Büyükdere Avenue

It begins at Şişli Mosque and runs in an eastward direction partly under the viaduct of the inner-city motorway O-1 through Mecidiyeköy, Esentepe, until reaching Zincirlikuyu; where it joins with Barbaros Boulevard and turns northward passing through Levent, Sanayi Mahallesi, Maslak and by the Fatih Forest, ending at the Hacıosman Slope on the Sarıyer district border.

From Zincirlikuyu to Maslak, it forms a border line between the districts of Kağıthane in the east and Beşiktaş in the west.

It is a major artery of the Istanbul Central Business District, which is not located in the historic center of the city.

Headquarters of many banks, business centers, shopping centers, luxury hotels and numerous skyscrapers built in recent years are located around Büyükdere Avenue, making it an important route of financial, business and social life.

[2] On November 20, 2003, the headquarters of the HSBC Bank Turkey on Büyükdere Avenue in Levent was car bombed by a terrorist (suicide bomber) linked to Al Qaeda, killing and wounding a number of people.