What to Wear in Istanbul in December

Dress for rain and for the threshold. NOAA's 30-year record for Atatürk gives December 11.0°C by day and 5.3°C at night, with rain on about 15 days, and MGM's long Istanbul record makes it the rainiest month by amount, 99.2 mm. The rest of the month happens indoors, in working mosques. Sultanahmet asks visitors to cover what worship requires, in the courtyard as well as inside, and lends clothing from a booth if you arrive short. Diyanet's monthly magazine sets out the rest: shoes go on the rack, and women wear a headscarf. Pack a hood for the street, boots that pull off without laces, a scarf big enough for your hair and a dry pair of socks.

The capsule

1. 
   01

   Petrol hooded waterproof coat, to the knee

   Rain falls on about 15 December days at Atatürk, and about 8 of them bring 2.5 mm or more, so the coat needs a hood and a hem that reaches the knee. Petrol is dark enough to hide road splash and still reads as a colour beside black trousers. Wear the hood on the street; at a mosque door your hair goes under the scarf instead.

2. 
   02

   Plum fine merino crew-neck sweater

   Fine merino keeps you warm under the waterproof on an 11°C / 52°F afternoon and stays thin enough for the coat to zip over it. Its sleeves run to the wrist, so your arms stay covered when you open the coat inside the mosque, where Sultanahmet asks visitors to cover what worship requires. Plum ties the petrol coat to the cream scarf.

3. 
   03

   Black straight wool-blend trousers, full length

   Sultanahmet asks visitors to cover what worship requires in the courtyard as well as the prayer hall, so the trousers you walk in are the trousers you wear inside. Full length settles the question before you reach the door. Black hides road splash, and a straight leg falls cleanly over the boots when you pull them back on.

4. 
   04

   Black waterproof Chelsea boots, elastic sides, lug sole

   Shoes come off at every mosque door. Diyanet's monthly magazine asks that they go neatly on the shoe rack or, where needed, into a bag you carry inside. Elastic sides let you step out of the boots and back in without bending over laces in the rain, a lug sole grips after a wet walk, and waterproof leather keeps your socks dry for the prayer hall.

5. 
   05

   Large cream wool scarf

   Diyanet's mosque etiquette names women wearing a headscarf, "kadınlar da başörtüsü takarak", so pack one scarf large enough to cover your hair and fall to the shoulders. Outside it goes back round your neck on a night that falls to 5°C / 41°F. Sultanahmet's loan booth lends clothing if you arrive short, but your own scarf is warmer, and cream reads clearly against plum and petrol.

6. 
   06

   Black merino socks

   With the boots on the rack you walk the mosque in your socks, so they belong to the outfit. After a wet walk from the tram, change into the dry pair from your bag before you go in and leave the damp pair in the boots. Merino stays warm when damp and does not smell by evening, and black hides the dust of a shoe rack.

7. 
   07

   Grey leather zip crossbody

   The UK Foreign Office warns that street robbery and pickpocketing are common in the major tourist areas of Istanbul. A zip crossbody worn in front stays shut while both your hands are busy with boots at the shoe rack, and it holds a phone, a card and the folded spare socks. Grey stays quiet against the black trousers and boots.

8. 
   08

   Plum knit gloves with leather palms

   Atatürk records frost on about 3 December nights, and it is twice as likely after the 15th as before it. On a wet 11°C / 52°F afternoon a tram rail and a phone still chill your hands, so pick knit backs for warmth and leather palms for grip. Plum matches the sweater, and the gloves fold into a coat pocket while you deal with your boots.

A suggested look — petrol hooded waterproof coat, cream wool scarf, plum merino crew-neck sweater, black straight trousers, black waterproof chelsea boots.

What to avoid

• Friday before 2:30pm at Sultanahmet — closed to visits for cleaning and prayer preparation
• Lace-up boots — shoes come off at every mosque door
• Shorts, or for women an uncovered head — Diyanet's mosque etiquette rules out both
• Arriving after 4:30pm — last entry is half an hour before the 5pm close
• Suede — rain on about 15 December days