[1] Wainwright: Pay 7 Lira to [2-4] Fabric / Spice / Fruit [5] Post Office: You receive the [6] Caravansary: Take 2 Bonus [7] Fountain: Return any number of your
get one Wheelbarrow Warehouse: Move the Goods resources that are depicted on the cards into your hand and Assistants to your Merchant stack. The
extension. The third )me indicator of the respec=ve good as 4 uncovered spaces. Then move discard 1 Bonus card from your Fountain is the only Place where you do
you do so, you receive a far to the right as possible. If you the leCmost Mail indicator of the hand. Note: When taking not need to have an Assistant there to
Gem from the Wainwright. have the green Mosque )le, you top row down to the boDom row. If Bonus cards with this ac)on carry out the ac=on and you do not have
may pay 2 Lira to gain 1 addi)onal all Mail indicators are already in (and only with this one), you to pay other Merchants if they are present.
good of any type. the boDom row, move them all may also take them from the If you send your Family Member to the
back to the top row. Example: You top of the face-up discard pile! Fountain, your Assistants are s=ll returned
receive 3 Lira, 1 yellow and 1 red to your Merchant stack.
good. Then you move the Mail
indicator off the blue good onto
the yellow one.

[8] Black Market: Gain 1 red or 1 yellow [9] Tea House: Announce a number [10/11] Small / Large Market: Sell 1-5 of [12] Police StaPon: If your Family member is in the Police
or 1 green good. Roll both dice: between 3 and 12. Then roll both dice. the goods that are depicted on the Sta=on,“free” it and send it to another Place.
If you rolled 7 or 8: Gain 1 blue good. If you roll equal to or greater than the Demand =le. Move the Goods indicators Then carry out the ac=on of that Place. Your Family member
If you rolled 9 or 10: Gain 2 blue goods. announced number, take the announced on your Wheelbarrow accordingly. Then does not have any encounters. While at other Places, your
If you rolled 11 or 12: Gain 3 blue goods. number of Lira from the general supply. take the revenue from the general Family member may be caught by other Merchants and sent
You may also roll the dice first and gain Otherwise, only take 2 Lira. supply according to the table. back to the Police Sta=on. As a reward, the catching player
the one addi=onal good aCerwards. If you have the red Mosque )le, you Finally, move the current Demand =le to will get 1 Bonus card or
If you have the red Mosque )le, you may turn one die to “4” aSer the roll or the boDom of the stack. 3 Lira. Example: You
may turn one die to “4” aSer the roll or re-roll both dice. send your Family
re-roll both dice. member from the
Police Sta)on to the
[13] Sultan’s Palace: Deliver all the goods [14/15] Small/Great Mosque: Take 1 Mosque =le. Spice Warehouse. You
that are not covered by a Ruby to the To do so, your Wheelbarrow must carry the goods fill your Wheelbarrow
Sultan. As a reward, take the next available that are depicted on the Mosque =le in the required with the green goods.
Ruby from the track and place it on your quan==es. Then pay 1 of the depicted goods. You do not have to pay
Wheelbarrow. Consequently, the next Each Mosque =le provides a special ability (see 2 Lira to your opponent and you may not use
Ruby will be more expensive. Example: below). You may only have one copy of each =le. As the Governor.
You have to pay 2 blue, 2 red, 1 yellow, 1 soon as you acquire both =les of one Mosque,
green and 1 good of any type to get the immediately and only once take 1 Ruby from that [16] Gemstone Dealer: Pay
next Ruby from the track. Mosque and place it on your Wheelbarrow. a number of Lira into the
general supply equal to the
biggest number that is not
MOSQUE TILES covered by a Ruby. Then take
the next available Ruby from
Yellow tile
Red tile the track and place it on your
Once on your turn, you may pay 2 Lira to
At the Tea House [9] and the Black Wheelbarrow. Consequently,
return an Assistant to your Merchant
Market [8] , you may turn 1 die to “4” the next Ruby will be more expensive. Example: The
stack.
after the roll or re-roll both dice (1x). biggest number that is not covered by a Ruby is 15. So you
have to pay 15 Lira to get the next Ruby from the track.

Setup:
Green tile
Blue tile Fountain must be in the middle area.
When using one of the three Warehouses
Immediately take the 5th Assistant of Tea House and Black Market should be at least 3 Places apart.
[2], [3], [4] , you may pay 2 Lira to gain
your color from the general supply and 2 Players: Place unused Merchants on =les [14], [15], & [16). If encountered,
1 additional good of any type.
place him under your Merchant. pay 2 Lira to the general supply, then roll dice to place them elsewhere.
Mosque Tiles: Players:
5 Players: All 4 Tiles / 4 Gems Player 1: 2 Lira + 1 Bonus Card
4 Players: All 4 Tiles / 4 Gems Player 2: 3 Lira + 1 Bonus Card
3 Players: 2, 3, 4 Tiles / 3 Gems Player 3: 4 Lira + 1 Bonus Card
2 Players: 2, 4 Tiles / 2 Gems …etc.
MOCHA & BAKSHEESH:
[17] Roasting Plant
Choose 1-3 of the following 3 options:
Pay 2 Lira and take 2 coffee.
Pay any 1 good and take 2 coffee.
Discard a Bonus or Guild card and take
2 coffee. Example: You pay 2 Lira and
discard a Bonus card to receive 4 coffee
from the supply.
[18] Guild Hall
Take 1 coffee from the supply. Take 2 cards
from the top of the face-down pile of Guild
cards. Then place a Guild card from your
hand (which does not need to be one of the
cards you just drew) on the face-up discard
pile next to the game board, without using its
effects.
[19] Tavern
Choose one of the following 3 options. You may need to pay a “Baksheesh” in the form of 1-4 coffee,
depending on your choice:
Pay 2 coffee and place the Barrier between 2 places. Carry out the action of one of these places.
You do not have any encounters. Take the Barrier Control tile, which indicates that you are the
only player who may pass the Barrier. The other players may not move through the Barrier — even
if they have the Movement tile (see below).
Take the topmost Tavern tile from one of the piles and pay the depicted amount of coffee. You can
only have one of each type of Tavern tile. The Tavern tile provides an ongoing effect that you can
use for the rest of the game.
Encounter tile
Whenever you encounter the Governor, Smuggler and/
or Coffee Trader and receive something from them, you
do not need to pay anything for it anymore. Baksheesh Tile

[20] Coffee House
Deliver an amount of coffee to the Coffee
House equal to the biggest number that is
not covered by a ruby (6-10). As a reward,
take the next available ruby from the track
and place it on your Wheelbarrow.
Movement tile
[6] Caravansary: Take 1 Coffee AND
Instead of moving your stack 1 or 2 places, you can
Take 2 Bonus cards into your hand and
move it any number of places in a straight line (but you
discard 1 Bonus card from your hand.
cannot move through the Barrier, unless you have the
Barrier Control tile).
Pay 4 coffee and the goods depicted on the Baksheesh tile. Take the next available Ruby from either
the Sultan’s Palace [13], Gemstone Dealer [16], or Coffee House [20]. Afterward, turn the
Baksheesh tile to the other side.

LETTERS & SEALS:

[21] Embassy [22] Kiosk [23] Auction House

Take 2 Letters from the general supply and place them face
up in front of you (i.e. with the Place number facing up).
Take 1 Letter from the general supply and place it face up in
front of you. Then turn over 1 Kiosk tile per player plus one.
Beginning with you and in clockwise order, each player must do
the following:
Choose 1 of those Kiosk tiles.
Carry out its action or not. (See overview of Kiosk Tiles
below)
Turn it face down. The other players cannot choose it.
You also get to use the remaining Kiosk tile. Then discard all of
those Kiosk tiles.
Take 1 Good of your choice. Then auction off 2 Bonus cards:
Place a bid of at least 1 Lira. Then each other player in
clockwise order may place exactly 1 bid or pass. Each
new bid must be higher than the last. After all other
players had the chance to bid you may place a final bid
or pass.
The winner of the auction draws 2 Bonus cards from the
draw pile and takes them into their hand.
If you win, pay your bid to the general supply. If another
player wins, they must pay their bid to you.

Example with 3 players: Yellow takes 1 blue Good and places an

[24] Secret Society [25] Catacombs initial bid of 1 Lira. Red passes. Blue bids 5 Lira. Yellow could
Discard Letters showing a total of 6 Seals. As a reward, take the Take 1 Good of your choice (or Coffee). Then move place a final bid but passes. But draws 2 Bonus cards from the
next Ruby from the Sultan’s Palace [13], the Gemstone Dealer your Merchant stack to a Place of your choice. You may draw pile and pays 5 Lira to Yellow.
[16] of the Coffee House [20] and place it on your Wheelbarrow. not take that Place’s action and you do not have any
The first player to take this action receives 3 Lira, the second encounters there.
one 2 Lira, and the third 1 Lira. Any subsequent player only Note: If you use your Companion, move your
gets the Ruby and no additional Lira. Companion to a Place of your choice. GRAND BAZAAR SETUP:
Fountain must be in the middle.
Tea House and Black Market should be at least 3 Places apart.
NOTES ON THE COMPANION
Move your Companion to your personal supply the first time you use the Fountain [7]. Note: See Ralph Bruhn’s addi=onal setup recommenda=ons for the
Grand Bazaar.
Once there, you can put him next to your Merchant at the start of your turn.
Once on the game board, you choose whether to use your Merchant or your Companion.
 


Gain 1 good of your
choice. May only be the general supply.
played before or after
an action, but not while
carrying one out.
BONUS CARDS:
BASE GAME
Take 5 Lira from If you carry out the If you carry out the If you carry out the Place your Family In the 1st phase of your If you carry out the
action at the Sultan’s action at the Post action at the member on the Police turn, do not move your action at the Small
Palace [13] , after Office [5], after Gemstone Dealer Station [12] and Merchant. Your Merchant Market [11], you have
completing the action, completing the [16], after collect the reward. stays at his current Place to sell the required
carry it out one more action, carry it out completing the Not playable if your but you have to use an number of goods but
time. The number of one more time. Move action, carry it out Family member is Assistant again. you may use other
goods to deliver to the a Mail indicator one more time. The already at the Police types of goods than
Sultan increases after after each action is amount of Lira to required.
Station [12].
each action. used. pay for the Ruby
increases after
each action.

In the 1st phase of In the 1st phase of Take 2 Coffee from Pay 2 Coffee and Pay 1 Coffee and Roll 2 dice and take the If you are at the Coffee Instead of moving your
your turn, move your turn, return 1 of the supply. take 1 Guild card take 8 Lira. depicted rewards. House [20], you can Merchant by 1 or 2
your Merchant your assistants to from the face-down immediately carry out places, move him to a
stack by 3 or 4 your Merchant stack. pile. the action one more corner place.
Places (instead of time.
1 or 2). MOCHA EXPANSION

After you roll the dice Exchange up to 3 If you are at the Take 1 Letter. Roll 2 dice and take Pay 1 Good (or During the “Movement” During the “Movement”
(except for when you goods (or coffee) Wainwright [1] you the corresponding Coffee) to receive 7 phase, choose another phase, move your Family
move a neutral for the same can immediately reward. Lira. player’s Merchant and Member to an
token), you can turn number of other carry out the action move your Merchant orthogonally adjacent
one die to a “6”. goods (or coffee). one more time. stack to that Place. This Place and take that
Example: You replaces your regular Place’s action without
exchange 3 yellow movement by 1 or 2 having any encounters.
goods for 2 blue Places. You do not have to This replaces your regular
goods and 1 coffee. LETTERS EXPANSION pay that specific Merchant turn, i.e. you do not move
but you do have your Merchant or
encounters with other Companion. For this,
tokens if present. your Family Member
may neither be at the
Police Station [12] nor
move thereto.

If you are at one of

Use the Governor, If you are at the Secret During the During the Take the depicted Carry out the action of
the Mosques [14],
Smuggler, Courier, or Society [24] you can “Movement” phase, “Movement” Good and 3 Lira. the topmost Bonus
[15], you can
Coffee Trader and pay immediately take its you can pay 3 Lira to phase, you can card on the discard
immediately take its
the cost. Then roll the action one more time. move your Merchant move your pile.
action one more
dice to determine the time. stack to any Place. Companion by 2
new position of the This replaces your Places instead of
token. regular movement just 1.
by 1 or 2 Places.
GUILD CARDS 


KIOSK TILES

Choose one: Pay 1 Good (or Coffee) Take 1 Bonus Card Roll 1 die and take 1 Take 2 Take 1
and take 1 Letter, or discard 1 Letter Lira per pip rolled. Red Goods. Blue Good.
and take 1 Good (or Coffee).

Choose one: Discard 1 Bonus card

and take 1 Letter, or discard 1 Take 2 Take 1
Pay 1 blue, yellow, green,
Letter and take 1 Bonus card. Take 2 Lira Green Goods. Red Good.
and red Good for a
Wheelbarrow extension.

Choose one: Pay 2 Lira and Move your Merchant stack

take 1 Letter, or discard 1 to the Fountain [7] without Take 1 Red Good Take 2 Take 1
Letter and take 3 Lira. collecting any assistants. and 1 Lira. Yellow Goods. Green Good.

Choose one: Pay 2 Lira and take

1 Good of your choice (or Coffee), or Pay 10 Lira for a Take 1 Green Take 1 Coffee Take 1
pay 1 Good or your choice (or Coffee) Wheelbarrow extension. Good and 1 Lira. OR 3 Lira.
Yellow Good.
and take 3 Lira.

Choose one: Pay 2 Lira and take 1

Bonus card, or discard 1 Bonus card Move your Companion Take 1 Yellow Take 1 Coffee
and take 3 Lira. to your personal supply. Good and 1 Lira. OR 2 Lira.
 

END GAME: VARIANT (FOR 2-4 PLAYERS)
YOUR TURN First player to 5 Gems triggers the end game. Then finish the If you have already played Istanbul a few times, we
round. (Every player receives an equal number of turns.) recommend you try out this more tactical variant:
1. Move your stack (Merchant + Assistants) 1 or 2 Places and…
Base Game with only 2 Players: First Player to 6 Gems. During setup, replace the bottommost Assistant of your
…place it on top of your Assistant (if there is one) or stack with an Assistant of a neutral color (we
Mocha & Baksheesh / Letters & Seals / Grand Bazaar
…place it next to the bottommost Assistant of your stack recommend you use white as the neutral color, see fig.
All Player Counts: First Player to 6 Gems below).
otherwise your turn ends immediately
Tie Breaker:
2. If you encounter other Merchants… Tie Breaker #1: Player with the Most Lira
Pay 2 Lira to each Merchant Tie Breaker #2: Player with the Most Goods in Wheelbarrow
otherwise your turn ends immediately Tie Breaker #3: Player with the Most Bonus Cards Left in
3. Carry out the action of the Place (optional) Hand
If still tied, players share the victory. If your Merchant ends his movement at a Place with a
4. If you encounter…
neutral Assistant, he may pick him up as if this were
other Family members: You must send them back to the Police Station and you may take 1 one of your Assistants.
Bonus Card or 3 Lira for each of them. If there are both a neutral and one of your Assistants at
the Target Place, you may decide which Assistant to
the Governor (optional): You may draw 1 Bonus card from the face-down stack and put it into pick up in order to carry out the action.
your hand. If you do, either pay 2 Lira or discard 1 Bonus card from your hand.
You are allowed to have more than one neutral
the Smuggler (optional): You may gain 1 good of your choice. If you do, either pay 2 Lira or 1 Assistant under your Merchant.
good. At the Fountain [7] , you can only get your own
Assistants back.
Note: Expansions add the Coffee Trader and Courier for Encounters.
Coffee Trader (optional): You may gain 1 Coffee for 1 Good of your choice or 2 Lira.
Courier (optional): You may gain 1 Letter for 2 Lira or by discarding 1 Letter.
WITH MOCHA & BAKSHEESH RALPH BRUHN SET-UP RECOMMENDATIONS
1. Instead of going through the normal 4 steps of your turn, you can play a Guild card. Carry out the effect of the Place the Warehouses at least 3 spaces from the Mosque of the same
Guild card and afterward place it on the discard pile next to the game board. color.
Important: Don’t place the Tea House and the Post Office on one of the central
• Playing a Guild card replaces your entire turn, so you do not move your Merchant and you do not have any spaces.
encounters – unless the effect of the Guild card says differently.
Place at least one of the Markets in a corner.
• When you play a Guild card, you cannot use any Bonus cards or Mosque tiles that require you be at a particular
place. You can play any other Bonus cards. Place the Gemstone Dealer at least 3 spaces from the Great Market
and the Tea House.
• You must carry out all instructions on the Guild card. If you cannot, you may not play it.
WITH LETTERS & SEALS Don’t put the Warehouses close together.
• There is a new movement option: No Mocha & Baksheesh Expansion: Place the Caravansary on one of
If your Companion is in play, i.e. standing on a Place tile, you can move him instead of your Merchant. the central places. With Mocha & Baksheesh Expansion: do not put
The Companion follows the same rules as the Merchant with the following exceptions: the Caravansary on one of the central places.
A. The Companion can only move by 1 Place, i.e. to an orthogonally adjacent Place. With Mocha & Baksheesh Expansion: Place the Guild Hall and the
B. He works alone, i.e. he does not have or require any assistants. Coffee Roaster at least 3 spaces from the Tavern (and not in the same
C. Bonus cards and tiles showing the Merchant do not apply to the Companion unless explicitly stated otherwise. row/column).

Note: If a Merchant or Companion moves to a Place with other players’ Merchants or Companions, you must pay Great Bazaar: Place the Auction House on one of the places around the
2 Lira for each of those tokens before you can take the Place’s action! Fountain, and the Embassy not to close to the Secret Society.
When a token (Merchant, Family Member, or Companion) is at a Place specified by one or more of your Letters, you To reduce luck and to extend the game, don't hand out the Bonus card
must turn these Letters to the reverse side – they are considered “delivered”. It does not matter whether or not the at the beginning of the game.
token was moved, and whether you turn the Letter before or after it moves.
Check that you have 4 (better 5) sensible options to start from the
At the End of your turn, you may choose to pay 3 Seals to immediately take an additional turn.
Fountain.

PROMO TILES & MINI-EXPANSIONS
KEBAB SHOP:
The Kebab Shop replaces
the Fountain from the
original game.
Setup:
During setup, replace the Fountain with the Kebab Shop. Apply the rules of the Fountain to the
Kebab Shop when laying out the Place Tiles, i.e., make sure the Kebab Shop is one of the four inner
tiles of the game board.
Play:
When your Merchant enters the Kebab Shop, choose one of the following two options:
Option 1 - Return any number of your Assistants to your Merchant Stack (see Fountain).
Option 2 - Pay 2 Lira to use your Family Member at another Place. If you choose this option,
follow the normal rules for any other place. Collect an Assistant if one is present, or remove one
from the bottom of your Stack. Pay every other Merchant at the Kebab Shop 2 Lira each.
Carrying out the action: pay 2 Lira to the general supply. Send your Family Member to any other
Place and carry out the action of that Place. Your Family Member does not have any encounters.
Please note: You cannot choose this option if your Family Member is at the Police Station!
After that, your Merchant can encounter the Governor and Smuggler if they are present, as usual.
Note: You can print out the Kebab Shop graphic and tape or glue it to one side of the Fountain to use
it on a more regular basis. Similarly, the Pegasus Depot artwork can be glued or taped to one side of
the Post Office to use it on a more regular basis.
PEGASUS DEPOT:
The Pegasus Depot replaces the
Post Office from the original game.
Place one mail indicator each on the
dice symbols 4, 5, and 6. The fourth
mail indicator will not be used.
Play:
Roll 2 dice and check how many numbers you rolled of those covered by a mail indicator:
Both numbers are covered: Do not move any mail indicators.
Only one number is covered: Move a mail indicator such that both rolled numbers are covered.
Neither of the numbers are covered: Move two mail indicators such that both rolled numbers are covered.
If you rolled doubles (and that number is not covered) only move one mail indicator on that number.
Afterwards, take the resources printed next to the three uncovered numbers.
If 6 is uncovered, you may choose one of the three depicted resources
Coffee and letters are only available with their respective expansions.
CARAVAN LEADER:
For this expansion, a new meeple is added: a black camel. During the game,
the owner of this camel is known as the Caravan Leader.
At the beginning of the game, the black camel is placed on the Caravansary
[6]; it does not have an owner at this point.
If you execute the action in the Caravansary, take the black camel at the end of your turn and put it
in front of you; you are now the Caravan Leader. You remain the Caravan Leader until another
player executes the action in the Caravansary.
If you are already the Caravan Leader before you execute the action in the Caravansary, you
receive the bonus of the Caravan Leader: After taking 2 bonus cards, you don’t discard any cards
from your hand.
Note: You can use any item for the Caravan Leader variant. If you don’t have the camel meeple,
simply use a penny, button, or other item and follow the rules provided above.
COMMONLY MISSED RULES:
When using the Fountain, you can bring back as many Assistants as you want.
You don’t have to return them all.
The Black Market & Tea House must be at least three Places apart.
You may encounter the Governor, Smuggler, Coffee Trader, or Courier.
You don’t have to encounter them.
When encountering an opponents Family Member, you must return them to the Police Station.
With Mocha & Baksheesh, you can take all three options at the Roasting Plant,
but only one option at the Tavern.
When playing with Letters & Seals, you may return your Companion to your personal supply
any time you use the Fountain.
When playing with Letters & Seals, you may pay three Seals at the end of your turn to
immediately take an additional turn.
When using the Companion at the Catacombs, move your Companion to any Place,
not your Merchant Stack. (Confirmed by the Publisher on BGG)
ADDITIONAL VARIATIONS FOR PLACE TILE LAYOUTS
Short paths (sorted by the blue numbers):
Use this layout when learning the game or when you wish to play a shorter game. The
distances between Places that work well together are small, which makes the game easier to
play.
Long paths (sorted by the green numbers):
This layout is designed for experienced players: Places that work well together are far apart
from each other, which forces you to plan ahead more carefully when placing your
Assistants.
In order (sorted by the big numbers):
This layout is also more challenging: similar Places are grouped together.
Random layout:
This layout offers a lot of variety: shuffle the Place tiles and lay them out in a 4x4 grid. The
challenge is to find out which paths are the most efficient in the given layout, which is
different from play to play.
Please note: even with a random layout, it is recommended that you use the following
restrictions: The Fountain [7] has to be on one of the 4 Places in the middle of the grid. The
Black Market [8] and the Tea House [9] should have a distance from each other of at least 3
Places.