What You Will Do
Visit highlights of Istanbul with your private tour guide in 1, 2 or 3 days with a flexible itinerary.
Day 1 - Highlights of Topkapi Palace Museum, Byzantine Hippodrome / Sultanahmet Square, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Grand Bazaar.
Day 2 - Bosphorus Cruise by Public Ferry, Dolmabahce Palace, Taksim Square, Istiklal Street, Cicek Passage, Galata Tower (from outside), Spice Market.
Day 3 - Suleymaniye Mosque, Fener and Balat Districts, St. Stephen Church (Iron Church), Pierre Lotti Panoramic Hill by Cable Car, Chora Church (or alternative sites).
Important Notes:
- Skip the line service is not available for active mosques - there is a queue for the entrance.
- If one of the mosques is not visited, Basilica Cistern will be visited as a replacement.
- For the tours that start later than 11 am, kindly note that you may have to skip one/a couple of sites as the sites are closed by 7 pm. Your guide will adjust the program according to your priorities.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Itinerary
1
Sultanahmet District
15 minutes
Sultanahmet District
2
Hippodrome
15 minutes
Hippodrome Square / Atmeydanı
Hippodrome; where the chariot races were held in the Roman Empire times, Egyptian Column from Byzantine Empire time and today German Fountain is the main cornerstone of the square of Ottoman Empire.
3
German Fountain
15 minutes
Germa Fountain / Alman Çeşmesi
4
Sultanahmet Square
15 minutes
Sultanahmet Square
5
Hagia Sophia Mosque
1 hour
Hagia Sophia Museum / Ayasofya / Santa Sofia
Built in the 6th century by Emperor Justinian, played a very important role in the Christian and Islamic World. After the Ottoman conquest the bells, altar, iconoclastic, and sacrificial vessels were removed, and many of the mosaics were eventually plastered over to convert the church into a mosque then a museum and now it’s a mosque for the second time. The most important stop of an Istanbul tour is operated in Old City Istanbul / Constantinople.
*Please note that as it's not a museum anymore, tour guides don't have skip-the-line priority there. You may need to wait in the security line, in order to avoid queues we suggest departing at 8:30am or 9:00am.
6
Blue Mosque
1 hour
Blue Mosque / Sultanahmet Camii
Built in the early 1600s for Sultan Ahmet I of the Ottoman Empire, the Blue Mosque is truly a magnificent masterpiece of architecture with amazingly delicate proportions for a building of such massive scale.
7
Grand Bazaar
1 hour
Grand Bazaar / Kapalı Çarşı
One of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world with over 4,000 shops with colorful products of ceramic, leather, rugs, carpets, handicrafts, clothes, silver, and gold.
8
Bosphorus Strait
2 hours
Bosphorus Cruise by Public Ferry or Private Cruise ( if option is chosen)
Take the public ferry for Bosphorus Cruise to see both Istanbul’s European and Asian sides, Galata Tower, Dolmabahce Palace, Beylerbeyi Palace, the Rumeli Fortress, old Ottoman villas, Bosphorus bridges, mosques. Your best Istanbul tour memories will definitely include the Bosphorus.
9
Dolmabahce Palace
1 hour
Dolmabahce Palace / Dolmabahçe Sarayı
Elegance and beauty with the most luxury decoration, chandeliers, rugs, crystals, ceramic fireplaces. Beautiful palace, right on the Bosphorus with gorgeous furnishings, paintings, porcelains made in particular to Dolmabahce.
10
Taksim Square
1 hour
Taksim Square / Taksim Meydanı
A great place defining modern Turkey which witnessed important historical moments. Close to Istiklal Street (Istiklal Caddesi) and Galata Tower along with embassies of European countries in Taxim. Cicek Passage has very good food joints, cafes, shops, bars, night clubs around Taksim.
11
Topkapi Palace
2 hours
Topkapi Palace Museum / Topkapı Sarayı
More than just an Imperial Residence of Ottoman Sultans, it was the seat of the Supreme Executive and Judiciary Council for almost 400 years long. Topkapi Palace is a great monument of Oriental architecture which resembles the power of the Ottoman Empire.
12
Istiklal Caddesi
45 minutes
Istiklal Street is the modern and colorful face of Turkey with churches, modern art galeries, embassies, pubs, cafes and shops selling different kind of products.
13
Galata Tower
10 minutes
We will see the tower FROM OUTSIDE, due to the regulations unfortunately tour guides don't have skip the line priority here so it takes long time to wait queue. Your tour guide will make you explanation about tower.
14
Misir Carsisi (Spice Market)
45 minutes
Spice Market / Mısır Çarşısı
Egyptian Bazaar is a colorful indoor bazaar and has lots of shops offering a variety of spices, purses, flavored teas, Turkish delight, nuts, as well as ceramics, and small souvenirs. Spice Bazaar is located in Eminonu Square which is the connection point of Bosphorus and Golden Horn.
15
Cicek Pasaji
10 minutes
Cicek Passage / Flower Passage
Originally named as Cite de Pera, a combined structure of traditional and modern construction methods and architectural style by Ottoman Empire is reflected and today we see the small shops and cafes here.
16
Suleymaniye Mosque
1 hour
Suleymaniye Mosque / Süleymaniye Camii is the largest mosque in Istanbul and is as impressive on the inside as it is on the outside. In the garden behind the mosque, the Suleymaniye terrace offers lovely views of the Golden Horn and Bosphorus.
17
Balat
2 hours
Fener-Balat Neighborhood backstreet walk
Continue exploring Istanbul’s rich religious history with a stop at the Church of St. George. Since the 1600s, the church has been the location of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and is recognized as the spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Religion.
Balat District; lines of drying laundry stretch across steep, winding streets. Century-old Ottoman houses lean against each other in a combination of reds, blues, and greens. And art galleries and design shops dot the area along the water.
18
Fener Rum Patrikhanesi
45 minutes
Orthodox Patriarch
19
Historic Areas of Istanbul
10 minutes
Historic Areas of Istanbul
20
Pierre Loti Tepesi
30 minutes
Pierre Loti Hill and Cable Car are some of the most popular sights to visit since it offers great views for visitors. Take the cable car to reach the top and enjoy the beautiful scenery while sipping your Turkish coffee or tea.
21
Chora Museum
1 hour 30 minutes
Formerly Church of St. Saviour in Chora is renowned worldwide for its well-preserved mosaics and frescoes. It presents important and beautiful examples of East Roman painting in its last period. The idea of depth in mosaics and the moving style in figures are of outstanding artistic significance in the Middle Ages, foretelling the Renaissance period.
22
Halic
30 minutes
Golden Horn region which is one of the oldest settlements of the city of Constantinople.
23
Bulgarian Orthodox Church
45 minutes
St. Stephen Church; Located on the shore of the Golden Horn, the church is also known as the Iron Church due to the fact that it’s made entirely of prefabricated cast iron in 19th century.
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