Süleymaniye Mosque

Where it is & how to get there

• Tram: T1 tram to Beyazıt–Kapalıçarşı or Eminönü, then 10–15 minutes uphill.
• On foot: Walk up from the Spice Bazaar through the old market lanes.
• Metro: M2 metro to Vezneciler, then 10 minutes on foot.

The story of the Süleymaniye Mosque

Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent commissioned the mosque, and his chief architect Mimar Sinan completed it between 1550 and 1557. It is the largest of Istanbul's Ottoman imperial mosques and is considered Sinan's great work in the city.

Around it Sinan built a whole complex, or külliye, with schools, a hospital, a soup kitchen, a hammam and a caravanserai. The tombs of Süleyman and his wife Hürrem Sultan are in the garden, and Sinan himself is buried just outside the walls.

Best time to visit

Tips before you go

• The terrace behind the mosque has one of the best views in the city.
• The garden terrace behind the mosque has one of the best free views in Istanbul.
• Try kuru fasulye (beans and rice) at the historic restaurants along the mosque's outer wall.

What's around the Süleymaniye Mosque

• Grand BazaarOne of the world's oldest covered markets, 10 minutes away.
• Spice BazaarThe Egyptian Bazaar by the Golden Horn.
• Rüstem Pasha MosqueA small mosque covered in exquisite İznik tiles.
• Istanbul UniversityThe grand gate on Beyazıt Square.

Questions travellers ask