Sile, Istanbul: neighborhood guide

Şile is a Black Sea beach resort inside the Istanbul metropolitan municipality, not a central neighbourhood. The old town runs along Üsküdar Cd, pedestrian-only in the evening, with modern shopfronts and the Hüseyin Keçici Central Mosque midway along it. The harbour, the Byzantine Şile Castle on its islet and the 1859 lighthouse are the landmarks; the castle islet and interior are closed to visitors.

The district stretches far beyond the town: Ağva is a smaller, quieter resort 28 km east, and the hills to the south hold reservoir lakes, forest parks and camping areas. Holiday homes fill the coast, and on fine weekends the place belongs to Istanbul families. Few international travellers come this way.

The name comes from the Turkish word for marjoram. Settlement goes back to the Stone Age, and in the Hellenistic period the site grew as the port of Hilea before Constantinople overshadowed it.

Stay if your trip is a beach break with a book, a family weekend, or a stop on a Black Sea drive. Skip if this is your first Istanbul visit: the sights are 75 km away and the bus takes about two hours each way, so you would spend your days commuting.

The beach is the reason to come. Ayazma, 1.5 km west of the harbour, is the closest sand to the centre but crowded and grubby in high season. Kumbaba, further west, is quieter and continues as Vadi, Kırandere and Alacalı. East of Ağlayan Kaya headland, Uzunkum is a 600 m paid strip; beyond its tombola islet, Kırandere beach runs another 1 km with far fewer people.

Base yourself in Şile town for restaurants and transport, or in Ağva for a slower version of the same coast. The southern hills need your own car.

This is a seafood town. The pier area facing the castle is the main cluster of fish restaurants and tea gardens, and the catch is Black Sea: hamsi when in season, plus whatever the boats bring in. Prices are lower than the Istanbul waterfront.

Street food is simple and cheap: handcarts sell kokoreç, grilled corn and simit or poğaça. The shopping strip along Üsküdar Cd and Cumhuriyet Cd has cafés and bakeries, and the bazaar and farmers market off Cumhuriyet Cd on Pazar Sk trades Fridays 08:00–18:00, which is the best place to buy fruit, cheese and olives for a picnic.

Look for the local Şile cloth, a sheer woven textile, as a souvenir rather than a meal.

By road from Istanbul or Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) airport, follow the D-020; from Istanbul Airport (IST) take the O-7 toll motorway to bypass the centre. Driving takes about 1.5–2 hours depending on traffic, longer on summer weekends.

By public transport, IETT bus 139 runs from Üsküdar roughly every two hours, taking about two hours via Ümraniye and Sultanbeyli; bus 139A continues to Ağva. The Şile bus terminal is on Bayrak Cd, 500 m south of the old town. Buses and dolmuşes link Şile and Ağva along the main road, and taxis wait by the bus station.

For the hills, the dams and the villages such as Yeniköy and Hacıllı, you need your own wheels. The access road to Esenceli camp is rough and turns to mud after rain.