Swimming on the Bosphorus: Where You Can, and Where You Must Not

The Bosphorus is not one place

People talk about the Bosphorus as a single stretch of water. From a yacht it is obviously three. The lower strait, from Karaköy to the first bridge, is palaces and traffic. The middle, between the bridges, is where the villages and the yalı mansions are, and where most of the eating happens. North of the second bridge the hills steepen, the shipping thins, and the water becomes something you can actually swim in.

Almost everything below follows from that geography.

Swimming on the Bosphorus: where you can, and where you must not

Let us start with the part most guides leave out. You do not swim in the main channel. Between the Marmara and the second bridge the strait carries continuous commercial traffic, including tankers, and it runs a surface current that is faster than it looks. Every summer someone tries it from a shoreline in Bebek or Ortaköy and it is not a story with a good ending.

The swimmable Bosphorus is north of the second bridge, in the bays set back from the channel. That is where we anchor, and the reason a swimming day is a longer day: you have to get up there first.

The stops we use

Poyrazköy and the bays around it. Right at the northern end, near where the strait opens into the Black Sea. The water is at its cleanest here, the coves are set back from the traffic, and the shipping is behind you. This is the stop most guests remember.

The coves around Anadolu Kavağı and Rumeli Kavağı. The two fishing villages at the top of the strait, with sheltered water on either side and Yoros Castle above. A short hop from Poyrazköy, so the two combine naturally into one day.

The Sarıyer and Beykoz side bays. Slightly further south and therefore easier to reach on a shorter charter, less pristine than the far north but perfectly good, and the sensible choice if you only have half a day.

Season runs roughly June to September, warmest in August and early September. We anchor, put a swim ladder down, and stay as long as you want. Life jackets are on board in adult and children’s sizes.

The one day the rule changes

Once a year, in high summer, the strait is closed to traffic for a few hours for the Bosphorus Cross-Continental Swim, and several thousand people swim from Asia to Europe. It is the only day anyone swims the channel itself, and if your dates happen to land on it, watching from a yacht is a genuinely extraordinary thing.

How long a swimming day takes

Half day, four hours. Up to the Sarıyer or Beykoz bays, an hour or two in the water, back. The sensible choice if the day has something else in it.

Full day, around eight hours. North to Poyrazköy and the Kavağı villages, a long swim, lunch at anchor, and the run home with the light behind you. This is the trip most guests mean when they say they want to swim on the Bosphorus.

Private charter starts at €150 per hour with a two-hour minimum, and a swimming day needs the longer end of that. Tell us how much of the day you want on the water and we will build the route around it. A full day is priced differently: on bookings of six hours or more the rate starts from €120 per hour, because the yacht and its crew are yours for the day rather than for an evening. Six or eight hours is the usual shape of a swimming day, and we can run it shorter or longer to suit you.

If the water is not the point and you would rather eat, drink and be dropped somewhere good, that is a different evening entirely — see Bosphorus restaurants and clubs you can reach by yacht.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a full day cheaper per hour than a short charter?

Yes. A short charter starts at €150 per hour with a two-hour minimum; on bookings of six hours or more the rate starts from €120 per hour. A swimming day is usually six or eight hours, and we can make it shorter or longer to suit you — tell us the shape of the day you want and we will price it before you book.

Can you swim in the Bosphorus?

Not in the main channel. Between the Marmara and the second bridge the strait carries continuous commercial traffic and a surface current that is faster than it looks, and swimming there is genuinely dangerous. You can swim north of the second bridge, in the bays set back from the channel, and that is where we anchor.

Where exactly do you anchor to swim?

The coves around Poyrazköy at the northern end, the sheltered water either side of Anadolu Kavağı and Rumeli Kavağı, and the Sarıyer and Beykoz side bays if the charter is shorter. All of them are off the shipping lane and out of the current.

When is the swimming season?

Roughly June to September, with the warmest water in August and early September. Outside those months the northern Bosphorus is still worth the trip, but plan it as a cruising day rather than a swimming one.

How clean is the water where you swim?

Clean enough that most guests who planned to stay on deck do not. The reason is position rather than luck: the coves north of the second bridge sit away from the shipping lane and away from the city, which is exactly why we go up there instead of stopping somewhere closer.

Do we need to be strong swimmers?

No. We anchor in calm water, the swim ladder goes down off the back, and life jackets are on board in adult and children’s sizes. Anyone who would rather stay on deck still gets the best part of the stop.

Can we combine swimming with the Princes’ Islands?

Not in the same day — they are in opposite directions. The islands are their own full day, and the bays there are calmer and the crossings shorter; see our guide to swimming around the islands.