The Üsküdar Ferry Terminal, also known as the Üsküdar Pier (), is a

ferry terminal A passenger terminal is a structure in a port which services passengers boarding and leaving water vessels such as ferry, ferries, cruise ships and ocean liners. Depending on the types of vessels serviced by the terminal, it may be named (for e ...

Üsküdar Üsküdar () is a municipality and district of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 35 km2, and its population is 524,452 (2022). It is a large and densely populated district on the Anatolian (Asian) shore of the Bosphorus. It is border ...

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

, located along Paşa Limanı Avenue on the

Bosporus The Bosporus or Bosphorus Strait ( ; , colloquially ) is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul, Turkey. The Bosporus connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara and forms one of the continental bo ...

strait. It is used by Municipal

Şehir Hatları Ferries in Istanbul are a Public transport in Istanbul, mode of public transportation within and surrounding the city of Istanbul, Istanbul, Turkey. There are three major ferry operators in the city: the municipally owned Şehir Hatları ("City Li ...

(City Lines) ferries as well as private Dentur ferries. Şehir Hatları ferries operate to several piers along the Bosporus and

Golden Horn The Golden Horn ( or ) is a major urban waterway and the primary inlet of the Bosphorus in Istanbul, Turkey. As a natural estuary that connects with the Bosphorus Strait at the point where the strait meets the Sea of Marmara, the waters of the ...

, while Dentur operates frequent ferry service to Kabataş and

Beşiktaş Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...

. The first Üsküdar Pier was built in 1852 and is notable as the first public ferry landing built on the Bosporus strait. The modern terminal was built in 1965. Üsküdar Terminal is located near Üsküdar Square in central Üsküdar, from which connections to bus, train and metro service are available. Another private ferry operator, Turyol, operates ferry service from its pier just north of Üsküdar terminal.

History

Üsküdar Pier was first opened in 1853 by an Ottoman ferry company, Şirket-i Hayriye as the companies first ferry pier on the Bosporus strait. The first pier was located slightly inland, near the Fountain of Ahmed III. The first ferry service from Üsküdar operated to Kabataş, on the European shore of the Bosporus. As Üsküdar grew in the late 19th century, ferry service also increased and the existing pier was not large enough to handle the capacity. In 1905, Şirket-i Hayriye began operating ferry service from Beşiktaş to

Haydarpaşa station Haydarpaşa is a locality within the Kadıköy and Üsküdar districts on the Asian part of Istanbul, Turkey. Haydarpaşa is named after Ottoman Vizier Haydar Pasha. The place, on the coast of Sea of Marmara, borders to Harem in the northwest and ...

, via Üsküdar. Passengers used this route to connect to railway service east into

Anatolia Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

. In 1906, the first pier was demolished and replaced by a larger pier. The inside of the pier consisted of decorative tiles, with ticket counters and bird cages. Şirket-i Hayriye was bought by the state-owned Şehir Hatları municipal ferry company in 1945. In the 1950s, the popularity of ferries grew along with passenger ridership. To increase capacity, a larger terminal was built in 1965 and remains in operation to this day.

Services

Üsküdar is a main pier for the municipal ferry service. Şehir Hatları operates ferries to 20 other piers on the Bosporus and Golden Horn, while Dentur operates to two other piers. Among these destinations are

, Kabataş,

Eminönü Eminönü, historically known as Pérama, is a predominantly commercial waterfront area of Istanbul within the Fatih district near the confluence of the Golden Horn with the southern entrance of the Bosphorus strait and the Sea of Marmara. It is l ...

Karaköy Karaköy (), the modern name for the old Galata, is a commercial quarter in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, Turkey, located at the northern part of the Golden Horn mouth on the European side of Bosphorus. Karaköy is one of the oldest and mo ...

and

Kadıköy Kadıköy () is a municipality and Districts of Turkey, district on the Asian side of Istanbul Province, Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 25 km2, and its population is 467,919 (2023). It is a large and populous area in the Asian si ...

. Ferries leave Üsküdar at an average of 10 minute intervals, making it one of the busiest ferry terminals in Turkey.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=http://www.iett.istanbul/tr/main/duraklar/222001/%C3%9CSK%C3%9CDAR%20MARMARAY-%C4%B0ETT-Duraktan-Ge%C3%A7en-Hatlar-Durak-Bilgileri-Hatt%C4%B1n-Duraktan-Ge%C3%A7i%C5%9F-Saatleri, title=Üsküdar Marmaray - Duraktan Geçen Hatlar, language=Turkish, access-date=15 December 2017 {{cite web , url=http://www.sehirhatlari.istanbul/tr/kurumsal/gundelik-hayatta-sirket-i-hayriye-472.html, title=Üsküdar İskelesi - İskele Hakkında Genel Bilgiler, website=sehirhatlari.istanbul, language=Turkish, access-date=16 December 2017 {{cite web , url=http://www.sehirhatlari.istanbul/tr/kurumsal/tarihce-6492.html, title=Tarihçe, website=sehirhatlari.istanbul, language=Turkish, access-date=16 December 2017 {{cite web, url=http://www.arkiv.com.tr/proje/uskudar-vapur-iskelesi/6585, title=Üsküdar Vapu İskelesi, website=arkiv.com.tr, language=Turkish, access-date=16 December 2017 {{cite book , last=As , first=Efdal , date=2013 , title=Cumhuriyet Dönemi Ulaşım Politikaları (1923-1960) , url=http://www.atam.gov.tr/kitaplar/cumhuriyet-donemi-ulasim-politikalari-1923-1960 , language=Turkish , location=Ankara , publisher=Atatürk Araştırma Merkezi , page=401 , isbn=978-975-16-2635-6 Ferry piers in Istanbul 1853 establishments in the Ottoman Empire Üsküdar