Cruising on a private yacht along the Bosphorus. And about the most beautiful vintage cars in Istanbul.

Vintage cars in Istanbul

One lovely autumn day in Istanbul, living a #Travelife, we walked down the narrow streets of the old neighborhoods of Sultanahmet, from our hotel, the Four Seasons Sultanahmet, to the seaside to board a yacht we had chartered from Denden Yachts via luxuryistanbul.com.

ONE OF THE BEST HOTELS IN ISTANBUL

At the Four Seasons Sultanahmet in Istanbul

The Four Seasons Sultanahmet, by the way, is one of the best hotels in Istanbul and certainly among my great favorites. It’s small and intimate, and decorated so tastefully. We stayed at the Four Seasons Sultanahmet for one week and we felt like we had our own little palace in Istanbul.

I loved having breakfast in the indoor garden and waking up every morning to the thought of having the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sofia, as well as the Topkapi Palace, only a few minutes away.

CHARTERING A YACHT IN ISTANBUL

Denden Yachts from LuxuryIstanbul.com

Anyhow, we chartered a nice-sized yacht under 40 meters, which was perfect for two. The yacht came with two very professional crew who laid out a wonderful spread of Turkish tea and snacks on a table on the yacht terrace.

Denden Yachts from LuxuryIstanbul.com

For me, the size of the yacht is immaterial. I really liked this small one. Later on, we decided to try the larger yacht, which was a 65-meter yacht, and it felt just too big for two.

CRUISING THE BOSPHORUS

It was while we were cruising lazily around the Bosphorus that we literally stumbled upon an interesting structure that caught my attention from the water.

“What’s that?” I asked the captain, for I could see lovely art, a colorful boat and all kinds of structures from the water.

Vintage cars in Istanbul
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“We can dock and see, if you wish,” the captain said. Perhaps because we were in a lovely private yacht, we were actually allowed to anchor and enter the property.

On this property we found a most amazing collection of vintage cars in an air-conditioned garage in Istanbul — the private collection of one of the wealthiest families in Turkey, all kept in pristine gleaming condition.

Vintage cars in Istanbul
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I walked around in amazement, with a new appreciation for vintage cars. And then it was back onboard our private yacht to head to Sumahan on the Water, a very nice luxury hideaway of a hotel on the Asian side of Istanbul, for a delicious al fresco lunch on the terrace, living a #Travelife.