The Florya Pavilion is an extremely modest palace for rest and meditation, where Atatürk enjoyed the sea and entertained important guests.

A residential area on the shore of the sea of Marmara between Yesilköy and Küçükçekmece, Florya was an insignificant hunting grounds up to the 19th century. Historian Kömürcüyan refers to it in the 17th century as a garden called ‘filurya’ belonging to the sultan. One of Istanbul’s most popular bathing beaches in the Republican period, Florya attracted the attention of Atatürk and was transformed into a summer resort. The discovery of Florya was one of Atatürk’s happiest moments in Istanbul. The area where the pavilion stands today was a simple public beach with a Turkish-style bathing enclosure. After swimming here a few times, Atatürk liked the beach and decided to revitalize it.