Full Bosphorus and Black Sea cruise: the Long Tour or a lunch cruise

Every Black Sea cruise in Istanbul is really a trip up the whole Bosphorus, about 30 km, to the point where the strait opens into the Black Sea. The boats turn at Anadolu Kavağı or off Poyrazköy, near the third bridge. You see the open sea from the mouth or from the castle hill above Anadolu Kavağı; you do not sail out onto it.

There are two good ways to do it. The public Long Tour of Şehir Hatları, the municipal ferry company, leaves Eminönü every morning, gives you about two and a half hours ashore in Anadolu Kavağı and costs 640 TL return for foreign visitors. The private lunch cruises sold on GetYourGuide, Headout and Tiqets take 4.5 to 9 hours, include lunch and often a swim stop, and cost from $135. Below: timetables, what each price includes, which platform is cheaper for the same boat, and what can cancel your day.

What a "Black Sea cruise" covers, and what it does not

The standard two-hour Bosphorus cruise turns at or before the Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge, the second bridge. A Black Sea trip continues past it, past Emirgan, Yeniköy, Tarabya and Sarıyer, to the fishing villages at the northern end. Only these full-length trips see the third bridge, the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge (2016), between Garipçe and Poyrazköy.

Two more things to know before you book:

• "Black Sea" in a title is not a promise. One Tiqets listing with "Black Sea" in its name lists a minibus, a guide and a palace or fortress ticket, but no Black Sea stop and no food. Read the itinerary, not the headline.
• The Princes' Islands are not on this route. They lie in the Sea of Marmara, south of the city. See Princes' Islands.

The public Long Tour (Uzun Boğaz Turu): timetable and price

The Long Tour is the cheapest way to sail the whole strait and back, and in our view the best value of any Bosphorus boat. It runs daily from Eminönü, stops on both shores, and waits at Anadolu Kavağı long enough for lunch and the walk up to Yoros Castle.

Fares (return): 640 TL for foreign visitors, 320 TL for Turkish citizens; children under 12 pay 160 TL; under-6s ride free. The ticket covers the boat only: lunch in Anadolu Kavağı is extra.

Where to buy: at the Şehir Hatları Bosphorus-tour booth at Eminönü, on the east side of the Galata Bridge. Carry some Turkish lira, and do not count on paying with an İstanbulkart, the city transport card. The times above are the winter timetable, valid since 7 September; the summer timetable adds sailings. Check sehirhatlari.istanbul or the booth on the day. More on the city's boats: public ferry guide and our Şehir Hatları review.

In summer, Şehir Hatları also runs a Moonlight tour (Mehtap) on Saturdays only: Eminönü 18:25, Anadolu Kavağı 20:05, back at Eminönü at 00:10, 730 TL for foreign visitors. It does not run on the winter timetable. See night cruises.

Black Sea lunch cruises: prices and what is included

The private cruises are smaller boats on a fixed program: lunch on board, a swim stop in summer on some, and a guide on some. These are the listings that actually reach the mouth. Prices are live "from" prices per person.

◐ Daytime

Headout4.5 h

Bosphorus & Black Sea 2-Course Lunch Cruise with Swimming Opportunity

4.5 (1,933)

from $168Check dates

◐ Daytime

GetYourGuideHalf day

Istanbul: Bosphorus and Black Sea Cruise with Lunch

4.6 (161)

from $168Check dates

◐ Daytime

GetYourGuideHalf day

Istanbul: Bosphorus Strait and Black Sea Lunch Cruise

4.8 (21)

from $168Check dates

◐ Daytime

TiqetsHalf day

Istanbul: Bosphorus & Black Sea Sightseeing Cruise with Lunch

4.5 (6)

from $135Check dates

◐ Daytime

TiqetsFull day

Istanbul: Bosphorus & Black Sea Guided Tour with Cruise and Lunch

3.7 (3)

Next date: Apr 11

from $135Check dates

◐ Daytime

TiqetsFull day

Bosphorus, Black Sea & Dolmabahce Palace: Boat Tour with Lunch + Entry

4.6 (5)

Next date: Apr 10

from $281Check dates

See everything on GetYourGuide →See everything on Headout →See everything on Tiqets →Prices checked on October 17, 2026

What each one includes:

• Headout's lunch cruise with swimming: the most-reviewed Black Sea product on any platform, rated 4.5 from 1,933 reviews; a two-course lunch and a swimming opportunity. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before. The boarding point is on your voucher; show it with photo ID.
• GetYourGuide's Bosphorus and Black Sea lunch cruise: 5 hours, rated 4.6 from 161 reviews, with time to explore Anadolu Kavağı. Swimming is not mentioned. A sister listing, the Bosphorus Strait and Black Sea lunch cruise, is rated 4.8 from 21 reviews at the same price.
• Tiqets' sightseeing cruise with lunch, sold by Velena Travel: leaves Kabataş pier at 12:00, 4.5 hours on the water, lunch of grilled chicken with meze, fruit and soft drinks, and a swim at Poyrazköy. Hotel pick-up and the Rumeli Hisarı entry are not included.
• Tiqets' 9-hour guided day, also Velena: meets at Taksim at 09:00, stops at Ortaköy and Anadolu Kavağı, adds a monument visit that changes by weekday (Küçüksu Pavilion Friday to Sunday, the Maiden's Tower Monday to Thursday, Rumeli Hisarı every day except Wednesday) and a swim off the boat near Poyrazköy. Lunch is included; drinks are not. Only 3 reviews (3.7).
• Tiqets' Black Sea day with Dolmabahçe: 9 hours by coach and boat with the Dolmabahçe Palace entry, a cable-car ticket and a buffet lunch. At about $281 it costs twice the others; check exactly what the price covers before paying.

GetYourGuide also lists an 8-hour cruise with a swim stop at about $281 with no reviews yet. We would wait for reviews.

Same cruise, three platforms: which is cheaper

GetYourGuide and Headout sell the 5-hour lunch cruise at a €150 supplier price, and Velena sells cheaper €120 variants on Tiqets. Each platform converts to dollars itself, so the dollar prices differ.

On the day we checked, Tiqets' Velena cruise was cheapest (from $135), Headout's lunch cruise came next (from $150) and GetYourGuide's was from $168. The boat, the start time and the inclusions are not identical across the three, so compare:

• Reviews: Headout's listing has by far the most (1,933). Tiqets' Black Sea products have six reviews or fewer each.
• Cancellation: GetYourGuide and Headout allow free cancellation up to 24 hours before; Velena's Tiqets products allow it up to roughly 11–15 hours before. GetYourGuide also lets you reserve now and pay later.
• Direct: Velena's own site, bosphorustour.com, lists a Bosphorus and Black Sea cruise with lunch at €75. What that price includes may differ from the platform versions; read the details and the cancellation terms before you book direct. Our Bosphorus Tours review covers the company.

Our pick: Headout's lunch cruise for the review base and the swim, or Tiqets' 12:00 Kabataş cruise if price matters more than reviews. The platform comparison explains the differences in payment and refunds.

Swimming in the Black Sea at Poyrazköy

The only swim stop named in any listing is Poyrazköy, an Asian-side village by the third bridge near the mouth. The boat anchors and you swim off it. Swimming in the city stretch of the Bosphorus is not an option outside the annual cross-continental race: the strait has strong currents and shipping lanes.

• Season: sea temperatures of about 21–25 °C make swims realistic from June to September.
• Wind: when the poyraz, the north-east wind from the Black Sea, raises waves, the district governors ban swimming on their Black Sea beaches day by day (Beykoz, which includes Poyrazköy, did so on 15–16 August 2026). Expect the swim stop to be dropped on such days.
• Rip currents cause about 70 % of drownings on Istanbul's Black Sea coast. Follow the crew's instructions and stay close to the boat.

If swimming is the main point of your day, read the Black Sea swimming guide.

The route beyond the second bridge, and where to sit

Going north, the European shore is on your left; coming back it is on your right. On a Long Tour that goes up in the late morning and comes back in the afternoon, the light helps you: morning sun lights the European palaces and villages, afternoon sun the Asian shore (Kanlıca, Anadolu Hisarı, Küçüksu, Beylerbeyi).

Highlights that the two-hour loops never reach:

• Emirgan, with the Şerifler Yalısı (1780), the oldest surviving waterside mansion on the European shore.
• Yeniköy, Tarabya, Büyükdere and Sarıyer, where the strait bends north towards the sea.
• Kanlıca on the Asian side, home of the Amcazade Köprülü Hüseyin Paşa Yalısı (1699), the oldest surviving yalı. The Long Tour stops here in both directions.
• Rumeli Kavağı and Anadolu Kavağı, facing each other near the mouth, with Yoros Castle on the hill above the Asian village.
• The Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge, in full view from the castle hill.

For every sight in order, see landmarks seen from the water. For the day ashore, see Anadolu Kavağı and Yoros Castle.

Long Tour or lunch cruise: which to pick

Pick the Long Tour if you want the whole strait, a walk up to Yoros Castle and a fish lunch by the pier, and you are happy with a ferry seat. Pick a lunch cruise in summer if you want a swim, a guide and lunch handled for you, or if you prefer to book online with free cancellation. If you have only two hours, neither is the answer: take a standard sightseeing cruise and accept that it turns at the second bridge.

Weather, seasons and what can go wrong

• Lodos: the strong south-westerly wind, worst in December, cancels ferry lines. On 3 January 2026 Şehir Hatları suspended 17 lines, including Eminönü–Rumeli Kavağı (Milliyet report). In winter, do not plan the Long Tour for your last day.
• Fog: a morning event. Dense fog closes the strait to shipping (it did on 19 April 2026) and Şehir Hatları cancels lines one by one. It usually lifts, but check before you set off.
• Spring: the Judas trees (erguvan) turn the shores purple from about mid-April to mid-May; Beykoz and Kandilli are on the way.
• Summer: swim stops run, and open decks are hot at midday.
• Autumn: our favorite season for this trip, with mild days and a sea still warm in September.
• Holidays: during the two religious holidays (bayram), expect domestic crowds on the ferries.
• Weather cancellations on private cruises: the captain decides; the platforms rebook or refund under their own terms.

For comparisons with every other kind of boat, see how to choose a Bosphorus cruise.

Black Sea cruise FAQ