Istanbul Old City Tour From Galataport or Hotels
Description
You will then be taken to the Hagia Sophia, a UNESCO World Heritage site that served as a cathedral, mosque, and museum throughout its history. Next, you will visit the Blue Mosque, an iconic mosque known for its stunning blue tiles and six minarets. You will then have some free time to explore the Hippodrome, an ancient stadium that once hosted chariot races and other events. Afterwards, you will visit the Topkapi Palace, the former residence of the Ottoman Sultans that now serves as a museum. You will explore the palace's many rooms and exhibits, including the Harem and the Treasury. Finally, the tour ends with a visit to the Grand Bazaar, one of the oldest and largest covered markets in the world. Overall, the Istanbul Full Day Classic Old City Tour is a great way to experience the history and culture of Istanbul in just one day. Stores to Visit: Carpet Showroom
Tour Options
Itinerary
It was the center of sport activities of Constantinople. Famous with 4 monuments, The German Fountain of Wilhelm II, Egyptian Obelisk, Serpentine Column, Column of Constantine.
Haghia Sophia, is the most famous museum in Turkey and one of the greatest marvels of architecture. Haghia Sophia was built as a church in the 6th century by Emperor Justinian then in 1453 renovated into a mosuqe by Ottoman Emperor Fatih Sultan Mehmet. It was converted into a museum in 1935 and welcoming both local and foreign visitors. (Closed on Monday)
Blue Mosque, was built in the name of Sultan Ahmet with unique 6 minarets. (Closed on Friday)
Topkapi Palace, which has been home to the Ottoman dynasty for many years, was used educational administrative and art center of state. Get knowledge about the imperial treasury sacred islamic relics, palace kitchens, weapons. (Closed on Tuesday)
Grand Bazaar, is the biggest market and the most attractive shopping center of Istanbul which has lots of shopping oppurtunities with carpets, leather, jewellery, turkish delight, gold, antique tiles etc.. (Closed on Sunday)
Hagia Irene also called as “St. Eirene” Church. It is one of the oldest Byzantium churches in Istanbul, was the 2nd largest church of the Eastern Roman Empire after Hagia Sophia. (Closed on Tuesday)
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
The pick-up and drop-off by public transport such as tram, etc... If your hotel is located in the main attraction area, the guide will pick you up by walking from your hotel. For the guests who are coming with cruise ships, our meeting point is in front of the Hafız Mustafa Sweets Shop.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Wheelchair accessible
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Topkapi Palace entrance fee is 2000 TRY. You can pay to the guide for skip-the-line tickets.
- Hagia Sophia entarance fee is 25 €. You can pay to the guide for skip-the-line tickets.
- Guaranteed return on time to cruise
Reviews(17)
Sevda, the guide was fantastic and the sights are brilliant. No hotel pick up available ( included in price ?? ), had to pay for entry ( was all included last year, no lunch like last year, and all over in 3 1/2 hours, not 7 hours as described. Refund for no bus pick up ? Refund for taxi fares ?
Thank you for sharing your experience. It's a great pleasure for us to hear that you enjoyed your trip with us. Your feedback always motivates us to serve you better. We are looking forward to seeing you again. Kind Regards, TURKEY TRAVEL SERVİCE
Our guide is very knowledgeable. The tour is not rushed and very relaxing. Small group and amazing experience! Highly recommended
Thank you for sharing your experience. It's a great pleasure for us to hear that you enjoyed your trip with us. Your feedback always motivates us to serve you better. We are looking forward to seeing you again. Kind Regards, PERON TOUR
We had a great sightseeing tour with Baris of the Istanbul Old Town which included the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, Hippodrome and Grand Bazaar. Baris did an excellent job explaining the history of these places along with very good descriptions and stories. The pace was just right and not rushed. The tour included lunch which was delicious and filling. I highly recommend this tour especially if you don’t have a lot of time in Istanbul and want to see many places in a day. It was unfortunate that the Topkapi Palace was closed that day (Tuesday) but the Basilica Cistern was an interesting site to visit as well.
Thank you for sharing your experience. It's a great pleasure for us to hear that you enjoyed your trip with us. Your feedback always motivates us to serve you better. We are looking forward to seeing you again. Kind Regards, PERON TOURS
Our tour guide was great but the experience was not quite what was listed by Viator. The only location where you do not have to wait in line because you have a guide is Topkapi Palace. You must wait in line at the Blue Mosque and Aya Mosque. Lines at Aya Mosque are very long. This is not made clear. This is one of the reasons we booked a tour, to skip the lines. No transportation in air conditioned cars as listed. No stop for lunch. We asked our guide and he did take us to a great doner place in the Grand Bazaar. But there is no plan to stop for lunch, even if on your own, so you need to ask. It is a long day, we started at 9:30a and finished just after 5p. And, the most disappointing part is that the tour takes you to a shop to watch a leather fashion show, yes, a fashion show and then expects you to shop at the location. This is not what tourists pay for to have a tour. Very disappointed. I’ve given a few stars as our tour guide was very good, very attentive and provided good information.
We apologize for any confusion regarding the inclusion of shop visits in our İstanbul Full Day Old City Tour. As stated in the itinerary, these visits are a part of the tour experience and provide an opportunity for guests to learn about local crafts and products. We understand that not all guests may wish to participate in these visits and we will ensure to make this clearer in the future. We are glad to hear that our tour guide provided good information and was attentive during the tour. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the lack of air-conditioned transportation and lunch arrangements. We will take this feedback into consideration to improve our services in the future.
The guide was very knowledgeable about the historical sites we visited in the morning. After lunch though, we spent over two hours at very expensive shops that we were told would educate us on how to spot fakes in the grand bazaar. This was not the case, and I felt like the time was wasted waiting around as the shop owners tried to sell us things we did not want. Also, though this tour had a starting time of 9am, we did not start until 10am when the Aya Sophia opened to tourists.
Thank you for the 4-star review. Your positive feedback about our tour and guide makes us happy.
I absolutely loved this day. Going to a country where religion is so important to them the architecture that goes along with it is beyond words. The Hagiasophia has the most beautiful ceiling and it dates all the way back to 537AD! The fact that its so preserved is mind-blowing. I have never been around something so old and its really a site to see and to take in everything that comes with it.
Hi, Thank you so much for taking the time to share this 5-star review with our team! We love hearing how much you enjoyed this tour. We know you have choices when it comes to your travel adventures, and it means the world to us that you’ve chosen to book an experience with our team. Thank you again for supporting our business and we hope you’ll visit us in the future!
We made a daily city tour from Istanbul Cruise port. Our guide Umut was great he explained all the hotspots that We visited. Istanbul is jewel of Turkey. Beautiful city
Hi, Thank you so much for taking the time to share this 5-star review with our team! We love hearing how much you enjoyed this tour. We know you have choices when it comes to your travel adventures, and it means the world to us that you’ve chosen to book an experience with our team. Thank you again for supporting our business and we hope you’ll visit us in the future!
The tour was avesome. Our guide umut gave lots of information. We are very happy with the tour.thank You Umut
Hi, Thank you so much for taking the time to share this 5-star review with our team! We love hearing how much you enjoyed this tour. We know you have choices when it comes to your travel adventures, and it means the world to us that you’ve chosen to book an experience with our team. Thank you again for supporting our business and we hope you’ll visit us in the future!
Definately excellent trip and highly recommended to everyone! Guide was perfect! He was informative, young, talented and a native english speaker. Vehicle was clear, and deluxe (we watch a Netflix in the van) Most important things are attractions.. They were impressively wonderful. We take some photos. Overall top must to do tour in Istanbul!
Thank you so much for taking the time to share this 5-star review with our team! We love hearing how much you enjoyed this tour. We know you have choices when it comes to your travel adventures, and it means the world to us that you’ve chosen to book an experience with our team. Thank you again for supporting our local business and we hope you’ll visit us in the future!
The wonderful and beautiful Istanbul is the city of sultans and history. I visited this beautiful city with my family and we visited beautiful museums, mosques and wonderful palaces. We enjoyed riding beautiful boats and feeding the seagulls. I hope to visit again
Hi. Thank you so much for taking the time to share this 5-star review with our team! We love hearing how much you enjoyed this tour. We know you have choices when it comes to your travel adventures, and it means the world to us that you’ve chosen to book an experience with our team. Thank you again for supporting our local business and we hope you’ll visit us in the future!”