Located on the antique Silk Road, trade has been an essential part of life in Istanbul since ancient times. Quality fabrics, gold, silver, jewellery, leather goods, silk scarves, rugs of all sizes, teas, fake goods…shopping in Istanbul is an adventure and her shops won’t disappoint.

Hand-painted ceramics, jewels, antiques, carpets (might any of them be magic?), coloured lamps, the scent of spices and leather, the rumble of the stallkeeper’s conversations… the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul is one of those incredible places which makes you feel as if you’d walked into a tale from the Thousand and One Nights.

Markets in Istanbul come in all stripes, and will sell you everything and anything. The wealth of markets in Istanbul is one of the things that makes the city so vibrant. It’s here, more than anywhere else, where the hackles will rise on the back of your neck in an indication that you are witnessing the truly exotic…

If shopping in Istanbul is big business, the Istanbul Shopping Fest 2012 is set to be huge. With a growing economy and investment of 50 m lira from Turkish airlines, the 2012 edition of the Istanbul Shopping Fest is sure to be a wallet-busting success.