How Tall Is Camlica Tower? Height, Floors and Facts

Camlica Tower is 369 metres (1,211 ft) tall above the ground, which makes it the tallest structure in Istanbul. Because it stands on Küçük Çamlıca Hill at 218 metres above sea level, its tip reaches 587 metres above the sea. The tower has 49 floors (45 above ground and 4 below), and its two public observation decks are on the 33rd and 34th floors, at 148.5 and 153 metres.

How tall is Camlica Tower?

Camlica Tower measures 369 metres from the ground to the tip of its antenna. The height is made of two parts: a reinforced concrete body that rises 203.5 metres above ground and a steel broadcasting antenna that adds another 165.5 metres. Both parts continue below ground level — the concrete body by 18 metres and the antenna by 2.5 metres — which is why some sources quote 221.5 metres for the concrete and 168 metres for the antenna.

How high is Camlica Tower above sea level?

The tip of Camlica Tower is 587 metres above sea level. The tower itself is 369 metres tall, but it stands on Küçük Çamlıca Hill, whose ground level is 218 metres above the sea. This combination is why the tower dominates the skyline from almost anywhere along the Bosphorus.

Is Camlica Tower the tallest building in Turkey?

Camlica Tower is the tallest structure in Istanbul, and its operator describes it as the tallest structure in Turkey. It is, however, not counted as a building. The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat classifies it as a telecommunications and observation tower, so it does not appear on official tallest-building lists, which only include structures that are mostly made up of usable floors. If you are looking for the tallest structure you can visit in Istanbul, the answer is Camlica Tower; for the tallest office or residential building, you need to look at the skyscraper lists instead.

How many floors does Camlica Tower have?

Camlica Tower has 49 floors: 45 above ground and 4 below. Visitors use only a few of them. The observation decks are on the 33rd and 34th floors, and the restaurant and café are on the 39th and 40th floors, between 175.5 and 180 metres above the ground. The floors in between and below are used for broadcasting equipment and technical services.

What can you see from the observation decks?

From the 33rd and 34th floors, the decks give a 360-degree view across both sides of Istanbul: the Bosphorus and its bridges, the historic peninsula with its mosques and, on clear days, the Princes’ Islands in the Sea of Marmara. You can read more about each deck on the 33rd-floor observation deck and 34th-floor observation deck pages, and see what to look for in the best views from Camlica Tower.

Why was Camlica Tower built?

Camlica Tower was built to replace the many separate television and radio antennas that used to stand on Çamlıca Hill. By bringing the transmitters together in one structure, the hill could be cleared of the old masts. According to the operator, up to 100 radio channels can broadcast from the tower at the same time without interfering with each other.

How does Camlica Tower compare with other towers in Europe?

At 369 metres, Camlica Tower is taller than Berlin’s TV tower and Riga’s radio and TV tower by about a metre, but well below Moscow’s Ostankino Tower, which remains the tallest free-standing structure in Europe.

For side-by-side comparisons with world-famous towers, see Camlica Tower vs Eiffel Tower, Camlica Tower vs Tokyo Skytree and Camlica Tower vs CN Tower.

Common mistakes about Camlica Tower’s height

• “It is 587 metres tall.” 587 metres is the height of the tip above sea level. The tower itself is 369 metres tall.
• “The concrete body is 221 metres and the antenna 168 metres.” Both figures include the parts below ground. Above ground, the concrete body is 203.5 metres and the antenna 165.5 metres, which add up to 369 metres.
• “It is the tallest tower in Europe.” It is not. Moscow’s Ostankino Tower (540 m) and the Kyiv TV Tower (385 m) are both taller.
• “It is the tallest building in Turkey.” It is the tallest structure in Istanbul, but it is classified as a tower, not a building.

Visiting Camlica Tower

Camlica Tower is open from Tuesday to Sunday, 10:00 to 22:00, and is closed on Mondays. Tickets include access to the observation decks, and packages with Turkish tea, breakfast, lunch or dinner on the restaurant floors are also available — see ticket prices and opening hours for the current options. For directions, read how to get to Camlica Tower, and if you are wondering whether to visit the hill or the tower, see Camlica Hill vs Camlica Tower.

For tickets, opening hours and dining packages, visit the Camlica Tower home page.

Questions answered in this article

• How tall is Camlica Tower? — 369 metres above ground.
• How high is Camlica Tower above sea level? — 587 metres at the tip.
• Is Camlica Tower the tallest building in Turkey? — It is the tallest structure in Istanbul, but it is classified as a tower, not a building.
• How many floors does Camlica Tower have? — 49: 45 above ground and 4 below.
• Which floors are the observation decks on? — The 33rd (148.5 m) and 34th (153 m).
• When did Camlica Tower open? — Broadcasting began in September 2020; the official opening was on 29 May 2021.

Sources

• Çamlıca Kulesi (official operator) — Çamlıca Tower technical details
• Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat — Çamlıca Radio & TV Tower
• Daily Sabah — opening ceremony, 29 May 2021
• Heights of other European towers: Wikipedia articles on the Ostankino Tower, Kyiv TV Tower, Riga Radio and TV Tower and Berlin TV Tower.