map is a poor guide. The bridges can be slow at peak hours, while the Marmaray rail tunnel and the ferries keep a steady time. A friend in Kadıköy can be closer, in minutes, to Sirkeci than to a district a few kilometres away on their own side.
So start with the hubs that cross the water. Yenikapı and Üsküdar sit at either end of the Marmaray crossing and link it to the metro. Kadıköy and Üsküdar have ferries to several piers on the European side. Most groups split between the two continents can reach one of these without a long road trip.
Northern business districts and the Asian side need different answers
The old city is not automatically fair. A group living in the northern business districts is better served by Mecidiyeköy or Taksim. A group mostly on the Asian side is better served by Kadıköy than by a crossing it never needed.
Mixed groups are normal: someone drives, someone takes the ferry, someone walks the last stretch. On a weekday evening the bridge traffic can turn a short drive into the longest leg of the night, while the Marmaray rider’s time barely moves. togather times each of them on their own route, ferry included, and shows the spots where the trips are roughly even. It is worth checking before anyone suggests the bridge.
Meeting halfway in Istanbul - questions
- Where is a fair place to meet halfway in Istanbul?
- Usually a hub where the metro, Marmaray or ferries meet - Yenikapı and Üsküdar are the usual answers for a group split between Europe and Asia, and Kadıköy or Mecidiyeköy can be fairer otherwise. togather works out which.
- Should someone on the Asian side drive across?
- Usually not at peak hours. The bridges are often congested, while the Marmaray and the ferries keep a steady time. You can set car or transit per person, and togather times each journey the way that person will make it.
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