The Blue Mosque serves as an important feature of Ottoman history. The architecture of the structure is revered for its grandeur, and the interior boasts intricate design and artwork. Located on a hill in Istanbul, the Mosque sits on top of an old Byzantine palace structure, and is located by the famed Hippodrome and Hagia Sophia. The exterior parts of the Blue Mosque are made of a combination of red granite, marble, pudding stone, and porphyry. The interior materials are similar, but also feature ceramic tiling, wooden features, and more.
Hagia Sophia means Church or Sanctuary of Holy Wisdom. After the Muslim conquest of Constantinople, the name was altered to refer to the structure as a mosque. The Islamic terminology became Holy Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque. The Hagia Sophia is important to Christians because it served as the seat of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. To the Greek Orthodox Christians, this seat was equivalent to that of the Catholic Pope. The Hagia Sophia is known for its architectural splendor, its art, its symbolism of the consolidation of Roman political and religious powers, and its rich history. The Hagia Sophia was important to the Roman Empire because it represented the consolidation of religious and political power. This consolidation of power was best symbolized in the use of the Hagia Sophia for ceremonial coronations of emperors.
Explore the unique Basilica Cistern or Yerebatan Palace is located in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet district. It was built under the Stoa Basilica, which was built as a center of commerce, justice and art between the 3rd and 4th centuries. First constructed by Emperor Constantine, the small building was rebuilt by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century due to the corruption of the city during the uprisings in 532. Because all the waters around Istanbul were saltwater, the Basilica Cistern served filtered drinking water to the Great Palace and the buildings around it. 1453 after the conquest of Istanbul by the Ottoman Empire, water was also supplied to Topkapi Palace.
The story of the Hippodrome of Constantinople starts in ancient times; it dates from the beginning of 3rd century AD and was built on the orders of emperor Septimius Severus. Byzantium already enjoyed a strategic and important position at this time, although it had to wait until the 4th century to reach its zenith of power. It became the capital of the Roman Empire on the initiative of Constantine the Great who renamed it Constantinople, the city of Constantine, and it was expanded with impressive buildings.
The Grand Bazaar was commissioned by Mehmet II (1444-1481) immediately after the Ottoman conquest of Istanbul in 1453 to provide financial resources for the Hagia Sophia. The construction of the Grand Bazaar began in 1461. The Grand Bazaar, which was a wooden structure at the beginning, is now entirely built of stone and brick. Bricks were used for the vaulted arches, cut stones were used at the base of the arches, and walls were built by plastering over bricks or stone. The oldest building is the Cevahir or İç Bedesten. The second oldest building is the Sandal Bedesten. Bedesten, a vaulted and fireproofed segment of the Grand Bazaar, gets its name from bez (cloth) and means cloth seller’s market. Both bedestens are typical examples of classical Ottoman architecture.
Enjoy the views of Sultanahmet are while walking from one to the other sights to see, different architecture of buildings, parks, fountains
Learn and enjoy how to wiving session in Istanbul, learn the culture and technics, get the real information about the quaility handicrafts,
Learn and try a pottery workshop by a professional artist
The Spice Bazaar is a must-see for all first-time visitors to İstanbul, especially foodies. Do not be afraid to haggle - it’s tradition and even expected.Sampling the tastes of the Spice Bazaar will certainly drive your taste buds wild, many vendors are more than happy to give you a little taste and flavour of their products to entice you further to buy. The overflow of vendors and sellers spills out of the bazaar in a long row, starting in the first street on your right after you walk up the right side of the spice bazaar. Stop at the dairy shops and try a piece of the most famous Turkish cheese, Beyaz Peynir, or white cheese. Also, try an olive or two. Smell the mountains of spices, from cinnamon to red pepper, piled up in huge containers.
A Bosphorus cruise is consistently rated the number one experience in Istanbul by travellers worldwide. There is a very good reason for this. Sailing between two continents allows you to pass stunning Ottoman palaces and Byzantine fortresses. You will see elegant waterfront yalis. You will sail under the famous Bosphorus Bridge spanning Europe to Asia. The skyline of minarets and domes has captivated visitors for millennia. No visit to Istanbul is complete without this trip.
This natural harbour provided anchorage for the Ottoman fleet and for traditional naval ceremonies. From the 17th century the bay was gradually filled in and became one of the imperial parks on the Bosphourus known as Dolmabahçe, literally meaning “filled garden”. A series of imperial köşks (mansions) and kasırs (pavilions) were built here, eventually growing into a palace complex known as Beşiktaş Waterfront Palace. Beşiktaş Waterfront Palace was demolished in 1843 by Sultan Abdülmecid (1839-1861) on the grounds that it was made of wood and inconvenient, and construction of Dolmabahçe Palace commenced in its place
Connecting two parts of Istanbul at Golden Horn. Today road for trams and cars, bottom part with restaurants and cafes. Great views of Galata tower and mosques on other side.
Songul was a great guide. This is primarily a waking tour of all the main sights in Istanbul. We enjoyed the tour and learned quite a lot from Songul. I highly recommend this tour and Songul in particular.
Our Guide Eylem was knowledgeable and ensured our trip was fun, answering questions and stopping for breaks as required. She was flexible in tour highlights ensuring crowds were avoided. Thank you
This was an excellent tour and the highlights we would’ve never learned or figured out on our own !! We were able to see so much beauty thanks to our amazing guide Eylem ! She was truly a love ! She shared her gorgeous city with her big heart ! Thank you thank you thank you !
Our tour of Istanbul with Eylem was fantastic! She was so knowledgeable and kind and fun and able to get around some obstacles. We had such a great experience seeing the major sites in Istanbul with Eylem as our guide! I’d highly recommend securing her for your tour!
Cristal is a knowledgeable, experienced, organized, and charismatic guide. She helped us see and understand Old Town, historic Istanbul now and through the ages. We had a superb lunch and one of the most memorable days ever. Absolutely wonderful!
Mel was excellent! She explained everything and more in detail. Skip the lines worked perfectly. We spent 5-6 hours with her and time flew by. So many beautiful things to see in Istanbul. She took us to lunch at a favorite restaurant with authentic food which was delicious 😋 She made the trip so enjoyable. I would highly recommend her to anyone. Marc and Connie
Amazing private tour with Mel! The company reached out the day before to confirm our meeting point and our guides name, which is thought was a very nice touch. The tour itself was fantastic with visits to Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, tone for lunch, a bazaar, and we could have gone to the Blue Mosque, but the line was really long, so we opted to sit in the shade while Mel told us all about it. We highly recommend this tour and especially Mel.
We had an amazing tour of Istanbul with our guide Oljay! We are a family of 6 traveling with parents grandparents and two teens and she was so knowledgeable and patient and attentive to our every request and answered all of our questions. She went out of her way to book us a stop for coffee and made us an amazing lunch reservation and took us to see the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and the spice market as well as shopping. She is the best and made our experience amazing in Istanbul,
We had he best day walking around Istanbul with our guide Seyma. Seyma went out of her way to make sure that we saw all the sites and that we were having a good time, we highly recommend her! Thank you for a great day!
The tour was very good. Belgium was a great guide. It was a lot of walking but worth it. We had a wonderful Turkish lunch. The highlight for me was the Cistens
Mel was amazing..she paced the day perfectly to avoid lines and crowds. She was very attentive to every request and super helpful for the rest of our stay in Istanbul. Her warm laughter and sense of humor is genuinely a delight. She answered questions with great knowledge and expertise. I highly recommend her.
It’s intimate and is custom you. You don’t have to wait for a lot of people. The tour was great and what I wanted.
Our guide Eylem was amazing - so knowledgeable and giving of her time. She balanced everything perfectly to maximise our experience and tailored the tour uniquely to us.
We had an absolutely wonderful experience with our tour guide Eylem. She was incredibly knowledgeable and brought the history, culture, and beauty of Turkey to life with her deep understanding and passion for the country. Every question we asked was answered with insight and enthusiasm. Beyond her expertise, she was kind, warm, patient, and genuinely caring. She made our family feel welcome from the very beginning and ensured that every part of our experience was enjoyable and memorable. Her professionalism, attention to detail, and friendly personality made our tour truly exceptional. I would not hesitate to recommend her to anyone visiting Turkey, and I will definitely work with her again on future trips. Thank you for making our time in Turkey so special!
What a fantastic day - Hamide was the best guide we have had the pleasure of meeting. We first went to Haggia Sofia and there was a long queue - immediately offered us the choice of skipping to the Cistern and returning later after queue reduced. That pattern repeated all day - something that is impossible on large group tours. It was like walking around the city with a knowledgable friend. We are so pleased we decided to go with this tour and guide. Worth every penny !
Taha was a wonderful tour guide. He took my son and myself throughout the old city and he was so personable and knowledgeable. A very kind person. I highly recommend him.
Whether you have a week or only a few days in Istanbul - plan this walking tour of the old city with Eylem. She was extremely knowledgeable about all the sites and has a deep appreciation for the history behind each building. It was the highlight of our stay in Istanbul.
Great tour covering the main attractions in Istanbul in a day. Belgin was great and very informative. I would recommend this tour.
Kenan was a fantastic guide. He was well informed about all the historical elements we viewed, plenty of interesting stories. Loads of facts and dates. He was also very funny. He was extremely useful in helping us figure out the do's and dont's of the city and cultures. This part was all fantastic! Only issue is the last two experiences attended were very heavy sales pitches. You get to view a person making a rug by hand and the history of this ancient art, which is all beautiful and wonderful. Then they take you to a seperate room where they offer you drinks and try to sell you a rug. Similar, but much less pushy, is the pottery place. You watch a master create a small piece on a foot kick pottery wheel, then they let you try which is super fun. They talk about the history and materials used in their cultures pottery. Then they show you around the sales floor and try to convince you to buy their wares, but not nearly as pushy as the rug guys. But I am from the upper Midwest in USA and anyone who talks to me in a store feels pushy to me, so perhaps to other folks they weren't pushy. If you like to haggle prices, Istanbul is your town. Everyone haggles.
Flawless and secure. It is like viator describes it! Our guide Perry was personable and sweet, would go with her anytime
We had a fantastic city tour of Istanbul with our guide, Kenan. He was incredibly knowledgeable, sharing the history and stories behind each site in a way that was engaging and easy to follow. His sense of humour made the day even more enjoyable, and he set a really comfortable pace so we never felt rushed. We saw all the major landmarks and even discovered a few hidden gems along the way. Kenan also recommended a lovely restaurant for lunch, which was one of the best meals of our trip. A brilliant experience from start to finish.
My husband and I took this private walking tour in October 2025. Our guide, Ozge, was just wonderful! She’s extremely knowledgeable and knows Istanbul like the back of her hand. She was flexible and made adjustments to the tour schedule based on how busy the various sites were and whether we wanted to spend more or less time in certain areas. This tour does involve a lot of walking and I needed to go slowly and take breaks, as I am pregnant. Ozge was very attentive and accommodating, and she never rushed us. It was so nice to have her as a resource when exploring sites like the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and the underground cistern. She pointed out intricate details to us that we would not have known about on our own, and she answered our questions with ease. For the couple of questions she didn’t know the answers to right away, she did some research and messaged us after the tour. She also sent us a list of recommended restaurants and attractions to visit on the Asian side of Istanbul because we had mentioned we would be going there. We learned so much from Ozge, and we would recommend this tour to others!
Our guide was very experienced (and knew everyone it seemed!). We had seen some of the things normally on this tour so she adapted. We were quite impressed by the trifecta of Hagia Sofia, blue mosque, and the Roman cistern we didn’t even realize was right there.
Even though the price was expensive, all the cost of the tickets, including taxi and skipping lines was included, which was pretty good. Our tour guide Belgin was awesome. She is a registered tour guide with great knowledge and patience. She knows how to plan the itinerary based on her client and she was very patient with us and gave us great insights of the places that we would have otherwise not known. I definitely recommend her.
This is a perfect intimate tour that gets straight to the point with all the information you need. My tour guide Eylem was very knowledgeable and knew all the tricks and spots to get photos. Highly recommend.
Great boat and service. The tour guide was great. Highly recommend . Pickup was on time. Very spacious boat
I paid a lot of money for this luxury pick up tour… only to find it was a walking tour with no luxury at all. It wasn’t skip the line as we queued up like everybody else. The guide was knowledgeable, which is the only good thing I could say about it very disappointed!!!
OJ was great as our guide! She was very friendly, informative and we felt comfortable asking questions.
We had the most wonderful day exploring Istanbul thanks to our incredible female guide. From the very beginning, she tailored the entire experience to exactly what we wanted to do, making it feel personal and effortless. Blue Mosque: She shared fascinating insights and made sure we saw the highlights without feeling rushed. Gluten-Free Lunch: Knowing our dietary needs, she found a delicious gluten-free restaurant that was perfect. Basilica Cistern: She managed to skip the line, saving us so much time and letting us enjoy the magic of the site stress-free. Grand Bazaar: Instead of wandering aimlessly, she took us straight to the shops that matched what we wanted to buy, making shopping both fun and efficient. Street Tram & Return: Navigating public transport in a new city can be intimidating, but she guided us through the tram system and even brought us all the way back to our cruise ship. Her warmth, knowledge, and attention to detail made the day truly special. Istanbul is an incredible city, but having a guide like her elevated the experience beyond expectations. We felt safe and cared for the entire day. A lovely day we’ll never forget!
We had a 5-6 hour tour with Karaman. He took us to the Blue Dome Mosque and Hagia Sophia. He was very knowledgeable about the history of these sites and the traditions associated with them. He also took us to the Basilica Cistern which was amazing. He had skip the line tickets to all sites which was really nice. After that he took us to a nice restaurant and guided us on what to order. Afterwards he took us to the Grand Bazar and let us shop for as long as we wanted. It was a great crash course of Istanbul! Highly recommend! We would never want to do Istanbul with a great guide. It is way too big! Great van/Limo transportation too!
Very professional and knowledgable Guide. Spoke excellent English. Made us feel totally at ease. Our day flew by and we could not have had abetter time.
Fantastic way to see Istanbul. We saw all the top attractions. Our tour guide was flexible with the amount of time we wanted to spend at each location. No waiting for tickets because they were included. Our guide was very knowledgeable and answered all our questions.
We had an amazing experience with our tour guide, Belgin! She was very punctual — arriving at our hotel 30 minutes before the tour even started. Throughout the day, she shared so much valuable information about Hagia Sophia, the Basilica Cistern, the Hippodrome, and the Blue Mosque. We also appreciated how she explained details about Turkish food and culture, which made the tour even more meaningful. We truly learned a lot from her and highly recommend Belgin to anyone visiting Istanbul!
5 star tour experience! Belgin our tour Guide could not have been kinder and worked hard at accommodating all of us! The pick up and drop off service was top notch.
I would highly recommend this tour for people with a short timeline in Istanbul. Our guide Eda was amazing. She was very knowledgeable at every site and was so enthusiastic and engaged our party of four.. we were collected from the port in a beautiful air-conditioned luxury van and headed to the sites. Eda. Explained the culture and connection to ancient times of these beautiful areas.. we then went to a beautiful Turkish restaurant for lunch and the food and wine was amazing, so much food but so beautiful. Then at the end of the day we finished up with a tour of a Turkish pottery store and where I purchased several items.. if you get the chance, please do this tour.
Our guide was on time, very knowledgeable and pleasant to spend time with. He was open to suggestions on where to go and when, overall it was a good experience
We had an amazing day suring this tour. Our guide Hilal was very professional and had great knowledge of the city and history. Definitely recommend this tour. You will see and learn a lot in short period of time
This was an excellent tour. Billur, our guide, was outstanding. Her knowledge of the mosques and historical sites was very impressive. She also helped us book a private yacht tour the next morning, and continued to follow up to make sure everything was okay. Highly recommend this tour and this guide! Well worth the cost.
Our excursion was labeled as transportation provided, but actually it was a walking tour. It was private just us two. And the tour guide was friendly and thorough in explaining Istanbul’s long history. We did visit a couple beautiful mosques and Cistern, but did not visit a couple other places on our itinerary. We were led to a Turkish carpet sales store and local spice and tea shop. Which we got hooked like a Timeshare presentation. We did purchase at both places. We did enjoy our time but the price for a walking tour is less than what we paid. And they do meet you just outside of the cruise terminal building Galataport. Not outside of the property. So that was a little frustrating to ask where to meet.
Burak was fantastic! He’s very knowledgeable, friendly and helpful. We were able to tailor the tour to see the sights we wanted to see. Our group had a great time and all agreed this was the best day of our trip.
Dilsad our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the history of each site. She had interesting antidotes about exhibits. She had good command of the English language. She was flexible about the amount of time at each location. Ask for Dilsad for a great visit to Istanbul sites.
Our recent private tour of Istanbul was an absolutely fantastic experience, thanks in large part to our incredible guide, Eylem. She saved us an immense amount of time by scheduling our visits, avoiding the big crowds in Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, and the Blue Mosque. This allowed us to truly immerse ourselves in each location without feeling rushed. Eylem also helped us taking perfect pictures during the tour.
We cannot give enough credit to our guide, Serkan, for making our tour today so enjoyable! He set a steady pace and used his extensive knowledge to ensure that we had minimal waiting times to get in to see each of the sights. He provided fantastic insight into each of the attractions, ably blending history with religious and cultural information to explain features of importance at the sights. He introduced us to reliable traders and helped us find the “right price” for the items we wished to purchase. (Yes, the ceramic speaker will be a talking point at home!) Noting we were keen to enjoy local foods, he stopped for lunch at a place he frequents regularly. The food was absolutely delicious! Thank you, Serkan for a wonderful day. You went out of your way to make sure we had a great time. Your photographic skills will be long remembered!!! We couldn’t have asked for a better guide!
We had a good time! Keenan was great and also spread things out accordingly and gave us food breaks, especially it being a hot day! Ty!
What an incredible tour. Sangui wa a fantastic guide as we navigated the best sites and skipped lines and learned a lot. She revised the tour to match our needs adding some food stops and some shopping and phot ops. Best part was we chose along the way and added things She stayed longer than booked making sure we were even clear about getting back to things on our own. With so many choices she read us clearly and our likes and her knack for overdeliving just the kind of tour we wanted was great. Read my other reviews. I can be very critical. She is awesome !!! You’ll be glad you did. A true pro in every regard from a world traveler who has used many guides.
Everything was wonderful. From the airport pick ups, air travel and amazing tour guides both in Istanbul, guided by Perihan & Cappadocia, guided by Sukru. Our tours were customized to our needs and desires.
Great day with a private guide. We had 7 of us on our tour and everything was fantastic! We learned alot and didn’t have to wait in any lines!
Guide was very knowledgeable about the sites and history. It was a full day of exploring and new experiences. We were further helped by our guides ability to get us through the lines, crowds and to take us to more trustworthy locations. Lunch was also great.
Our guide was amazing!! My mom and I had an amazing time in Istanbul learning about the rich history and I’m so glad that we got an amazing guide!
Elyam was great. She is very knowledgeable which made it an engaging experience for my family and me. Highly recommend a tour with her.
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