Elhamra Passage

Located within the borders of Beyoğlu, Elhamra Passage is located exactly in Asmalımescit Quarter. The fact that this place is connected to a busy street such as İstiklal Caddesi significantly affects the frequency of the visits. According to the information obtained, Elhamra Passage was built in 1920-1922. Said Adapazarlı had great efforts in its construction at that time. There is no definite information about the architect of the building. Nevertheless, the name of Architect Vedat Tek generally comes to the fore. This passage has also been used as an inn for many years. For this reason, it is also referred to as Elhamra Inn in some sources. The Elhamra Movie Theater, one of Turkey's best movie theaters, are among the most important surprises of this structure.

Before the current structure, the Crystal Theater was located in the place of the passage. This famous theater actively continued its activities until 1906. The passage is today shown in the official class of antiquities that should be preserved. No consensus can be reached on the meaning of the name of the passage. The historical venue, which welcomes its visitors with its wide corridor, offers traces of the Ottoman Neoclassical style. The windows in the front facade are arched. The balconies at the end of the second floor have a bay window. Columns in this area are connected by arches. Architectural details similar to the exterior structure are also observed inside the passage. It is known that Mustafa Kemal Atatürk also came to the Elhamra Movie Theater, which is located in this passage, and watched movies from time to time.

C. Chaplin's famous "Modern Times" was shown in this cinema for the first time at that time. Often times the passage is associated with this private movie theater. For a certain time, the name of this movie theater was changed as Sakarya Cinema; but it served under this name for only eight years. For a period, this place is also considered as the Istanbul Operetta. The building had a serious disaster of fire in 1999.