Yıldız Park is a real oasis for Istanbulites and mostly for those living in Beşiktaş like me. Moreover, it is an oasis where you can get away from the crowd and chaos of Beşiktaş and spend time in nature, offering options for all tastes with its historical mansions, hiking trails and picnic areas. A little-known hidden gem inside Yıldız Park. Tent Pavilion thistory, visiting hours, transportation, parking options, what's around, what to eat The answers to many of your questions are waiting for you in this article, have a pleasant reading!
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What You Will Find In This Article
The History of the Tent Mansion
The mansion was built by Balyanlar, the famous architects of the period, as the Observation Mansion, located in the garden of the Çırağan Palace, during the reign of Sultan Abdülaziz in 1871. After Sultan Abdulhamit II moved to Yıldız Palace, Çadır Mansion was added to Yıldız Palace along with some parts of Çırağan Palace.
Mithat Pasha, one of the leading representatives of the generation that carried out the Tanzimat reforms and arrested for the assassination of Abdulaziz, and his friends were interrogated in this mansion, and the pasha was imprisoned in the basement of the mansion for 66 days. After this incident, the mansion was closed and became a desolate place as it was not used. In the photo above, there is an explanation tablet about this event in the left corner of the building.
In 1940, the mansion was handed over to the Istanbul Municipality, and with the arrangement of Yıldız Grove as a park, this mansion was also repaired and renamed as Tent Mansion. If we look at the history of the mansion after this period;
- It was used as “Markiz Patisserie” between 1949-1960 by the owner of the patisserie named Avadis Çakır.
- After the military rule in 1960, it served as the Tanzimat Museum.
- In 1982, it was transferred to the Turkish Touring and Automobile Association together with the other mansions in Yıldız.
- After the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, which took over the mansions in 1995, underwent a fundamental restoration, the mansion was operated by its subsidiary Beltur A.Ş. handed over to.
- It has been serving as a restaurant by Beltur since 1997. After this date, the mansion has undergone restoration several times.
Tent Pavilion Visiting Hours
Yıldız Park can be visited between 07:00 and 22:00 every day. The Tent Mansion in the park provides food and beverage service between 12:00 and 22:00 every day except Mondays.
What's in the Tent Mansion?
Although the Tent Mansion is a modest mansion that is not overly magnificent, it is a remarkable mansion with its large fountain in front of it, its swans and ducks swimming in the pool, and its architecture that looks different from its front and back gardens.
The entrance of the mansion is on the side facing the pool. When you enter inside, you reach the middle hall by passing through a small hall, in front of this hall there is a balcony big enough to fit a few tables. There are two rooms to the right and left of the hall. The living room and rooms are almost the same size. If you come to the mansion to eat and the balcony is available, you can watch the most beautiful Bosphorus view of the mansion from here.
When you enter the mansion, don't just stare at your eye level, raise your head and take a look at the ceiling decorations, they are very beautiful.
During the open hours of the mansion, tables are placed on the pool-facing part, so you can have your meal or coffee by the pool. Especially on hot summer days, this part is very enjoyable.
The fact that there is a parking lot on the side of the mansion facing the Bosphorus, not the pool side, is a great advantage for those arriving by car. Just below the parking lot, there is a playground and picnic tables overlooking the Bosphorus.
As you know, the Tent Mansion was actually one of the many mansions inside the Yıldız Palace. If you take the Tent Pavilion behind you and look towards the palace, you will see a wooden structure built with the bagdadi technique, extending over the walls of the park. Name of this building Cihannüma Mansion. The mansion took this name because of its view of the Bosphorus, Golden Horn and Marmara Sea. Unfortunately, there is no entrance to Yıldız Palace for a long time, it is said to be temporarily closed, but it has been closed for years, and there is no information about the opening date. There are other mansions inside Yıldız Palace, such as Yıldız Şale Mansion, Kaşkat Mansion, Kuşluk Mansion, Auxiliary Mansion, Büyük Mabeyn Mansion, and Çit Pavilion.
What to Eat at Tent Mansion?
Tent Mansion is operated by Beltur and the food menu in the mansion is constantly changing in line with Beltur's creative work. After the Tent Villa was restored, there was only a simple but delicious breakfast service as below, and I used to go often and even hold many meetings and friends' meetings here. However, as of January 2023, there is no breakfast service in the mansion, and the menus where you can taste different cuisines, which are constantly changing, are renewed every few months.
Changing every few months Kastamonu cuisine, Ottoman sea cuisine, Kilis delicacies Which of the different cuisines, such as From Beltur Istanbul's instagram account you can follow. Note also that you need to make a reservation at 444 66 44 to enjoy the special menus.
You can also stop by the Tent Mansion just to drink tea and coffee during the day.
Where is Tent Mansion?
Tent Villa is located between Beşiktaş and Ortaköy, in Yıldız Park (Yıldız Grove), opposite Çırağan Palace, in the western corner of the park, opposite the wall separating Yıldız Palace and Yıldız Park.
How to Get to Tent Mansion?
Undoubtedly, to reach the Tent Mansion, you first need to reach Yıldız Park.
If you are going to the mansion by public transport;
- You can use any public transportation vehicle coming to Beşiktaş to come to the Çırağan entrance, which is the lower entrance of Yıldız Park. You can reach the Çırağan Street entrance of the park from the Beşiktaş Pier, only 1 km from the entrance to the park, with a maximum of 15 minutes of walking.
- Another entrance to Yıldız Park is on Palanga Slope descending from Yıldız to Ortaköy. After getting off the newly opened Yıldız metro, you can reach the Palanga entrance with a 10-minute walk.
It is possible to reach the mansion, located by the large pool in Yıldız Park, with a 10-minute walk from the lower (Çırağan) entrance or the upper (Palanga) entrance of the park.
If you will come to the mansion with your vehicle; After entering the park from the lower entrance, you can easily find it by continuing to the end of the main road and turning left. There are direction signs in the park.
Tent Pavilion Parking Options
There is a car park just below the Tent Mansion. If you are going to enter Yıldız Park with your car, the parking fee for 2023 is 48TL. No matter where you park in the park, you have to pay this parking fee at the entrance.
If you are going to the park and the mansion, especially on busy days such as weekends, my advice is to come by public transport instead of by car. On busy days, the crowd of vehicles in the park can reach a disturbing level.
Other Facilities in Yıldız Park
There are three more facilities outside the Tent Villa inside Yıldız Park. All of the businesses are operated by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. For this reason, they are places where you can find food and drink that are both more delicious and much cheaper than many other places in Beşiktaş.
The most well-known of the facilities in Yıldız Park is undoubtedly the Malta Mansion. The garden and upper floor of the Malta Mansion are used for breakfast and catering in summer/winter.
Beltur Cafe is the green cafe that you will encounter among the greenery while walking in Yıldız Park. You can find tea, coffee and snacks in the cafe. You can continue your walk by taking your tea or coffee in a paper cup or in your thermos as well as the interior and the garden.
Kır Kahvesi, which is closed during the winter months, is a place where you can have breakfast, eat or just go for tea/coffee in the spring and summer months. It is a good option for those who do not want to walk for a long time in the hilly park as it is close to the vehicle road in Yıldız Park.
Tent Lodge Photos
The Tent Villa photos that I used in this article are listed below. All photos are copyrighted by me and cannot be used without my permission and consent.
