If your flight lands at Istanbul Airport (IST) or Sabiha Gokcen (SAW) after midnight, the fastest honest answer is this: the metro is closed, but you are not stranded. A 24-hour HAVAIST bus runs from IST through the night, metered taxis wait at both airports around the clock, and a pre-booked private transfer takes you door to door without a single decision while you are tired. The one option that does not exist between roughly 00:00 and 06:00 is the cheap airport metro.
Below is what actually operates at each airport overnight, what it costs in 2026, and how to avoid the handful of mistakes that catch first-time night arrivals.
Is the Istanbul Airport metro open at night?
No. The M11 line that connects Istanbul Airport to Gayrettepe runs roughly 06:00 to midnight every day, with trains every few minutes. It is not part of Metro Istanbul's weekend night-service program, so it stops at midnight every night of the week with no exception. You can confirm the live window on metro.istanbul.
Sabiha Gokcen sits on the Asian side and is served by the M4 line to Kadikoy. M4 also runs about 06:00 to midnight on most nights. There is one useful exception: on Friday and Saturday nights M4 is part of the weekend Night Metro and runs straight through, with a double fare charged between 00:30 and 05:30. So if you land at SAW on a Friday or Saturday night, M4 is genuinely an option. Land at SAW on a Sunday through Thursday night, and the metro is shut like everywhere else.
The practical takeaway: plan around the metro being unavailable overnight unless you are at SAW on a weekend night. Our metro guide breaks down daytime routes if you arrive earlier.
What buses run from Istanbul Airport (IST) after midnight?
This is the strongest overnight option at IST. The official HAVAIST coaches operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and the Taksim line is the one consistently confirmed to keep running through the night. The airport operator lists HAVAIST under its public transport options on istairport.com.
What changes after midnight is frequency, not availability. During the day the Taksim coach leaves roughly every 30 minutes; overnight that stretches to about once an hour (some sources say 60-90 minutes). So the real cost of a 1 AM arrival is a wait, not a dead end. We compared the published daytime cadence against the reported night pattern, and the gap is wide enough that you should check the next departure the moment you clear customs.
A note on exact night times: third-party blogs publish minute-level departure lists, but those numbers contradict each other and are not on the official timetable. Treat them as rough. The reliable move is to open the HAVAIST app or the "Sefer Saatleri" (timetable) tab on the official HAVAIST site for the live next-bus time.
On fare, recent 2026 figures put the Taksim line at roughly 420-480 TRY (about 426 TRY), and it keeps rising with inflation, so check the live price in the HAVAIST app before you board. Pay by contactless credit card or the HAVAIST app QR code; the city Istanbulkart is generally not accepted on these coaches, which surprises a lot of arrivals who topped one up expecting it to work. See our airport bus page for the full route list, and the dedicated IST to Taksim breakdown.
Sabiha Gokcen (SAW) buses after midnight
Havabus does not run on a fixed overnight schedule. Havabus connects SAW to Taksim (about 90 minutes) and to Kadikoy, leaving roughly every 30 minutes from early morning until around midnight. After that there is no guaranteed scheduled service: the operator's own timetable notes only that night runs between 01:00 and 04:00 exist "for delayed flights," which is on-demand, not a coach you can count on.
If you land at SAW between roughly 01:00 and 04:00 and want public transport to the city, the dependable choice is the municipal IETT SG-1 night bus to Kadikoy. It leaves SAW at roughly 23:40, 01:05, 02:25 and 03:30, costs around 84 TRY with an Istanbulkart, and runs on weekdays and Sundays but not on Saturdays. The catch is that it only reaches Kadikoy, not Taksim, and you would then continue by Marmaray or taxi once daytime service resumes.
Indicative Havabus fares for 2026 sit around 440 TRY to Taksim and 270 TRY to Kadikoy, but these are aggregator figures, so confirm the current price before you ride. The SAW night gap is the main reason a taxi or pre-booked transfer often wins for after-midnight arrivals on the Asian side. Our Sabiha Gokcen guide and the SAW to Taksim route page cover the daytime picture.
How much is a night taxi, and is there a surcharge?
Here is the fact that saves you money and an argument: Istanbul has no taxi night surcharge in 2026. The meter is identical 24 hours a day. The old +50% midnight-to-6AM rate was abolished, so a driver who tells you the "night rate" (gece tarifesi) has started is running the single most common airport scam. The official airport taxi guidance is clear on this point.
The 2026 city meter, which applies at both airports, runs about 65 TRY flagfall, 43-44 TRY per kilometre, and a 210 TRY minimum fare. From IST to Taksim a metered yellow taxi runs roughly 1,800-2,000 TRY (about 33-37 EUR) on the meter, plus any motorway tolls. From SAW to Taksim expect more, around 2,200-3,500 TRY (about 41-65 EUR) including the Bosphorus crossing and motorway tolls, because SAW is far out on the Asian side. Treat all lira figures as "around" and rising with inflation.
The official taxi rank at IST is on the arrivals ground transportation level, signposted in orange near Exits 9 and 13. At SAW it is at the terminal arrivals exit. Use only that queue. Legal taxis carry a TAKSI roof sign and a plate beginning 34 T, and since early 2026 every official taxi must have a working card terminal.
The five night-taxi scams worth knowing
- Fake night rate: "the gece tarifesi has started." It has not. Insist on the meter or step out.
- Broken meter: driver quotes a flat inflated price. Point at the meter, say "taximetre," and take the next car if refused.
- Long route: a padded detour. Run Google Maps yourself for the whole ride.
- Banknote switch: your 500 TRY note becomes a 50. Say the note value aloud, or just pay by card.
- "Card machine broken": a push to force cash. Say "kredi karti" before you get in.
For a logged ride with the driver and price recorded, hail through BiTaksi or Uber (which dispatches official taxis) and photograph the plate before you set off. More detail on our taxi page.
Arriving solo, or waiting out the night until 06:00
For a tired solo traveller landing overnight, the lowest-stress option is a transfer arranged before you fly. Booking a private transfer in advance through GetTransfer.com means a named driver is waiting at arrivals with your name on a board, the price is fixed up front, and there is no meter, no negotiation and no wrong drop-off at 2 AM. That removes exactly the friction points that night arrivals find hardest. You can compare it with the public routes on our transfer page.
If you would rather wait out the gap inside the airport until morning service returns, do it landside in a staffed, well-lit area near a 24-hour cafe. At IST the landside YOTEL on the Departures floor near entrance #7 takes bookings by the hour and is open around the clock, which suits an arriving passenger who has already cleared passport control. The airside YOTELAIR is only for passengers staying behind security, so it is not an option once you have entered Turkey. SAW offers paid in-terminal sleeping cabins (Kepler Club) at around 13 EUR per hour, with separate quarters for men and women.
Whatever you choose: keep luggage physically attached to you, decline anyone offering a "taxi" or "transfer" inside the hall, and head straight for the official outdoor rank. Istanbul is generally safe for tourists at night, but the airport touts are persistent, and the only people you should follow are the orange signs. Our FAQ answers more late-arrival questions.
Quick decision for a post-midnight landing
- At IST, on a budget: 24-hour HAVAIST Taksim coach, roughly hourly overnight.
- At SAW, after 01:00: IETT SG-1 night bus to Kadikoy (not Saturdays), or a taxi to Taksim.
- Tired, solo, or with heavy bags: pre-booked transfer via GetTransfer.com, or an app-hailed taxi with the fare set.
- Want to wait for the metro: landside YOTEL at IST or a SAW sleeping room until 06:00.
Confirm live bus times in the operator app and the current meter rate before you ride, since 2026 fares have moved more than once this year.