The Beylerbeyi Palace corporate trip is a half-day programme that tours the summer palace and its gardens in Beylerbeyi, Üsküdar, on the Asian shore of the Bosphorus, with a guide. Through the palace's state rooms, seaside pavilions and terraced gardens, it explains how a 19th-century Ottoman palace received its foreign guests. It suits corporate teams looking for a quieter alternative to the busy routes on the European side.

What is in the programme?

Commissioned by Sultan Abdülaziz from Sarkis Balyan and built between 1861 and 1865, the palace served as the sultan's summer retreat and as a guesthouse for visiting foreign heads of state. Empress Eugénie of France stayed here, and the palace is also known as the place where Abdülhamid II spent his final years.

The guided visit covers the rooms of the Selamlık and Harem sections, the hall with its marble pool and the floors laid with Egyptian matting, before moving on to the two small pavilions on the waterfront and the terraced gardens rising up the slope. The Yellow Pavilion, the Marble Pavilion and the Stable Pavilion in the grounds show that the palace was never a single building. The view across to the European shore from directly beneath the Bosphorus Bridge is the closing stop of the visit.

Highlights

• The story of a summer palace used to host diplomatic guests
• Interior details such as the pool hall and floors covered with Egyptian matting
• A palace landscape designed together with its seaside pavilions and terraced gardens
• Views of the Bosphorus and the bridge from the Asian shore

Who Is It For?

Planned for SME and corporate teams of 10-80. For companies with offices on the Asian side it is a cultural activity with a short transfer, and it is also a thematically fitting venue for teams working on hospitality, hosting and corporate representation. Larger groups tour the interiors in sub-groups. Physical effort is low, with a few short flights of steps on the garden terraces.

Planning Notes

• The gardens are most comfortable to visit in spring and in September and October.
• As the palace interior is visited on a guided circuit, group time slots should be fixed in advance.
• Lunch on the Beylerbeyi or Çengelköy waterfront can be arranged separately after the visit.
• In wet weather the garden section can be shortened and the indoor commentary extended.