Does anyone know the timetables of the boat services between Bostanci and the islands? What time is the last boat back?

go to http://www.ido.com.tr and look it up

But is it correct that there is only one service per day and thus you're obliged to spend the entire day on the island? I only find a boat going there around 9.00 AM and a boat back to the mainland around 8.00 PM ...

Gerrit

may be you should spend a little time on it:

go to the english version, download the City Lines timetable.

Check if it is the summer timetable (today and tomorrow), or the winter time table (starting 17 Sept.)

At least during the summer there are many more connections, especially to Büyük Ada.

6 boats going to :

KABATAŞ-BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA 10:45
KABATAŞ-KINALIADA-BURGAZADA-HEYBELİADA-BÜYÜKADA 12:45
KABATAŞ-BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA 14:30
KABATAŞ-BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA 16:45
KABATAŞ-HEYBELİADA-BÜYÜKADA 18:45
KABATAŞ-HEYBELİADA-BÜYÜKADA 20:45

and 6 fast boats coming back.

BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA-BURGAZADA-KINALIADA-KABATAŞ 09:35
BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA-KABATAŞ 11:25
BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA-BURGAZADA-KINALIADA-KABATAŞ 14:00
BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA-KABATAŞ 15:10
BÜYÜKADA-HEYBELİADA-KABATAŞ 17:25
HEYBELİADA-BÜYÜKADA-KABATAŞ 19:35

there are also slow boats and boats leaving from different places; you never specified where from nor the day and if you'd spent 2 minutes on this as I just id you'd have discovered the same. We're all willing to help but you really need to show some willingness to help yourself before resorting to simple questions, especially when the website was given to you.

The times above are valid for 16/09/07

But that's Kabatas. I was looking from Bostanci and found only one boat during the day and one back, forcing the traveller to spend an entire day on the island (which may be worth it, I don't know). I will go from Kabatas then, as that service seems a lot better.

Bostanci link: http://www.ido.com.tr/en/index.cfm?page ... 1052&ln=EN
On the main page, click on the conventional ferry timetables

Thanks. Seems there is plenty of boats after all, at least 15 throughout the day. Confusing site ; why does it only give the 8AM boat on the one page where you have to select destination and click a date on the calendar?

There are also dozens of informal "motors" that leave constantly throughout the day as soon as they are full.

There are 2 types of ferries going to the islands, gerrit, which are on two different pages within the website. The first type are the seabuses also known as fast ferries. They leave very infrequently to the islands. The second type are the normal, slower "city line" ferries of which there are several per day.

You can also take the private "motor" boats that tallpony mentions above from Maltepe and Kartal. The most frequent service, howver, is from Bostancı.

Those motor boats leaving from Maltepe, do you have any idea from where exactly it is and what service I should ask for? It would save me the hassle of first going to Bostanci then to get to Buyukada.

Maltepe Iskelesi. Walk to the seaside from the Maltepe train station and then I believe you walk toward Kartal (but it isn't far from that point).

You'll simply ask for the Büyükada service. Here's the schedule:
http://www.ido.com.tr/index.cfm?page=Su ... 1255&ln=TR