The Grand Bazaar: haggling, gates and the real price

The Grand Bazaar is not a shopping centre; it is a covered neighbourhood — twenty-one gates, sixty-odd streets, close to four thousand shops. Go in without a plan and two hours later you will pass the same carpet shop for the third time.

Which gate. Nuruosmaniye is the grandest and opens onto the jewellers' street. Beyazıt is on the university side and is calmer. Coming from us, walk up from Eminönü — twenty minutes — and take in the Spice Bazaar on the way; that is the natural route.

The İç Bedesten, the oldest part, is where the good pieces are: antiques, silver, old watches. Prices are higher and fakes are fewer. The surrounding lanes mix leather, carpets, ceramics and souvenirs.

How haggling works. The marked price is an opening position, not an insult. Say a lower number calmly and expect to meet in the middle. Do not look hurried; the best price goes to the customer who is ready to leave. The offer of tea is a sales technique, but drinking it commits you to nothing.

Worth buying here: hand-worked copper, silver, good leather, spices (cheaper in the Spice Bazaar), Turkish coffee. Not worth buying: counterfeit brands and carpets described as antique — both cause trouble either at customs or on your conscience.

Practicalities. Closed on Sundays. Cards are widely taken, but cash buys more room to haggle. Lavatories are few and charged; deal with that before you go in.

Crowds. Tour groups arrive after three. Go before eleven and the traders are only just opening — easier for everyone.