Istanbul Suada Galatasaray Island

SUADA - Galatasaray Island

The name was Galatasaray island, the Name of a soccer team, and they changed the name to Suada, also known as Kurucesme islet by residences that one of the best places to swim (in the pool) and have dinner. It is reachable by boats that only 160 meters from the coast.

 The Ottoman Sultan Abdulmejid ordered to built Dolmabahce palace to architect Sarkis Balyan. Upon that job, the sultan gave this island to the architect, and he built a pavilion for himself. Once Russian painter Ivan Aivazovsky stayed in the mansion.

So long time used as coal depot and hired by ship transportation company. In 1957 Galatasaray Sports Club bought this and renovated it in that style you can see on Bosphorus. You can better see Suada Island from the Bosphorus.

You can book Istanbul Bosphorus Cruise Tour with Romos Travel.

About Galatasaray Island

The small island known as the Galatasaray Islet, or Galatasaray Adas in Turkish, is located in Istanbul, Turkey’s Kurucesme neighborhood, and is owned by the Galatasaray Sports Club.

It is a charming building with bars, six restaurants, and two swimming pools that is situated just north of the Bosphorus Bridge and has a view of the Bosphorus. The islet is only 165 meters (541 feet) from the coast of Europe, and you can get there for free by taking a ferry.

Galatasaray Island is currently undergoing construction to become one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks, which began in the fall of 2002. It has been serving as an entertainment and recreation center for the Galatasaray neighborhood and Istanbul residents since July 2007.

The islet was given to Ottoman-Armenian court architect Sarkis Balyan (1835–1899) by Ottoman sultan Abdülaziz (reigned 1861–1876), who built a three-story house there as his residence. Ivan Aivazovsky, a Russian-Armenian painter, stayed in Sarkis’ mansion on the islet during one of his many trips to Istanbul in 1874 and created several of the paintings the sultan had commissioned for the Dolmabahçe Palace there.

After World War I, his legal heirs leased the “Sarkis Bey Islet,” also known as the “Sarkis Bey Islet,” to “Sirket-i Hayriye,” the company that operates passenger ferries in Istanbul, and it served as a coal depot for a sizable period.

Galatasaray S.K. acquired the islet in 1957 and built buildings and sports facilities there. The water polo team called the pool on the islet “home” from 1957 to 1968.

 

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