Tell me what you’re loving

As The Istanbulist turns 6 months, I’d love to know what piques your interest, what you’d like to see more of & your thoughts on paid subscriber benefits

But first, I’d like to say a huge thank you for continuing to read The Istanbulist. I’m so appreciative of every single one of you who has read my newsletters, upgraded to become paid subscribers and shared feedback, ideas and reactions in the comments or via DM. I love hearing from you so please do keep it coming.

In just six months, I’ve achieved more than I could ever have dreamed of with this newsletter. I’m also absolutely over the moon to be knocking on the door of a new subscriber milestone… so I’d be very grateful if you could help me get there by forwarding this newsletter to a friend or by telling someone about it who might love it — word of mouth is still such a great tool for spreading news.

Need a reminder of what’s been published so far? You can access the full Istanbulist archive from my Substack homepage.

Now to business. As we head into the second half of the year, I also wanted to let you know of a few updates.

From now on only paid subscribers to The Istanbulist will be able to read curated hotlist edits like destination guides, summer holiday planners and hotel round-ups. (My monthly Lucy Loves column, which spotlights my favourite happenings in the two cities I call home, will remain free for all.)

My first feature exclusively for paying subscribers will be a curated guide to the Greek island of Sifnos, as requested by my lovely followers on Instagram.

If you’d like access to these features, and you're in a position to do so, then you can upgrade your subscription below. It works out as around £1 a week, cheaper than a coffee. As a reader-supported publication, paid subscriptions are what keep The Istanbulist going as they give me the time to research and write it for you all each month.

As a paid subscriber, you’ll also gain access to the additional membership perks coming soon. So, I’d love to know what you’d like these to be….

I’m also thinking about how I can bring you all together, as I now have readers all over the world, from Alaska and London to Paris via Istanbul. Many of you reach out to me individually but I’d love for us to be able to get to know each other better and chat all things art, design & travel on a regular basis. So…

These discussion Threads (which would land in your inbox like these newsletters) would also be a space where we could share top tips, ideas, articles of interest and cultural recommendations in London, Istanbul & beyond.

Now to The Istanbulist content you receive in your inbox each month…

And finally, what about The Istanbulist makes you excited to receive it in your inbox? I’m on a mission to make this newsletter as interesting and engaging to as many of you as possible, so your feedback is really really valuable to me. Please do let me know your thoughts via DM or in the comments below. Thank you again for reading The Istanbulist and for being part of this journey from London to Istanbul & beyond.