A cancelled flight changed my mind about Istanbul

A year and a half ago, I was on my way to Jordan for work when my flight got cancelled. I ended up stuck in Istanbul for 24 hours, sleeping in the city, taking random buses and taxis. I remember chatting with a guy on the bus who had been there a few months before with his wife. He just told me it was underrated, and it was totally worth it.

So after wrapping up my consulting work in Jordan, I came back properly, this time with my family for five days. Best decision.

Istanbul is enormous and every district feels like a different city. You never run out of things to do, eat, or explore, and there's a rooftop with a view around almost every corner. One thing that makes it truly charming is the Bosphorus. You don't just admire it from a distance, you cross it regularly by ferry to get around.

People are incredibly warm and open, more so than in many places I've travelled to. And the cats, if you've seen the documentary Kedi, it's exactly like that. Cats are literally everywhere and locals share the city with them. We ended up carrying food to feed strays every day. It's not seen as a bad thing there, it's even totally the opposite.

Turkey has been hit hard by inflation and lost a lot of tourists recently, which means right now is a great time to go. Beautiful 5 star hotels at a surprisingly low price. Even restaurants with tourist pricing remain reasonable (but alcohol is really expensive).

One thing to be aware of though : street harassment is real. People will constantly call you into restaurants and shops, sometimes quite insistently. After a couple of days you just stop paying attention.

Getting around is easy. Most things are walkable and cabs (booked from Uber) are cheap. Just buckle up because they drive like they have nine lives !

A lot of people think of Turkey and picture Cappadocia. Istanbul stands completely on its own. If you have the chance to go, don't think twice.

Happy to answer any questions ;-)