Turkey Ferries: Istanbul, Marmara & Aegean Crossings

The classic Istanbul commuter ferry from Europe to Asia, from the Old City’s Eminönü pier to lively Kadıköy. It costs a public-transport fare, and the tea and simit on deck and the skyline views make it one of the city’s great experiences.

İDO’s passenger sea buses cross the Sea of Marmara from Istanbul to Güzelyalı on the Bursa coast, starting at Kabataş or Kadıköy and calling at Yenikapı and Armutlu. Bursa, the first Ottoman capital, is known for its mosques, silk bazaar and Uludağ mountain.

The short car-ferry shortcut across the Gulf of İzmit between Gebze (Eskihisar) and Yalova (Topçular). It is an alternative to the Osmangazi Bridge for drivers heading from Istanbul towards Yalova, Bursa and İzmir.

A short Bosphorus crossing from European Beşiktaş to Asian Üsküdar, with views of the Maiden’s Tower and the Bosphorus Bridge. It is paid with the Istanbulkart like other city transport.

İDO’s fast car ferry cuts across the Sea of Marmara from Yenikapı on Istanbul’s European side to Yalova, the spa town on the Gulf of İzmit — the direct sea route for drivers heading to Termal, Bursa or the Aegean without crossing the city’s bridges.

The quickest İDO crossing to Yalova: 45 minutes from Pendik on Istanbul’s Asian shore, with hourly car ferries for most of the day — handy for drivers coming from Anatolian-side districts or Sabiha Gökçen airport.

İDO’s sea bus crosses the whole Sea of Marmara from Kadıköy and Yenikapı to Bandırma on the south shore, where it connects with trains to İzmir — the classic sea-and-rail way from Istanbul to the Aegean coast.

The main crossing of the Dardanelles for visitors to the Gallipoli battlefields: GESTAŞ car ferries shuttle between Çanakkale’s waterfront and Eceabat on the peninsula day and night.

The shortest hop across the Dardanelles, at the Narrows, from Çanakkale to Kilitbahir and its 15th-century Ottoman fortress on the Gallipoli side.

The northern Dardanelles crossing between Lapseki on the Asian shore and the town of Gelibolu (Gallipoli), used by heavy traffic and by drivers from Thrace heading down the Aegean coast.

A car ferry across the mouth of the Gulf of Gökova that saves a long drive round the gulf between Bodrum and the Datça peninsula, gateway to Knidos and Marmaris.

The full-length Bosphorus commuter line on Istanbul’s European shore, zig-zagging from Eminönü past Beşiktaş, Ortaköy, Bebek and Emirgan to the fishing village of Rumeli Kavağı near the Black Sea mouth — a scheduled ferry, not a tour boat.

İzmir’s busiest cross-bay commuter ferry, linking the northern district of Karşıyaka with Konak, the city centre and site of the Clock Tower, in about a quarter of an hour.

İzmir’s car ferry across the bay, from Bostanlı in the north to Üçkuyular in the south-west — a shortcut for drivers heading to Balçova, Narlıdere and the Çeşme peninsula that avoids the ring road round the head of the gulf.