Summer Activities for Kids in Istanbul

Bad weather may confuse you but summer is here, yet you still have no idea on how to entertain your kids and keep them busy all summer? As a working parent who doesn’t have the luxury of a grandparent to take care of my children I decided to take matters in my own hands and review all summer camps for kids in Istanbul. Here is a shortlist of activities that appealed to me.

First of all, you can start by figuring out what your main priority is in terms of activity. Do you want your kids to practice sports? Or improve their level in a certain language? Start learning coding? Develop artistic skills? Or do you prefer them to have fun and enjoy their time? Depending on your answer, you can choose one of the activities listed below.

If you want your kids to stay in the “school concept”, nearly all schools organize summer schools. First check with your kid’s school. If they don’t plan any camp, no worries, there are many options that it is difficult to choose from. For those who want their kids to develop their French, Petit Génie is offering a summer camp in July. You may choose between 3 days, 5 days, half-day, full-day options. Petit Génie‘s program includes language development, arts & crafts, drama, visits and entertainment.

Another option is Baykuş Akademi. Located in Nişantaşı, Baykuş Akademi has a program for 3-10 years old French & English-speaking kids, consisting of yoga, music, dancing, percussion, drawing lessons in French and in English. The camp period is from 18 June to 17 August. You can choose from the options of subscription daily, weekly, monthly as you prefer.

If you want your kids to spend the summer doing sports, then you have a lot of options. For your little ones, My Gym may be a good choice. My Gym Akatlar has a summer camp program for 3-11 years old kids with swimming lessons in partnership with SwimLabs, as well as introduction to tennis and basketball sessions. It is a program that includes sports, games, art & crafts and drama sessions. You can choose to register for 3 or 5 days a week, half-day or full day. One period lasts 3 weeks. My Gym Akatlar’s program starts on 18 June and will end on 14 September.

For kids from 5-11 years old, Terakki Vakfı’s summer camps offers many activities from swimming to volleyball, from basketball to tennis, from badminton to ping pong. However, the camp is only between 2 July and 27 July.

Another option is to introduce your kid to horse-back riding. Located in Maslak, İstanbul
Atlıspor’s Pony Club will be open during summer. Your kids may start learning horse-back riding with a pony. It is better if you call beforehand to arrange a lesson but even if you come out of the blue, don’t worry because your kid may have a tour with a pony or feed the horses with carrots and apples (my daughter loves this). They also organize birthday parties for kids with pony rides. It is a green, open-air space so you can enjoy spending time there even if you are not riding. I also recommend the restaurant located inside the club with its delicious meals. The club will only be closed on Sundays during
summer.

If you have already left Istanbul and are in a summer location close to Bodrum, then I would recommend you summer sport clubs such as Lena Erdil’s windsurf school in Bodrum Ortakent. Lena Erdil is a windsurf champion and she teaches in her own school, introducing kids to water sports (windsurf, sailing) all the while having fun. The camp called “Klüp 15” accept kids from 8 to 15 years old. You have to hurry if you are interested because they accept a maximum of 15 kids per class.

If you think that your kids should do “technology-oriented” camps, then you are lucky because nowadays many coding, programming camps are available. One of the rooted educational centers Bilge Adam is organizing a summer camp for kids between 7-13 years old. The program includes coding, design and robotics. This camp welcomes kids, not only in Istanbul (Bakırköy, Beşiktaş, Kadıköy) but also in Ankara and İzmir. It is planned to start as of 18 June and end in 17 August.

If you don’t want to enroll your kids in a camp concept, then you can also check out independent robotics courses in Happy Nest. STEM teaching techniques are developed in these workshops.

Another interesting possibility is attending “professional camps” for your kid to experience different professions. Kidzmondo is offering three different camp alternatives to kids from 5-12 years old: Specialist’s summer camp, Open-air summer camp in Hilton Istanbul Bosphorus, Technopark Summer camp. For all these camps, the objective is the same: to get your little ones prepared for their future, at least to give an idea about what are the professions that they can choose later on when they grow up. For those who have already been in Kidzmondo, it will most probably be a more developed version of the existing package. If you are interested, prices are very advantageous for early birds.

Kidzania located in Akasya shopping center in the Asian side has also developed a similar summer program for kids from 5-12 years old, dividing kids in 3 age groups. The program offers outdoor activities and thematic activities such as Paris Saint-Germain football Academy and Arçelik makers workshop. There is a special price for early birds.

If you need a free summer entertainment option, you might want to check out municipality’s summer camps. Nearly all municipalities are developing summer camp programs.

Kadıköy municipality is offering a free summer camp for kids 6-12 and 7-18 years old depending on the course that they would like to take. Except for swimming lessons, the other activities are free.

Bakırköy municipality has also launched it summer program. 5000 kids will have the opportunity to benefit from a free summer camp. Kids from 7-13 years old may apply and choose between 10 different branches.

Another free option is shopping centers. Follow the programs of the shopping malls. They always plan activities for kids. Zorlu Center has an external area where kids can play with sand just like in the beach. I strongly recommend it.

In my piece, I tried to give you as many options as possible but it still remains a shortlist because there is a whole range of activities in Istanbul and in Turkey in general. After a brief research based on my review, I believe that you will be able to find the “ideal” summer activity for your beloved ones. Enjoy your holidays!