The Galata Tower is one of the highest and oldest towers of Istanbul. 63 meter (206 feet) high tower provides a panoramic view of the old town. It was built in the 14th century by the Genoese colony as part of the defense wall surrounding their district at Galata directly opposite ancient Constantinopolis. They called the tower as “Christea Turris”, or “Tower of Christ”. The Genoese were involved in trade with Byzantines and the tower was used for the surveillance of the harbor in Golden Horn. After the conquest of Constantinople, it served to detect fires in the city.
Hezarfen Ahmet Celebi was the first flying Turk during Ottoman Empire of 17th century.
He copied bird wings and studied air flows, then jumping from the Galata Tower he overflew the Bosphorus and landed at Uskudar district on the Asian side, around 6 kilometers (4 miles) in distance.
After the Republic, Galata Tower was restored and opened to the public in 1967. The tower houses a cafeteria on top, there was also a night club which is closed down after the last restoration in 2013. A couple of elevators will take you up but there are still three more floors to climb by stairs to get on the panoramic terrace which is 52 meters above the ground. A small souvenir shop is located inside the tower just across the ticket office at the entrance level.
