The Pasaport pier — pasaport iskele — takes its name from the documents that arriving ships' passengers were required to show before being permitted to land at this point, a practice going back to the Ottoman period of customs and quarantine regulation. Today it is simply a ferry terminal, connecting Alsancak to Karşıyaka across the bay, but the name preserves the memory of İzmir as an international port of entry.
The pier itself is a pleasant spot to sit in the early evening, watching the ferries arrive and depart, the lights of Karşıyaka reflected across the water. The tea gardens nearby are among the most popular in the city. Several good fish restaurants cluster on the streets just behind the pier.