Major update: 1. 11. 2009

Imagine… to go shopping for an entire week in a wonderful city – where you only do the most important sight seeing on Sunday because most shops are closed on that day… It’s what can happen to you in Istanbul!

The following article is the product of various trips to Istanbul – I am rather addicted to the place and go there every year if possible!

If you travel to the Middle East for the first time, Istanbul is a good choice. The city is rather westernized but still with a lot of Oriental charm. One of the big advantages is that everything is written in Latin script, so we kann read it – except of course for the signs for Russian tourists! And Turkish has borrowed a lot of words from French; and since the language is written the way it’s spoken, the Turkish spellings always amuse me: a coiffeur becomes a kuaför for example…

If you go shopping for dance costumes, you can pay in Turkish Lira, Euros or dollars – or practically every other major currency. Most of the time the price is given in Euro though. The majority of costume sellers don’t accept credit cards but if necessary you can find ATMs at every corner.

Addresses and links are listed here.

If you would like to see what costumes from SIM, Legends, Bella and others look like, you can visit my gallery.

By the way: Istanbul has an excellent tango scene, one can go dancing in a Milonga every night – and get cheap tailor made tango shoes. Read more about this here.

Dance Costumes and accessories

It’s important to keep in mind that you don’t buy a dance costume in 10 minutes. Sometimes we spent up to 2 hours in a shop to see and try on everything. Most sellers also offer to adjust hooks and straps to your size, so you have to go back one or two days later to get the costume. You see, it’s really easy to spend a whole week just shopping in Istanbul!

There are two major areas to buy costumes: The Kapali Carsi (Grand Basar) and Istiklal Caddesi. Some shops can also be found in the Spice (Egyptian) Basar and other places. Contrary to Egypt, nearly all of the costume stores have a website. I couldn’t visit them all but include them on the list.

All costume shops and designers offer the possibility of tailor made costumes (no extra costs). Personally, I prefer to have my costumes made according to my ideas and wishes. You can bring detailed drawings, color schemes etc. or just seek inspiration in the ready made costumes – like „I would like to have this costume, but in red and with a different skirt“.

It’s also possible to order via fax or e-mail. But in my experience the price is often better if you go to a shop in person and negotiate. It’s also easier to choose materials and colors. It takes about one to two weeks to make a costume. So it’s best to order right after your arrival in Istanbul (so you also have time for a fitting). But of course the tailors can send the costumes in the mail if it takes longer. Most of them are very used to this.

Now let me take you on a walk…

For many people, the Grand Basar is one of the main attractions on Istanbul. And it's very "grand" indeed! You can spend a whole day there - and might get lost some times...

Very important advice: BARGAIN, BARGAIN, BARGAIN!!!! Never, under any circumstances, buy anything for the price that is quoted first!!! You will regret it!

If time allows it, spend your first day just looking around and comparing prices. You will soon find out that many shops have the same merchandise. So don’t buy something at the first shop, you can always come back. And often the price will suddenly drop the moment you leave the shop! There are many shops that offer dance costumes, but only a few of them sell their own production (even if they tell you something else). You will find that there are similar costumes in many of the shops. The reason: There are only 4 to 5 producers who make most of what is sold in the Grand and Egyptian Basar. For the sellers there, costumes are just another merchandise like handbags or carpets. To determine the general price level in a shop you can do the „hip scarf test“. All shops sell the same few models of hip scarves, so ask their price to find out if it’s a cheap or expensive shop. And if you buy something, don’t forget to ask for the special price, especially if you buy several pieces.

Aziza doing the "hip scarf test"

One of the few shops that actually sells their own products is Gülseren Giyim’s. She has a lot of costumes in store and additional showrooms. You can get a simple costume for a good price, but there are also more expensive models. Unfortunately Gülseren has lost her own style a bit – many costumes look like those of other sellers – which could also be due to the demands of her clientele. Most costumes on display are in the middle price class. If you would like to buy a professional costume, you have to say so – and suddenly they bring out really nice creations. This is a good shop for accessories and hip scarves or if you need a matching skirt for a bra-belt set you have bought elsewhere (because sometimes they come with rather useless skirts). This is also a good place for beginner/intermediate costumes.

One of our favourite shops in the Grand Basar is Ali Baba, a big store right next to the basar’s café. Besides other textiles there is a big choice of dance apparel, from „carnival costumes“ to professional quality. The upper floor is dedicated entirely to dance costumes and has 2 rooms, one for the cheaper priced costumes and one for more exclusive but not too expensive models. It’s here that we found bra-belt sets that have the typical Turkis style with V-shaped belts but are still different from the standard models you see everywhere else in the basar. The skirts are on the skimpy side, but that’s what Gülseren is for… It’s also worth to pay a visit to MAY, a small shop that besides other also has costumes from Misar Butik. The latter has an atelier in the basar, but you won’t find ready made costumes, it’s where she makes costumes on demand (she also delivers to German costume dealers like Sakkara). If you would like to order an individual costume, this is where you will get very good quality for a reasonable price. There are countless other shops with standard design costumes. Some of them have a few special models, so if you have enough time it pays to go through everything. Your shopping experience can also vary from day to day, depending who is in the shops. I have received e-mails from people who found Gülseren absolutely fantastic and were dissapointed with Ali Baba… So in the end it’s best to visit them all! If you prefer Tribal Style to glittery sequins, there is an entire street in the basar for your taste. One shop after the other with tribal jewellery and textiles. And the same rules apply: Most shops have similar things, so look around first and compare prices. There are more shops in the Egyptian Basar, but don’t expect any surprises – dance costumes are sold as a mass article here and often a bit more expensive than similar models in the Grand Basar. After walking through this smaller basar, go uphill where you will find many shops for household articles. This is also where you will find many shops for fashion jewellery, pearls, rhinestones etc. for very good prices! Ever bought sequins at home in little plastic boxes for a lot of money? Here you can find them in big plastic bags, and dirt cheap. And there is one shop called Orijinal that has Swarowski stones and the like on 3 floors!

Now we cross the Galata bridge and take the „Tünel“ train uphill. If you turn to your right after the station, you will find a steep street downhill that has many music shops. If you plan to buy an instrument, you should do it here. It’s much cheaper than in the basar, depending on the quality. Walking uphill you can follow the rails of the tramway up to Taksim square. This is Istiklal Caddesi, the perfect street for fashion shopping. And all the CD shops have their doors wide open and play the latest tunes rather loud… Not to far from the Tünel station there is a shop to the left that sells garments made of Indian fabrics – I really like shopping there…

?imi, a former employee of SIM’s is the owner of Legend Costumes close to Taksim square. It’s worth it to climb the stairs up to the 5th floor! She designs great costumes with original ideas. I also have some of her models (custom made). There is a small choice in the shop, but her strong side is the design of individual costumes.

And now comes the moment we have all been waiting for…. Thanks to the new Metro it’s easy to get to Turkey’s most famous costume designer: Bella. They have been in the business for over 50 years and know how to make breathtaking, top quality costumes. Of course, sometimes it’s also the price that takes your breath away… And there isn’t much use in haggeling here. But the good news is that they have costumes in various price categories, so you can buy a Bella costume even if your budget is limited. The amount of available costumes varies – if there is a big dance festival in Europe, it can be that they send a lot of costumes there. But anyway, if you spend enough time in the show room and ask for it, they will also show you half finished costumes in the color you are looking for. This has the advantage that you can try the costume on, have it easily adjusted to your size and you can also choose how much bling you want on it (which will determine the price). You can then get the costume in about 2 or 3 days. Beware: If you are allergic to cats, be careful – there are about a dozen cats in the showroom. We also call it the Cat Cave :-) Don’t wear black if you come here…

The Oriental Divas at Bella's

Nightlife

What would a dancer's visit to Istanbul be without a "Turkish Night" show? These are clearly designed for tourists but offer an excellent opportunity to see several Oryantal dancers and really nice folklore groups. You can choose to have dinner there or just drinks (some fruit is included). And the price typically also includes the drive back to the hotel in a mini-bus.

Well known places are Orient House and Kervansaray. The dancers change, but the big star in Orient House is Birgül. So ask on what evenings she will perform. In Kervansaray you can see today's most famous Turkish dancer: Asena! Despite the more expensive price, a visit there is worth it just for seeing her (but I also liked the other 3 dancers I saw there last time).

Birgül	Asena	Yildizay	Özlem	Folklore group at Orient House

The folklore groups inbetween the Oryantal dancers are also very good and worth it.

Dance classes

Most of the time I am too busy shopping in Istanbul - but if you have the time, you can contact one of the teachers on my list.

Non-dance tips

Find information about hamams, hotels, general shopping etc. here.

All addresses and links for the following text are collected here.