Grand Bazaar, Istanbul

Famous Hollywood actor Robert De Niro, who came to Istanbul to make inspections at his restaurant Nobu, praised Türkiye's most populous province, saying that he would one day consider shooting a movie in the metropolis.

Answering a related question, De Niro likened Istanbul to New York.

Turkey's historic Grand Bazaar will reopen for shopping as of June 1, the chairman of the iconic tourist destination said
on May 8. 

Fatih Kurtulmuş, chairman of the Grand Bazaar's (Kapalıçarşı) board, told reporters inside the 500-plus-year-old building about new measures to step up protections when visitors return.

A long-awaited restoration in the world's oldest covered bazaar, Istanbul's historic Grand Bazaar, has begun with efforts to replace the tiles in the commercial and tourist venue. 

Restoration plans of the 554-year-old bazaar, known as "Kapalıçarşı" in Turkish, initially began seven months ago.

Istanbul's Grand Bazaar, one of the oldest surviving shopping centers in the world, has a new president and board following the first elections in its nearly six-century history. 

The election over the weekend came at a time when the discussion over renovating the facility, a top tourism spot in the city, has heated up. 

The Grand Bazaar has been named the ?most valuable spot? in Istanbul, with rent worth around $3,500 per square meter per month, according to a new study by Turkey?s Eva Real Estate Valuation Consultancy. 

The Kalpakç?lar Caddesi, a street in the Grand Bazaar full of jewelry and gold shops, is the most expensive street in the Grand Bazaar, according to the study. 

Police have forcefully evicted the renters of several shops inside the historic Grand Bazaar, Istanbul's largest covered market, just one day after detaining 20 shop owners who refused to leave the bazaar in protest of a renovation project. 

Some 80 shops inside the Sandal Bedesten section of the Grand Bazaar were evicted under the control of the riot police on April 22.