Istanbul card (Istanbulkart)
You buy the card at metro stations and tram stops. It costs 70 lira.
You load credit on the card (we loaded 200 lira) at the machine paying with cash or credit/debit card and later topped up with another 200 lira. I think (but am not sure) that two people could use one card. You just tap it at the entry turnstile go through, and then hand the card to the other person.
You can use the card on all buses, trams, metro and even the Bosphorus ferry.
Each leg of the journey deducts credit, so if you take 1 x Bus, 1 x tram, 1 x metro that’s three deductions of 18 lira. I think the ferry is 90 lira but we didn’t take it. We did a 1.5 hour cruise for 150 lira instead.
If you prefer you can buy individual bus journey tickets. They are 25 lira.
