What to Buy at the Grand Bazaar Istanbul? My 2024 experience

When I was walking in the Sultanahmet neighborhood, I got to know the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul. Before I entered this market, I could hear its noise from far away. The moment I entered this market, I was faced with various colorful goods that the sellers introduced to the tourists and asked them to buy.

As I walked into this market, I came across exciting products that I had never seen before in my country, that’s why I tried to visit different parts of this market as much as possible and find out What are the most popular products sold in this market.

What can I buy at the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul?

In the list below, I mentioned the most popular goods sold in Istanbul Grand Bazaar so that you can get an overview of them at the very beginning of the article. In the rest of the article, I will thoroughly explain each of these goods to you, what they are, and what their uses are.

Turkish Handmade Carpet

One of the most expensive things you can buy in Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar is a Turkish hand-woven carpet.

These carpets are woven by artisans using natural dyes. Sometimes, the weaving takes more than a year, which is why they are expensive.

If Kashmir silk is used in the texture of these carpets, its price will increase.

The thing that was very strange to me and I did not know about it was that silkworms produce the silks used in the carpets, and since it takes a long time for these silks to be made by the worms, their price is high.

These carpets are sold in different sizes in the market, and therefore, they can be easily packed. You can buy them safely and take them home by plane.

The price of these carpets varies based on the size, but according to my conversations with the sellers, a 3×3 meter carpet costs about $3000.

I had no information about Turkish carpets and how they were made before. If you don’t have complete information about these carpets like me, but you plan to buy one during your visit to the Grand Bazaar, I advise you to see the video below before purchasing a carpet.

Kilim and table runer

Kilims have different designs, but most are remnants from the Ottoman era. I initially thought they were very expensive, like handwoven carpets, but after talking to the sellers, I realized that they were cheaper. For example, the price of a Kilim 1 x 3 meters is about 40 dollars, and you can buy it from the carpet shops.

Kilims are thinner and lighter than hand-woven rugs, so they are easy to roll up and carry anywhere.

Turks use Kilim as a table runner. When I went to a friend’s house in Istanbul, I saw that he had placed Kilim on all the tables, making his house more beautiful.

Magic lantern

One of the cutest things sold in the market was the magic lantern (Fun lamp). When I saw these magic lanterns, I remembered the story of Aladdin and the magic lamp giant, and that’s why I put my hand on one of the lamps to make a magic giant come out of it to fulfill all my wishes!

The price of these lights was $10, and since they were small, I bought 2 of them and sent them to my family as souvenirs.

Jewellery

From the moment I entered the market until I left, I saw various shops selling beautiful gold and jewelry. Some artisans were making handmade jewelry using gold.

Before buying gold, you should know that the price of raw gold in Türkiye is not much different from America. However, since goldsmiths are paid less in Turkey than in the US and labor is cheap in Turkey, you can expect handmade jewelry to cost less in Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar than in the US.

I wrote a separate article on this topic and provided the necessary explanations in it. If you would like to read it, just refer to the article “Buying Gold in Turkey.”

One thing I noticed while visiting gold shops in Grand Bazaar is that you cannot take more than $15,000 worth of gold out of Turkey. So, if you want to buy gold in Grand Bazaar, be sure not to spend more than that amount because you won’t be allowed to take it home.

To see the price of gold in Türkiye, you can also visit www.exchange-rates.org

Turkish Evil Eye

Turkish Evil Eye is a blue symbol, and Turks believe that wherever this symbol is placed, all negative energy will be removed. However, I don’t believe this. How about you?

The price of Turkish Evil Eye in the Istanbul bazaar is about 8 dollars, a bit more expensive than in other shops outside the bazaar.

If Turkish Evil Eye is attractive to you and you want to know more about it, read the article “Turkish Evil Eye benefits.”

Handmade ceramics and Iznik bowls

One popular object left over from the Ottoman era is decorated ceramic vessels. While walking in the Grand Bazaar, I saw a variety of ceramic dishes with different uses. Some were used as cups, some as ashtrays, and others as vases.

Since these containers are delicate and may break during flight, you must pack them well. I suggest you cover each of these ceramics with a towel or soft cloth.

Leather products

After walking around the Grand Bazaar for two hours, I reached a part of the market where leather products were sold. In this market, you can find all kinds of natural leather jackets, purses, backpacks, luggage, shoes, etc.

Leather products in Turkey are of high quality as most of them are made by hand so you should expect a high price.

Since I had already researched about Turkish leather products, I decided to buy a pair of leather shoes. Leather shoes are very comfortable, and I can walk for several hours without getting tired. I paid about $200 for leather shoes.

If you want to know more about Turkish leather, just read the article “What Are The Leather Goods In Turkey.”

Turkish sweet (locum)

The best part of Istanbul Grand Bazaar is the shops that sell Turkish Delight. When I stopped in front of any shop that sold Turkish Delight, the seller would come up to me with a tray full of locums and ask me to try the sweets.

Some sellers were kind and invited me to their shop for tea, but others wanted to sell me sweets, which was unpleasant for me.

There were many candies with different flavors, colors, and shapes in the shops. The most popular Turkish sweet is baklava. Baklava is full of nuts and has a great taste, and it was enjoyable for me to eat it with a cup of tea.

Turkish sweets are one of the best souvenirs you can buy because they can be kept at home for months without spoiling.

The prices of Turkish sweets vary, but they are not very expensive; I bought a kilo of baklava from the market for 20 dollars, which is worth it.

As I said, there are many shops where you can buy baklava, but according to the inquiries I made to the locals, I found out that gaziantepli kardesler, hafiz mustafa1864, and karakoy gulluoglu are one of the most popular sweets and baklava shops in Istanbul.

To learn more about Turkish Delicacies, read the article “What Do Turkish Delicacies Taste Like?”

Spice

A part of the grand bazaar is dedicated to spice shops, where I started sneezing when I entered because I’m a bit allergic to spices, but after a few minutes, my allergy cleared up, and I was able to continue the visit.

All kinds of spices to make fish, meat, soup, and salad more delicious were sold there, including sumac, chili powder, tomato paste, saffron and course classics.

All the shops sold the same spices, but some offered different prices. I paid about 12 dollars to buy a kilo of spices to make the meat and kebab tastier.

Tea and tea set of six

Turkish teas, such as sour and black tea, are also sold in the spice market. You can buy and take home Turkish tea, and whenever you feel tired, make a cup for yourself and relax.

In addition to Turkish tea, you can also buy glasses for drinking Turkish tea. I saw several tea sets of six models in the market that were sold at different prices, but the average price was around $30.

Coffee and cezve

Turkish coffee is one of the most popular drinks in Türkiye. Various shops in the market, such as “kurukahveci mehmet efendi mahdumları,” sell Turkish coffee at a reasonable price. I paid $2 to buy 150 grams of Turkish coffee.

The name Turkish coffee is not because of the coffee’s differences but because of the way it is made. You need a cezve to make Turkish coffee. I paid $6 for a cezve because I knew that making Turkish coffee using a coffee machine wouldn’t taste good.

The combination of coffee and cezve can be a popular souvenir option. If you like to surprise your family or friends, buy 500 grams of coffee along with a cezve and give it as a gift.

What is worth buying in Grand Bazaar?

Baklava, handmade ceramics, and Kilim are worth buying in the Grand Bazaar because their prices are fair, in my opinion.

In a Nutshell

Strolling through Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar is definitely fun for everyone, but you should expect high prices there. According to the experience I gained during my stay in Istanbul, I understood that the cost of goods in Istanbul Grand Bazaar is about 20% more expensive than outside the market. The reason is that most of the tourists visit this market and it doesn’t matter to them that buy a product at a 20% higher price.