The greener face of İstanbul

But the real story of İstanbul over the last few years is actually one of ever improving access to open spaces, with waterside promenades sprouting alongside the Bosporus everywhere from Bebek to Sütlüce. There are also some great city parks that tend to slip under the radar of tourists on tight schedules. As the long, lazy days of summer approach here are some of the green spaces we think most worth scouting out. And that’s without taking into account the real lungs of the city which are the sprawling Belgrade Forest…

EUROPEAN SIDE

Gülhane Parkı

Given that it was once part of the Topkapı Sarayı estate, it’s surprising that lovely Gülhane Parkı is not better known to visitors. No doubt it’s the high walls that shielded the sultan from his subjects’ view that account for this, but the city authorities have been working hard to prettify the park, and this is certainly one of the loveliest oases from the bustle of Sultanahmet, whether you come here to admire the flowers, watch the nesting herons and parakeets, or sip tea from a samovar while admiring the view over Sarayburnu from a row of inviting tea gardens by the Goths’ Column, a lesser-known cousin to the famous Çemberlitaş. You could even take a turn round the new Museum of Islamic Science and Technology while you’re here.

Yıldız Parkı

Yıldız Sarayı at Beşiktaş is the least known of İstanbul’s imperial palaces, so it’s hardly surprising that its wonderful park is also virtually devoid of tourists. Poised on a wooded hillside, this is another glorious escape from the roar of the traffic, a place where you could almost forget that you’re even in the city as you settle down to lunch beside the pool in front of the Çadır Köşkü or take a turn around the lovely marble fountain inside the Malta Köşkü. You could, if you want to, inspect the imperial porcelain factory, or visit the neglected City and Yıldız museums, or even the Şale with its impressive dining room set up as if Sultan Abdülhamid II might be arriving at any moment. But really this is the perfect place to relax and do nothing. And it doesn’t cost a kuruş to get in.

Emirgan Parkı

The wooded park at Emirgan has become well known recently as a place to go to admire first the tulips and now the flowering Judas trees. Set, like Yıldız, on a hillside, it commands wonderful views as well as offering a choice of cafes in its historic, color-coded köşks (pavilions), all of them run by Beltur, which means no alcohol but prices roughly half what you could expect to pay elsewhere.

Abbasağa Parkı, Beşiktaş

Tucked away to the south of Barbaros Bulvarı, Abbasağa is a more conventional municipal park, a place to take a quick break after visiting the Naval Museum. For democrats, its one great draw card is a cluster of statues commemorating those men (and one woman) who gave their lives in the struggle to bring greater freedom to Turkey, amongst them the journalists Uğur Mumcu and Abdi İpekçi.

Türkan Sabancı Parkı, Bebek

To take the pulse of Turkish high society at play, you could do worse than wander around this small but pleasing waterside park, which comes equipped with exercise machines, a dog-walking pound, fountains that spurt from the ground and a tree with mosaic embedded in its bark. A statue of the Iraqi-born poet Fuzuli forms its centerpiece but really this is a place to come to people-watch before adjourning to Happily Ever After for a cupcake and a coffee. Latte, naturally.

Atatürk Arboretum

Here’s one of the city’s best-kept secrets, a 296-hectare botanical garden accessed from the road linking Bahçeköy in the Belgrade Forest to Kemerburgaz. With a sizeable lake and more than 2,000 species of plant -- all beautifully labeled, this is a great place to escape the stresses of city life while learning something at the same time. One snag -- it’s only open to the public on weekdays.

Florya Sosyal Tesisleri

The rickety old suburban train from Sirkeci and Cankurtaran runs to this wonderful waterside park that shadows the Sea of Marmara and comes with all sorts of unexpected facilities, including the city’s first reflexology garden where you can kick off your shoes and give your bare feet a workout on semi-precious stones embedded in the ground.

ASIAN SIDE

The great divide created by the Bosporus means that relatively few foreign visitors make it over to the Asian side of the city. However, one of its great delights in summer is Fenerbahçe Parkı, which sits on a promontory south of Kadıköy with splendid views out over the Sea of Marmara and the Bosporus. Another oasis for admirers of tulips and Judas trees, the park also boasts a wild garden, an area set aside for poppies, cornflowers and other delicate blooms more usually associated with grass verges. The pretty Romantika Cafe was one of the many historic buildings restored by the late Çelik Gülersoy, the man who brought us Soğukçeşme Sokağı behind Aya Sofya.

Büyük and Küçük Çamlıca

Of these two hilltop parks, Büyük Çamlıca was another Gülersoy project, while Küçük Çamlıca is the handiwork of the local authorities. Büyük Çamlıca was well known to 19th-century visitors as a beauty spot commanding great Bosporus views. Today, sadly, that beauty is somewhat diminished by the serried ranks of radio and phone masts that surmount it, although the views remain matchless and there’s a great “Ottoman” cafe in which to take tea. Traditionally Küçük Çamlıca has kept a lower profile. However, it too boasts panoramic views and attractive new buildings that replicate the area around the İftariye, the little kiosk in Topkapı Sarayı where the sultans used to break their fast during Ramadan.

Özgürlük Parkı, Selamiçeşme

Bağdat Caddesi may be one of the city’s best places to shop if your tastes run to international labels, but it’s a bit of a concrete jungle, so it’s good to know about this big and inviting park with a small lake, a theater, lots of children’s entertainment and a veritable army of cats that’s just a hop and a skip away from the shops.

Fethi Ahmet Paşa Korusu, Kuzguncuk

Without a car, the Atatürk Arboretum is tricky to get to. Not so, however, the Fethi Ahmet Paşa Woods, which sit immediately above the main road at Kuzguncuk, itself easily accessible by bus from Üsküdar. Paths wind steeply uphill here, but, as is increasingly the case, Beltur is on hand with an Ottoman-themed restaurant in which to relax on your way back down again.

Mihrabad Korusu, Kanlıca

High on the hillside above Kanlıca this stretch of woodland offered inspiration to poets such as Yahya Kemal Beyatlı, and even today its view of the Bosporus and both its bridges is breathtaking. It comes with marked walking trails and an inviting lineup of tea gardens. Afterwards you can stroll back downhill and try some of Kanlıca’s famous yogurt sweetened with icing sugar.

TEMA-Vehbi Koç Doğal Kültür Merkezi, Anadolu Hisarı

TEMA is the organization that has been doing a noble job of reafforesting many parts of Turkey, and its Natural Culture Center on the hills above Anadolu Hisarı is certainly home to a lot of flowering plants, although it could do with a little maintenance. The views are, as ever, spectacular.

Beykoz Korusu