Sirkeci Railway Museum is one of the favorite museums to visit. The first Sirkeci station was built in 1890 and was the eastern terminus of the Orient Express. After the opening of the new Sirkeci station, the old station did not fall into oblivion, but on September 23, 2005 it received a small museum inside its building. The museum with over 300 exhibits presents the railway traffic of Turkey throughout history in the best possible way. Although it is small, in it you can see a rich exhibition collection consisting of photographs, various documents, train parts, things that were used in the Orient Express, office equipment, plates, signaling equipment, timetables, telephones, etc.
The station is located in the Fatih district, not far from Topkapi Palace. It was made in the style of Oriental Gothic, by the German architect Augusta Jasmund. The station building has preserved its original appearance, especially the chandeliers in the interior of the building. The exterior of the building was made in a modern style for the time in which the building was built, which greatly contributed to the architecture of the surrounding buildings, where you can clearly see the identical decorations found at the Sirkeci station.
It is known that the Orient Express train drove the most demanding class of that time and had the best service and everything needed for comfortable transportation from the entrance to the exit station. It had sleeping comfort, excellent service in the restaurant, delicious food served from the train's kitchen. The stratum of society that used the train were sailors, nobles and other notable personalities. The train line was Paris - Istanbul.
Museum opening hours
from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m
Last ulay at 16:40h
Closed on Mondays and Sundays
Entrance to the museum is FREE
Author of the text:
Maja Glavaš, Bachelor with Honours in Communicology. Works in Tourism.
Contact: [email protected]; instagram: travel_europe1
