Private & Mini Group 7-8 Hours Guided Istanbul Tour / Cruise Port

Our guide was terrific very knowledgeable but was a walking tour and it was raining The Blue Mosque and Grand Bazaar was overwhelming

Very informative and kept our interest . Pleasant to deal with and got us through the popular spots before they got crowded

We don’t like this trip at all. At the beginning guide was looking nice but later instead of showing more sightseeing she wasted our time taking us to scam places like carpet place and others, May be she is getting commission from the Buisness owners.

Very busy place but we saw what we wanted within the first 4 hrs. We chose to skip the grand bazaar.

Pickup and finding guide was easy and good. Transportation dropped us off a couple miles away and we walked around the sites with our guide. Tickets to see the inside were extra. It was a lot of walking. We were on our feet for 4 hours before we could sit down. Our guide recommended a restaurant, that was extra. Then more walking and site seeing. We were happy to leave the small group before pickup and explore on our own and walked back to the port. Our guide was fine and knowledgeable. The transportation was short distance, entry tickets and food were not included so I would not recommend the experience especially if you want to go at your own pace.

Tayfun was an amazing tour guide! Since it was a private excursion he took into consideration a special request we made of him. He was easy to spot at the terminal and very informative. He knew his information well. Thank you for a wonderful day!

An excellent way to see Istanbul! Our guide, Erkan, spoke English and was very accommodating. Our small group of six had different interests and we were able to modify the tour to suit our interests.

Istanbul is amazing for first time visitors. We had a very informative tour & experiencing the Grand Bazzar is something never to be forgotten.

Our guide Tayfun! Was unbelievable. His knowledge of instanbul and its hidden gems was on point! He even saved the day by retrieving my husbands wallet that was left at a security check point! We can’t thank him enough for an education and fun experience

Our guide, Tayfun, was excellent. We did a private tour and communicated with the tour company in advance about what we’d most like to see. Tayfun customized our experience to be exactly what we wanted and gave us tons of historical info for context. Highly recommend!

Turkan, our private tour guide, made the tour very special and shecustomized it to our desires. We saw Hippodrome - Chariot races and Obelisks, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Gülhane (National Park) - The private courtyard of the palace. Then we went to the Spice Market, where she showed us the best places to buy spices, tea, and coffee. We ended up eating lunch in a local restaurant Ocakbaşı, which was fabulous.

For May, 2026 we arranged a 2 day private tour of Istanbul booked through Curio Travel with Ephesus Shuttle Tours and Leyla as our guide. We had general ideas about what we wanted to see and do, hitting historical and cultural sights and experiencing different parts of the incredible city. All the drivers were on time, dependable and careful and Leyla was always on time as well. Leyla, was really great. She was very personable and professional. Her style as a guide was conversational and open, a perfect match for our way of learning and spending time in a new culture. She provided interesting and important historical, cultural and social context to ancient and modern day Istanbul and offered her personal perspectives when we wanted to know. She was flexible and adapted to changes in our energy and availability, provided suggestions and guidance and we liked her so much, that we asked for an additional day which she was able to accommodate. We would use Curio and Ephesus Shuttle Tours again and would definitely ask for Leyla. She added much to our experience and enjoyment.

We had a great time with Ezgi in Istanbul! Her knowledge about the history and architecture of the various places we visited was impressive and made the excursion all the more enjoyable. She was able to steer us away from some of the more obvious tourist traps and used her experience and connections with some of the local vendors to get us into places faster and easier. She was even willing to indulge us by waiting in a lengthy (but fast moving) line to see the Blue Mosque. I’ll never forget her quick thinking when we started getting hounded by all the rug merchants in the Grand Bazaar. I had just purchased a rug from a trusted vendor outside the market and the bag they gave me made it obvious to all the other vendors at the Bazaar that I had just bought one. They were eager to help me buy more when Ezgi had the brilliant idea to put the bag inside another one to disguise it. She also made an excellent suggestion for lunch at Rumeli Kebab & Steak House. Not only was the food delicious but the waitstaff were funny and engaging. Highly recommended Ezgi for your future Istanbul tours and Rumeli for the food and atmosphere.

Haggard Sophia is covered in scaffolding so this should be mentioned if you are choosing this tour. Topkapi Palace was beautiful. Our guide walked a little too fast for us older folks. Honestly we should have taken the T1 tram and done it by ourselves.

Our tour was absolutely fantastic and one of the highlights of our trip. We learned so much about the city’s rich history, culture, and the significance behind many of its architectural masterpieces. The itinerary was excellent — we visited the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace Museum, the Grand Bazaar, and the Spice Market, all while getting detailed historical context that really brought each place to life. Our guide, Tayfun, was exceptional. His knowledge, experience, and flexibility made the tour feel very personalized. He gave great recommendations throughout the day and allowed us to tailor the pace and timing to our interests. One example was the Hagia Sophia Mosque, which was under renovation during our visit. Based on Tayfun’s advice that much of the interior was obstructed, we chose to skip going inside and spend more time enjoying other sites — definitely the right call. This tour is perfect for anyone who wants an immersive overview of the city’s history, landmarks, and cultural evolution. Be prepared for a fair amount of walking, though it was completely manageable and worth it for everything we experienced. If you enjoy fascinating history, stunning architecture, vibrant markets, and don’t mind getting your steps in, this is absolutely the tour to book.

Engi was a fantastic guide. She guided us through all the main sites in Istanbul to include the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia, Basilica Cistern, Hippodrome and the Grand Bazaar! She was very knowledgeable and it was amazing to see and learn about all these sites in one day. She picked us up right at the port and dropped us off there following our tour.

Note to all you English speakers heading to or in Istanbul: Leyla is an exceptionally good tour guide. My husband and I - a travel group of 2 - just spent 3 days (April 6-9 2026) with Leyla as our guide. She is thoroughly knowledgeable about Turkish history,, art, culture, and what tourists need to know to feel comfortable. She is excellent at giving background information leading up to events and famous sites you will visit. She also anticipates what you’ll need to know to feel comfortable on your own in Istanbul. My husband and I have traveled around the world. Leyla is probably the best tour guide we have ever worked with. Many shared laughs and smiles, many memorable moments, and much learning. Many thanks Leyla!

Ceren provided excellent commentary about the places we visited. She was on time for our tour, was very personable, knowledgeable, and made us feel welcome in her city of Istanbul. Highly recommended.

Leyla was an absolute delight to have spend this tour with . She guided us in a way that we were ahead of the crowds . Her knowledge of Istanbul and its history was just amazing . She shared so much insight as we walked through the city . Where we went for lunch was such good food.She also was prompt in getting us back to the cruise ship terminal in time . Sorry it took me a while to write this review

We have a private shore excursion with Ephesus Shuttle when our cruise stopped in Istanbul. We highly recommend their service. The service provided by Ephesus Shuttle and our tour guide Özge are excellent and professional. From the initial planning stage to the day of tour, everything was perfect.

In June 2025 my family of five tour took a private tour with Ephesus Private tour company . Their website was excellent and easy to pick the tour we wanted. We did the Ancient Hippodrome – Blue Mosque – Topkapi Palace – Hagia Sophia – Grand Bazaar Tour 3a. The shuttle met us at the cruise port. We had a private driver and tour guide Leyla. Leyla was very knowledgeable and provided a lot of information we would never have gotten on our own. We were able customize the tour to our needs. The driver was excellent at maneuvering through the busy streets. I would highly recommend this tour for anybody who wants to get the most out a full day, safe tour, in Istanbul. Communications were excellent. They answered many questions I had before we even started our tour.

The guide was superb. Friendly, knowledgeable, patient and kind. My friend was not very mobile (or interested!) and only came to keep me company. The guide was very understanding about this and went out of his way to help. He took us where we wanted to go, and not to anywhere I did not want to go to. He really was brilliant and I was very pleased. In terms of the booking there were 2 issues. This trip was more than twice the price of another (equally good) in Turkey, which covered more car milage. I took Turkish lire thinking that as I was in Turkey, it would be courteous to use lire. As I am English I use pounds, not euros or dollars. However, you need EUROS!

This tour provides you with must see attractions in Istanbul albeit for a limited time. Agia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar as well as a sweet shop, jewellery store and ceramics shop.

Ezgi was fantastic! Very knowledgeable and personable. We had a wonderful day and were happy to not have to wait in line for our tickets.

We were thoroughly pleased with the Day in Athens tour with George's Taxi. Our driver and guide, Ali, was courteous, knowledgeable, and fun to be with. He made our experience meaningful and a pleasurable delight. Ali knew the best timing of events around the city, like the changing of the guards at the presidents home. He also took us to a restaurant away from the tourist crowds, where the cuisine was exquisite, needless to say, beyond delicious and affordable! My wife and i would not hesitate recommending George's Taxi. Thank you, GT!!!

Tayfun may be the best tour guide we've had. His English was perfect, his manner was very kind and he listened to our suggestions and without hesitating, gave us the best full day tour. When we suggested something- it happened. We left the tour satisfied that we learned what we wanted to about Istanbul, the Islam faith, and the history of the area. We ate local food, took a ferry to the Asian side, and had a delicious local dessert. We gave him our shopping list and he took us to very trustworthy stores in the grand bazaar and spice markets. Couldn't have been better.

This was well worth it. Our guide met us right at the cruise terminal and the van was waiting for us outside. Our guide was super knowledgeable and did a great job of showing us around the key areas of the city.

We had a great tour. Our guide was knowledgeable and helpful. I liked that he stuck with the itinerary we chose...while politely dealing with the other couple that wanted to change all of the stops. I feel we had a great overview of this amazing city.

Our guide was there on time. He showed us so much and took the time to talk about the history of the area. Well worth the expense.

The best thing was getting ahead of the long lines with a small party private group. We skipped all the tourist lines, very much appreciated.

A very good tour with another couple from our cruise ship. Buse was very thoughtful and kind and looked after us so well. Her knowledge was very good about each place and she asked us what we would like to do and what was advisable in the time we had. Would definitely book again with this tour group.

We had a wonderful day in Istanbul with Aneil. He was a trusted and knowledgeable guide and was focused on making sure our day would be exactly how we wanted it to be. I would book a tour with him again without hesitation!

For our first visit to Istanbul, we opted for a small group tour. It ended up being just my wife and I with our guide, Tayfun, who was provided by TripAdvisor. He met us exactly as we had been advised, which started the day out right. Istanbul, being 17 million folks, seemed a natural to get helpful insights. It turned out to be a smart and fortunate selection. Tayfun is both deeply knowledgeable and comfortably social. Despite a planned tour itinerary, he was readily flexible to make changes at our request to accommodate my wife's walking limitations. The adjustment retained a fulfilling and fascinating enrichment of our experience of this vibrant city, thanks to his insights and affable nature. As an illustration of his thoughtfulness and easy personal balance, at one point in viewing Hahia Sophia, I realized that my backpack was missing. I was perplexed as to how it could have been lost. Tayfun immediately assessed the likely solution, and backtracked to a security station, returning with a guard and the missing pack. After I correctly described the contents, it was opened and verified and then released to me. Tayfun took it in stride and was modest about his vital recovery role . He and his company were a great enrichment to our day in Istanbul.

Very nice excursion. Me and my husband had a very good time. The guide is very professional and gave us lots of information.

The driver is friendly enough, with good knowledge on all our visiting places. We have enjoyed our slow walking pace for our seniors. It will be also good if we have a chance to visit the ground floor of Hagia Sophia in which we have missed.

Our tour guide was very friendly, knowledgeable, informative about attractions in Istanbul, he helped us navigating thru the long line of entrances and tickets. Very appreciated

Our guide was very knowledgeable and informative. I really liked the private tour because we were able to ask lots of questions and not wait on other travelers to catch up. We had a car instead of a bus so it was easier for the driver to drop us off and pick us up. This was a great way to see old part of Istanbul We saw Hagia Sophia, Basilica, Hippodrome, and Blue Mosque, bought a few souvenirs. It was a Tuesday so the Topkapi Palace was not open which was a good thing. Topkapi is at least 4 hours of walking (16000 steps). We would not have been able to do all of it in one day. We went back on our own the next day and did Topkapi all by itself and that was perfect. Ladies remember scarves for both the mosques and the Palace.

Had a wonderful experience with Yanis in Istanbul. It was so unique and informative and geared to our interests. We learned so much about Christianity and the Muslim churches and mosques. We had a great time at the Spice Market (Sunday). The tour was customizable and was perfect for us.

Istanbul is too large and to busy to tour on your own. I recommend private over group any day. This company provides a fabulous tour guide named Türkan. She was early and ready to go. Very professional and knowledgeable of each area that we visited. She had charm and her jokes was the kind of tour guide that my wife and I like when we have someone with us for hours visiting a new city.

Unfortunately the weather was cool and rainy. We did see Topkapi, the blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia. We did not have time to do Grand Bazaar but we all went on our own the following day. Enjoyed that very much. Our guide took us to a terrible and VERY EXPENSIVE fish restaurant for lunch. She did not ask if we want fish. Restaurant was crowded and we were sent to a separate room where they set up a table for us. Service was slow and they forgot part of the order. All in all, this took a good two hours out of our day when we would have preferred a DONER (Turkish sandwich) which would have been better and faster. totally unsatisfactory!

the guide is not ready for prime time yet: her English was not fluent , her arrangement was inadequate and missed a major site due to long wait time!

Excellent tour which was customized to meet our desires. Guide was full of great knowledge about sites and educating us on Turkish culture. Highly recommend

Our tour guide Ali was great. He showed us the highlights and told us about the history. We even got to go to the bazaar for a little shopping after a delicious lunch.

At the terminal, our Tour Guide, Erkan Elibouyuk, greeted us by displaying a sign with our name on it. He was very personable, friendly and informative throughout the day. We went to the Blue Mosque, the Aquaducts, lunch and The Grand Bazaar. Because it was a private tour, we did not feel pressured or rushed. The Aquaducts were really cool with all the colored lights and ancient pillars. The lunch at the local restaurant was really good. The Grand Bazaar was an indoor mall with over a thousand vendors. Its size was massive!! This is not a tour for someone who does not want to walk as there was a lot of walking. It was a wonderful day!! Admission to the sights are not included in the price of the tour. Our Guide bought the tickets and we paid him back. We could not pay on our own because our Guide got special rates on the tickets.

Our guide, John, was exceptional! He endured that we arrived at our stops before the crowds did. He was very informative and had an amazing knowledge of Istanbul. We all enjoyed the day and highly recommend this tour?

Beg disappointment. The guide seemed more interested in smoking and ending the tour early. We did not even see the hagia Sofia. Long lines and no tour access. Don't waist your money.

Great. Had the opportunity to spend time with Turkish people during a shopping experience. Was wonderful. Unor sorry if I misspelled was great!

We had a great day with Onur! He was a great guide! He was informative and interesting. He helped us skip the line which was greatly appreciated. He showed us reliable shops in the Grand Bazaar. Although it was an option to get driven back to the ship, we opted to have Onur take us via public transport which saved lots of time and hassle. He also brought us to a delicious restaurant for lunch!! Highly recommend!!

We had a wonderful day. Our guide was so very knowledgeable, and we learned a lot about Istanbul. Highly recommend.