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Aromas of spice and shoe polish, sights of dazzling ceramics and superb architecture, flavours of loukoum and köfte, touch of soft silks and the sound of boats chugging along the Bosphorus - Istanbul is a city that is guaranteed to keep your sensory perceptions on perpetual red alert. Heidi Fuller-Love gives a few tips on how to spend a week in this vibrant ancient city.

Capital to three of the world’s greatest Empires, and inspiration for Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express, home to exquisite architecture, fascinating museums, lively markets, steamy hammams, and a host of top class restaurants, Istanbul easily merits a month - and can be a bewildering place if you only have a week. The ancient Greeks, passing via the Sea of Marmara, first founded a city here in 680 BC. Captured by the Romans in 330 AD, the Greek Byzantium became Constantinople, and began its thousand-year reign as one of the most influential religious and political centres of the Christian world. The Ottomans, who conquered the city in 1453, first gave this wealthy city the name of Stamboul, but it was only when the Republic of Turkey was declared in 1923 and Turkey’s capital moved to Ankara, that the city officially became known as Istanbul.

Split into 32 main districts, modern Istanbul is a sprawling metropolis. It’s lucky that the legendary strip of water linking the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea, known as the Golden Horn, is always there to help you get your bearings. Named for the sunlight which sets it ablaze on balmy evenings, ‘the horn’, as locals call it, is also surrounded by shady parks for strolling, and tea gardens like the famous Pierre Loti Tea Room which can be reached via the Eyup Sultan cemetery with its Ottoman tombs, where you can try çay along with a bubbling narguile, or just relax and admire the splendid views.

Before putting your feet up, however, you’ll want to head for Sultanahmet. A key area of Istanbul, Sultanahmet is home to three of the city’s most precious architectural ornaments. Spearing the sky with its six slender minarets, Sultanahmet Camii, better known to most people as the Blue Mosque, was built in the 17th century by the renowned Ottoman architect, Mehmet Aga. If the sun outside is beating down on the paving stones then the Blue Mosque is definitely the place to be. The cool interior, hung with opulent chandeliers and decorated with the azure Iznik tiles which gave it that Blue Mosque moniker, is as soothing as an ice-cold drink.

A short stroll north from here will take you to the pink domed Church of the Divine Wisdom, or Aya Sofia, which was built some 1,000 years before the Blue Mosque. Church for 916 years, mosque for 481 and museum since 1935, this vast masterpiece of Byzantine art has fabulous mosaics and paintings, and 30 million gold tesserae tiles that are guaranteed to take your breath away. Just next door, the Topkapi Palace was home to the Ottoman Sultans for 400 years. Apart from housing an ornate harem with room for 800 women, and the fifth largest diamond in the world, a sacred area of the third court is also home to some fascinating holy Muslim relics, including a pair of sandals said to have been worn by the Prophet Mohammed himself.

By day three, you’ll probably have had your fill of monuments and want to sample a slice of authentic Stamboulite life. For something a little different, take Küçükayasofya Avenue and get lost in the labyrinth around the Kumkapi fishing district. You’ll see elderly woman splitting logs for the fire, fisherman cycling past with strings of silver trout, and a host of konaks, the traditional wooden houses which can still be found in the more run-down parts of this vibrant city. Don’t miss Yengeç, a konak in Çapariz Sok Street, which doubles up as a restaurant. Here you can sit watching the world go by while you sample delicious local specialities, including scrumptious grilled shrimp, and salted slices of anchovy mèzes.

As for the Grand Bazaar, or Kapali Carsi, a day is definitely needed to ‘do’ it properly. Dive under one of the bazaar’s six stone arches and you’ll surface in an alley of 4,000 shops selling brightly painted pottery, meerschaum pipes, in-your-face gold and silver, jewellery, swathes of elegant fabrics and, of course, the inevitable Turkish carpets. Haggling is a fine art here, so when you’re hot and flustered and have had your fill, head for Prof Gürkan Cad, where you’ll find Cagoglu Hamami, one of the city’s oldest and most beautiful hammams. Celebrities including the Duke of Windsor and Hungarian composer Franz Liszt have come to work up a sweat in these steam rooms before diving into the cool-off pool or enjoying a pummelling massage, so why don’t you do the same? A few doors down from this celebrated hammam, Sukltanahmet Köftecisi restaurant is the best place in town for sampling the delicious ground-meat kebabs known as köfte, best washed down with ayran, a cooling, salty yoghurt drink. If you fancy something hotter to round off your day, head for Divan Yolu street and order one of a bewildering range of çays on sale in the tea garden, which is set amongst pillars and plinths at the heart of the town’s cemetery.

After all that trekking round town, by day six you’ll be ready to make a beeline for Eminönu square, Istanbul’s major transportation hub. Trains, trams and buses are waiting here to take you anywhere you like, but if your feet are feeling the strain, the best thing is to ignore the train and hop aboard a yacht to enjoy a half-day cruise along the Bosphorus. During the Ottoman period, Istanbul’s most affluent townsfolk built their summer residences along the banks of this sea. Because of the strong winds and humidity, most of these summer homes were built out of wood. Known as yalis, you’ll see plenty of these decorative wooden villas, next to rustic stone fortresses and tiny fishing villages, on your leisurely half-day trip.

Back on terra firma once more, it’s time to head for the Egyptian bazaar (Misir Çarsisi), the Grand Bazaar’s little sister, which you’ll find sprawling at the foot of The New Mosque (Yeni Camii). Don’t expect to see any Egyptians here, though. The name derives from taxes, levied in Cairo, which were used to build this covered market. Dating from an epoch when Constantinople was the spice gateway to the Orient, this aromatic souk bursts at the seams with every spice imaginable, as well as oozing loukoum, rose çay in jute sacks, essential oils, Beluga Caviar and herbal medicines. Vendors of just about every kind of kitchen-ware imaginable can be found crowded around the outside of the Egyptian bazaar, and picturesque streets like Küçük Pazar are a treasure trove of ancient wooden houses and typical kahvehane (cafés).

On your final day head for Galata Bridge. You won’t be disappointed. Once a walled Christian enclave, Galata’s trading links made it the economic heart of the city for many centuries. As you sidle past local fishermen who are busy casting their lines from this picturesque flyover, you’ll be wowed by the monument-filled skyline and fabulous views towards Beylerbeyi. Puff to the top of Galata’s 68 metre tower on the north bank of the Golden Horn, and you’ll be equally impressed by the amazing views over the town. From the Galata district, you can climb Beyoglu hill to reach the ancient Pera quarter. Fief of some of Istanbul’s most powerful families, Pera’s thriving shops and lively nightlife earned it the nickname ‘Paris of the Orient’, at the turn of the 19th century. Istiklal Cadessi, which was Pera’s ancient highway, is still home to the city’s department stores and designer shops. Some top class retail therapy can be had here if you avoid the rush-hour crowds and the battered tramway that runs right down the middle of this otherwise pedestrianised street.

Make a halt in Mesrutiyet Cad to see the Pera Palas hotel where Agatha Christie wrote Murder on the Orient Express. Another stop-off has to be Inçi’s legendary cake shop at number 124, where you can buy sticky loukoums and gooey, honey-coated baklava. If you’re still feeling peckish, why not try the Turk’s favourite snack, a simit, which is a hot crispy bread roll sprinkled with sesame seeds sold in the streets from small pushcarts? Follow the crowds along this busy thoroughfare and, sooner or later, you’ll end up at Taksim Square. Istanbul’s equivalent of New York’s Times Square, Taksim is the lively throbbing cultural and artistic centre of Istanbul. This is the place to come if you want to see live opera, watch bands playing in the open air, have a good meal, or just sit and watch the world go by. Vibrant exciting Taksim Square is also the perfect spot to end your weeklong stay in this city of a thousand delights.

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