Kınalıada — the Beach Island

By the Princess Island Guide editors · Last updated August 2026

Kınalıada is the smallest of the four visitable islands and the closest to the city — the shortest ferry hop, ringed by beaches, and noticeably sunnier and barer than its pine-clad neighbours.

The red island

Kınalıada takes its name from kınalı, "henna-coloured," for the reddish soil and cliffs rich in iron and copper. That ore was mined here in antiquity, and stone was quarried in Byzantine times; the Greeks called the island Proti, "the First," as the nearest island to Istanbul. Its rocky, iron-red terrain historically kept trees from taking hold, so — unlike green Heybeliada and Büyükada — Kınalıada is largely open maquis scrub across three low hills (Çınar, Teşvikiye and Manastır tepeleri). That bareness is exactly why it catches so much sun.

The Armenian heart of the islands

Kınalıada has been the summer island of Istanbul's Armenian community for well over a century — from the 19th to the mid-20th century its summer population was overwhelmingly Armenian, and it long served as a summer retreat of the Armenian Patriarchs of Istanbul. Its landmark is the Surp Krikor Lusavoriç church (St. Gregory the Illuminator), founded in 1855 and opened in 1857 — the only Armenian church in the entire Adalar district, restored in 1988. Today a few thousand permanent residents (still largely Armenian) swell to tens of thousands in summer, and the island remains a living centre of Istanbul-Armenian culture; the poets Zahrad and Zabel Asadour both lived here.

Beaches

Above all, Kınalıada is a beach island. Kınalıada Beach (free, with turquoise water) and the serviced, paid Ayazma Beach are the main swimming spots, and coves wrap much of the short shoreline — the go-to island if sun and sea are your main aim.

Getting there & around

Kınalıada is the first island stop from the European piers, so it's the quickest to reach. It's small, flat-ish and easily walked; car-free like all the islands. Full ferry guide →

On the map