Dror + Gensler, selected among several international shortlisted firms, have won an invited competition for the masterplan of Galataport, a vital site on the Bosphorus in the heart of Istanbul. Situated across from the Old City, the 110,000-square-meter area includes the Karaköy and Salıpazarı Quays and boasts a cluster of historic landmarks and contemporary cultural icons, including the Istanbul Modern. A significant portion of the site hosts an active cruise terminal and is closed off to the public due to security measures. Its 1.2-kilometer-long boardwalk is restricted to maintenance, deliveries, and the five to six thousand passengers that disembark each ship, depriving the city of breathtaking views.

Dror + Gensler’s winning masterplan, which is now under construction, opens up this stretch of coastline for public use through a revolutionary cruise terminal—the world’s first underground cruise operation. Made possible by a hydraulic boardwalk and gangway system invented in collaboration with Miami-based interdisciplinary firm BEA, the entirety of the cruise operation’s complex logistics takes place underground.

When a ship docks, the boardwalk hatch opens and transforms into a perimeter wall that secures the area. A gangway rises to meet the ship doors and transports passengers to the underground terminal levels. This innovative system reduces the cruise operation’s ground-level footprint to a 3.5-meter-wide strip of land that’s only in use when and where ships are docked, freeing over 60,000 square meters of accessible waterfront.

Above ground, Dror + Gensler opted to create a vehicle-free, pedestrian-only neighborhood that harmonizes with the city’s existing urban fabric and encourages bustling street life through a vibrant mix of shops, restaurants, cultural attractions and offices. Small, pixel-like buildings flank intimate streets and step down in scale towards the waterfront, creating opportunities for rooftop terraces with beautiful views at every level. Large, open plazas respect standing monuments and facilitate moments of reflection and discovery. Elevated walkways weave the neighborhood together, resulting in a multi-layered pedestrian experience. Abundant vegetation frames the experience throughout, creating a lush environment that blends old and new, city and sea. No building design: renders are illustrative and indicate the masterplan massing only.

Throughout the 20th century, uncontrolled urban development and the weakening relationship between the city of Istanbul and the Sea of Marmara caused significant pressure and spatial disparity in Karaköy. These shifts physically and visually damaged the urban fabric and coastline, leading to a near-complete disconnection. The Galataport Istanbul Project, located along the Bosphorus stretch from Karaköy Ferry Terminal to Tophane Square and the Fındıklı Campus of Mimar Sinan Fine Arts University, emerged from the idea of Karaköy becoming Istanbul’s “renewed face.”

The project connects Karaköy’s shoreline to the new art and culture square in Tophane, introducing various open space strategies to blend multiple urban scales and tactics. However, it is essential to remember that strategic planning and urban design—thus architecture and landscape architecture—are processes that gain meaning through implementation and evolve based on spatial governance and decision-making dynamics.

Besides being a major port, Galataport is a witness to Istanbul’s urban history and culture due to its location across from the historical peninsula. Functioning like an urban laboratory, Galataport presents an intelligible environment where strategies and designs injected into the city’s green infrastructure are developed and tested. It offers breathable, healthy, and safe mixed-use spaces for cultural activities, work, shopping, dining, and everyday urban life.

One of the project’s core objectives is to reduce socio-spatial pressures on Istanbul’s European side by reconnecting the centers of Karaköy and Kabataş via the coastline, mending relations disrupted in recent history. Another key goal is to preserve Ottoman-era warehouses and revive the collective memory tied to the port. The former Tophane Square has been redefined through the restoration of its historical layers and its iconic Clock Tower. Tophane has once again become an open space that greets the sea. Now Istanbul’s first museum square, it integrates urban furniture, play areas for children, and multi-generational uses that revitalize the public space system.

The area has also become a new point of arrival through the transformation of Karaköy’s historic dock into a cruise terminal. The previously inaccessible coastline has now been opened to public use, redefined as a shared urban space with new functions and renewed identity. The Tophane Clock Tower, the Kiosk, Central and Tiled Inns, the former Passenger Hall once used as a post office and hospital, Tophane Fountain, Nusretiye Mosque, Kılıç Ali Paşa Mosque, and surrounding historical buildings form the architectural layer of the project’s cultural heritage.

Tophane Square—home to both Istanbul Modern and the Istanbul Museum of Painting and Sculpture—has been redesigned as a significant reception space, echoing its historical role. The Tophane Clock Tower, once on the verge of disappearing due to neglect, has been restored and reintroduced as an urban artwork. To the north of the square, Tophane Park, the Tophane Fountain, and Nusretiye Pavilion have been redesigned to form a coherent whole with the square and rehabilitated together with their surroundings.

Located in one of Istanbul’s oldest settlements, Galataport is an important port area and a carrier of urban memory. The project simultaneously transforms the historic port into a cruise terminal and reclaims the long-inaccessible waterfront for public use, introducing a new type of public space with a distinct identity. With its strong engineering solutions, Galataport allows two completely different programs—public urban life and cruise terminal operations—to coexist within the same space. Its streets, parks, squares, and shoreline offer a rich variety of uses, while the cruise terminal operates below ground. This dual-use design reinforces Galataport as a key entry point into the city.

Through its design and strategy, the project creates a breathable, safe, and healthy environment for culture, work, and everyday activity—while also introducing a new architectural language to Istanbul’s green infrastructure system.

The project emphasizes the importance of integrating social and physical components of the city to reshape everyday practices and accommodate the complex urban systems reflected in the port. Parallel to this understanding, the spontaneous transformations initiated by citizens as they use the city are seen as essential elements in shaping urban identity.

As part of a port city, Galataport represents a critical urban cross-section of Istanbul, reflecting its spatial, temporal, and social stratification. With its position at the heart of the city, its connection to the Historical Peninsula, and its relationship with traditional neighborhood fabrics, Galataport serves as a vital urban laboratory for analyzing how physical and social components interact across the Galata–Karaköy–Beyoğlu axis.

Green roof systems were installed on all buildings within the project area, allowing visitors to enjoy greenery and panoramic views of the Bosphorus from the upper levels. This approach also contributes to significant energy savings in heating and cooling. With its horizontal and vertical spatial organization, north–south axis, and western connections to other urban fragments, the project influences not only Karaköy but also the Bosphorus and the Historical Peninsula in positive and lasting ways.