The short answer
Istanbul belly dance show
Where to see a belly dance show in Istanbul and what the evening is like: the two formats, what a dinner show on land contains, how to book the right one.
Book the belly dance dinner show ↗Quick answer
Istanbul has two common ways to see a belly dance show: a dinner show in a restaurant or cabaret room on land, or a dinner cruise with a Turkish night show on board. This guide covers a land venue near Taksim Square. Its ticket describes about 2.5 hours of belly dancers, traditional folk dances and theatre with a three-course dinner, and the booking page rates it 4.0 from 106 reviews.
The evening in plain terms
The ticket is for Sultana's Dinner Show Belly Dancing, a venue in central Istanbul close to Taksim Square. It runs about 2.5 hours and combines a three-course dinner at a reserved table with belly dancers, traditional folk dances and theatre, in what the organiser calls an Ottoman cabaret setting. It is a seated dinner show, so you eat while the programme plays out around you. Packages differ by drinks and by an optional shuttle, which means the package you choose decides what the ticket covers beyond the show itself, so read the options before you pick a date.
What it is not
It is not a boat. The ticket says in plain words that Sultana's is not a boat venue, and that people using similar names have taken customers onto boats. It is also not a fixed script: the ticket promises no particular dancer and no running order, so read the programme as the organiser's own and expect it to change. And it is a dinner show, not a concert or a lesson, which suits anyone who wants to eat, watch and be entertained in one room, and may frustrate anyone who wants a quiet table.
Two formats in Istanbul
A city guide on istanbul.com says belly dance dinner shows in Istanbul come in two formats, a restaurant or a night cruise on the Bosphorus, and that both combine dinner, music and stage performances. It describes restaurant shows as more intimate and cruises as adding the lit shoreline. It also says belly dance is usually paired with Anatolian folk dances and other traditional acts. Choose the land format if the stage is the point, and the cruise if the water is. The second booking card on this site is a separate cruise listing, for readers who prefer a boat, and the guide to restaurant shows and cruises compares the two in more detail.
Read next: Restaurant show or cruise?
Belly dance in Turkey
In Turkey belly dance is called oryantal dansı, from the French for oriental, or göbek dansı, which means belly dance. Wikipedia describes Turkish oryantal dans as a style that developed from Ottoman court traditions, Romani culture and Middle Eastern dance forms. It says the style became widely popular in the nightclub and cabaret scenes of twentieth-century Istanbul, and that nightlife in districts such as Beyoğlu and Şişli gave rise to a theatrical belly dance distinct from the Egyptian one. Its article also calls the Turkish style faster and more theatrical, which is useful to know before the music starts.
Read next: Oryantal dans: a history
What you will hear
Wikipedia says the music of Turkish oryantal draws on classical Ottoman music, Romani rhythms, Anatolian folk melodies and Arabic influences, with fast, driving rhythms and in particular the 9/8 time often called the karsilama rhythm. It lists the darbuka goblet drum, zurna, kanun, clarinet, violin and sometimes accordion among the typical instruments, and the veil and zills, the finger cymbals, among the props. Listen for the drum first: it carries the dancer. Wikipedia says Romani musicians and dancers have strongly influenced the Turkish style, which is why the photograph above shows an Istanbul Romani orchestra and not a dancer.
Folk dances on the same stage
The ticket lists traditional folk dances alongside the belly dancing but does not name them. Wikipedia says the dominant forms of Turkish folk dance are line dances, and names zeybek, halay, horon and the spoon dances among the best known. Halay, it says, is the term for traditional circular and line dances across the country, often danced at weddings and festive gatherings. Treat these as the families the dances come from, not as a list of what you will see on a given night, since programmes change.
Read next: Turkish folk dances
Dinner and drinks
The ticket describes a three-course dinner, and it lists dinner, unlimited soft drinks and alcoholic drinks each as included if that option is selected. The same list shows the shuttle as an option. Read that as a package structure: you pick the drinks that suit you and whether to add the shuttle, and the fare and inclusions follow. Dietary options are not on the ticket, so if you need one, ask the seller before you pay and keep the reply. One reviewer who chose a package with local alcohol mentions plenty of local wine.
Where it is
The ticket places the venue on land, in the centre of Istanbul, close to Taksim Square and the Hilton and Divan hotels, and tells you to go straight to the stretch between those two hotels and look for the street sign. Wikipedia calls Taksim Square a major tourist and leisure district famed for its restaurants, shops and hotels, and lists Cumhuriyet Caddesi among the roads that meet there. Sultana's gives its own address on Cumhuriyet Caddesi, in the Elmadağ area of Harbiye.
What reviewers say
The booking page shows 4.0 out of 5 from 106 reviews, with 3.8 for the guide and 3.6 for value for money. Reviewers praise the dancing and say the show includes folk dances, laughter and audience participation, and one calls it a nice combination of folk dance, belly dance and storytelling in an intimate atmosphere. One says the food was good and well timed. Another calls the ambience appropriate but a little old, and finds the food quite tasty. The value score is the lowest of the figures shown, so weigh the package you choose against what you want from the evening.
How to book without a mix-up
Because similar names have led customers onto boats, check the provider name on your booking: it should read Sultana's Dinner Show Belly Dancing. Sultana's says on its own site that it is a venue on land, that it has no other branches and that it is not a boat tour venue. If a confirmation, message or driver points you towards a boat, stop and check with the seller before you go. The ticket also asks you to book only through the venue's proper channels.
Read next: Sultana's: what to expect
Who this isn't for
The ticket's not-suitable list names people with mobility impairments. It will not suit anyone who wants a boat, the water or a view of the shoreline, which is the cruise format. It is a poor fit for a quiet dinner, since reviewers describe audience participation and a lively room. It is also not the choice if you want a particular dancer or an exact running order, because the ticket promises neither. And if the value score worries you, read the package options carefully before you book.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I see a belly dance show in Istanbul?
At dinner shows in restaurants or cabaret rooms on land, and on dinner cruises with a Turkish night show. This guide covers a land venue near Taksim Square, whose ticket describes belly dancers, traditional folk dances and a three-course dinner over about 2.5 hours.
Is Sultana's on a boat?
No. The ticket says it is not a boat venue and is located on land in central Istanbul, close to Taksim Square. Sultana's says the same on its own site, and warns that similar names have taken customers onto boats.
How long is the show?
The ticket gives the duration as 2.5 hours. The starting time is not fixed in the text: the booking calendar shows the time for each date, and your confirmation restates yours. Plan the rest of the day around that confirmation, not around a time you have seen on another site.
Is dinner included?
A three-course dinner is part of the evening the ticket describes, but dinner, drinks and the shuttle are each listed as included if that option is selected. Check the option you pick before you pay.
Will I be asked to join in?
Reviewers mention audience participation, laughter and folk dances alongside the belly dancing. One says everyone in the audience took part. The ticket gives no detail, so expect a lively room and decide in advance how you want to take part.
What is the rating?
The booking page shows 4.0 out of 5 from 106 reviews. It also shows 3.8 for the guide and 3.6 for value for money. Reviewers praise the dancing and the audience participation, so read the package options with your own priorities in mind.
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