Three and a half kilometres of seafront on the European side, ending with one of Istanbul's most photographed frames: the baroque white mosque of Ortaköy with the Bosphorus Bridge arching behind it. The walk is mostly flat, mostly paved, and you're on the water the whole time.
Start at Dolmabahçe — the 19th-century palace where the Ottoman court relocated from Topkapı. You can walk the long seaside wall without buying a ticket. Beşiktaş is next: ferries, football, and a bronze eagle at the pier. Push on along the water past Çırağan Palace (now a hotel, still a good view), and forty minutes later you're in Ortaköy.
Time it for golden hour. The mosque-and-bridge shot works at any time of day but it earns its reputation at dusk, when the bridge lights flick on and the water goes pink. Find the jetty on the north side of the square; give it a minute; then dinner on the square.
