Wonders Of Istanbul : Full Day Private Guided City Tour

Mohammed was a great guide who took us around the old city of Istanbul. There is a lot of walking involved so be prepared. Defo recommend

Saban did a great job of explaining Turkish history and guiding us to our chosen sites. We enjoyed the Blue Mosque and Topaki Palace, ate a nice lunch, ride the tram and passed through the Bazaar. Despite the rain, it was a great day.

He was very knowledgeable and experienced as a tour guide. Enjoyed every moment of it. Amazing history lesson. Thank you .

Sema was wonderful. So very knowledgeable on the history of Istanbul. Would highly recommend her services.

Mohammet was an amazing guide. Calm, polite, funny and full of information. Not only the most important kind, but also interesting tit bits that make getting to know a new historical city and its people so much fun.

★★★★★ The best way to see Istanbul, with Fettah as your guide We spent a full day with Fettah seeing Istanbul's greatest sites, from the Hippodrome, Blue Mosque, and Hagia Sophia to the Basilica Cistern, the Grand Bazaar, Topkapı Palace, and the Spice Market. He made us feel like friends he was proud to show his city to rather than just a tour group. Fettah is engaging and very knowledgeable. He made the history come alive and answered every question we had. He also changed the tour to fit what we wanted to see, and let us spend more or less time at each site. That flexibility made the day feel personal. We can't imagine a better guide.

Anil was a great guide! He was full of great information, knew the best spots to go, and kept us engaged the entire tour. I would highly recommend booking with him.

Really amazing tour with Anil! I know quite a lot about the history of istanbul, and Anil was a huge wealth of knowledge. We felt he really brought to life the history of istanbul, and the anecdotes and details he shared across all the various monuments and sights was really amazing. Having the guide made a huge difference - we had a great time. It was also really nice to have some choices between attractions, and where we could spend more or less time. The tour was flexible and we couldn't have asked for a better tour guide. Thank you so much Anil!

Did a walking tour with Mustafa as our guide, he definitely made the tour worth it and was very accommodating. His historical explanations were both educational and entertaining, he also talked about other cultural information that were not specific to the tour which made it much more interesting. For lunch, he took us to an amazing restaurant with the good food and the perfect view, after which he directed us to shops that were in line with our interests. I definitely recommend taking the guided tour for those who want to get the feel of the area and the people. If you want good photos and recommendations, Mustafa’s your guy.

Murat was very flexible with options and created a good agenda based upon ship getting in late. He took the time to explain everything without feeling rushed.

If you only have a couple if days in Istanbul, this tour takes you to the major sites who wouldn't want to miss. Fettah , our guide, was very personable, knowledgeable and patient. He told us the history and background of these sites and let us take our time taking pictures and explore around. I had to replace a broken peice of luggage and he was kind enough to take us to shop for and even carried it back to our hotel! I would recommend his service 100percent!

What a great experience with our guide Shaban! He was so accommodating, knowledgeable and fun. We learned and experienced so much with him. He even took us to a 4star Michelin restaurant we enjoyed so much we went back the next day! Highly recommend!!!

A most enjoyable , educational and memorable walking tour of Istanbul with our wonderful tour guide Elif , who was so very knowledgeable , informative , attentive and good company . Her enthusiasm for the history and culture of Turkey shone through and we were expertly guided around several historical sites , iconic monuments , the atmospheric Cistern , the Spice Market and visited and admired mosques with exquisite tiling which included the famous Hagia Sophia. Elif made everything interesting and was always patient allowing us time to pause , admire and take many photos along the way. We travelled as well as walking via the excellent value for money tram system without the stress of having to negotiate it alone as tourists ! Elif took us to a busy local market where we enjoyed a delicious traditional lunch - somewhere we would never have found on our own . We followed up with a visit to a coffee house which was another enjoyable experience. We fitted a lot into our tour of Istanbul ,it was our third visit on a shore excursion , great to return and without saying put in a huge amount of steps . It was a walking tour after all! Baclava was purchased at a recommended shop , safely vacuumed packed to take home together with many lovely photos to treasure . Thanks to Elif for making this trip so special too from D & I .

Our guide Savas was very knowledgeable. He was available to us even after the tour and was very responsive of any questions we had.

This was a "best ever"experience. Istanbul is a wonderful place and I had heard much about how gracious and welcoming the Turkish people are but Mehmet far exceeded my expectations. His enthusiasm and depth and breadth of knowledge not only made this day special but his recommendations will certainly improve the rest of my stay in Turkey. I have arranged several tours through Viator all of which have been excellent but as I said, this was the best ever!

We had our Wonders of Istanbul private tour with John, and he is an amazing guide. We learned so much history from him, and the places we’ve been shown. He is funny and witty, and we enjoyed our time with him. He helped us walk around the Grand Bazaar for things that we were looking for, and shared with us a spot for a quick lunch. We highly recommend having him on anyone planning to have private tours.

We had an amazing tour !!! AK was so accommodating and truly educated and passionate of the history of this beautiful city . We had no idea we were going to be walking so much but he made it fun, informative and accessible. I can’t express enough how wonderful our guide was. His english was fluent. We Highly Recommend This tour!!

John showed us so many places in Istanbul. He is very knowledgeable with the Turkish history as much as the places he brought us to. He is also very funny, kind and easy to talk to. He gave us suggestions as to where to eat and made sure we make good bargains on quality products we bought in the Grand Bazaar. We have enjoyed his company as he walked us around the area. We highly recommend him as a tour guide!

We were met at the port by Savas our extremely knowledgeable guide. His English was extremely good and the information he provided was insightful and helpful. He accompanied us on the tram to the historic older section of the city. The Blue Mosque was stunning. The explanation of the hippodrome scope and its uses was effective and interesting. The tour of the Grand Bazaar was fun and it really helped to have a knowledgeable guide to not get lost. All in all a fun and interesting day.

Our guide, Resul, met us on time at our hotel, and guided us through many of the famous buildings around the area, finishing with the Grand Bazaar. His knowledge was incredible, and he brought history to life with many stories about the people of Istanbul and cultural history. He answered all our questions thoroughly, his English was excellent, and he helped us buy tickets at each spot. Highly recommend Resul.

Our guide Mohammed met us 10 minutes early at Galataport and took us by tram, skipping Istanbul's chaotic traffic entirely. We started at the Blue Mosque with the Square and the Obelisks, then went on to Topkapi Palace, the Basilica Cistern, and Hagia Sophia. His English was excellent and his knowledge even better. He told the history so vividly it felt like he had lived it. We spent 7 hours on our feet and never felt tired. Courteous and well mannered to the end, he made our day. We were lucky to have him!

Our guide, Shaban was very knowledgeable! He was prompt, friendly, flexible for our interests, and kept a good pace throughout the day. Great lunch recommendation!

Anil did a great job showing us the old city. Gave us real background on the sites and religion. Learned a lot. Got good answers to a lot of my questions. Individual tours are much better than the group. Guide was able to get us right into the buildings and we passed many groups, including cruises, waiting in long lines. Customized the tour for our interests.

Great experience. We visited all world famous landmarks, our guide was excellent and very knowledgeable .

Wonderful full day private tour which covered all the historic site i.e Blue Mosque, Hippodrome Basilica Cistern etc. Our guide JOHN knew his “stuff “ and made the day an experience we’ll long remember. We’d throughly recommended this tour and particularly JOHN.as your guide.

Umutcan was a wonderful tour guide! He was very knowledgeable and very personable and we really enjoyed our time with him. I recommend him!

Yunus confirmed meeting location and time the evening before our tour. He arrived at meeting location 30 minutes before and WhatsApp messaged me. We discussed places we’d like to visit and he took us there using public transit. We took trams as well as funicular. His English language skills was good and we had no problem understanding him. He gave us as much Turkish history and information as we wanted. Always asked us what we wanted to do or visit next. It was a wonderful way to experience Istanbul. Thank you, Yunus!

Resul was an outstanding guide, very personable and knowledgeable about the history of the sites we visited and provided a very enjoyable tour. He spoke excellent English and was attentive to tailoring the tour for us. The transportation to and from our hotel was very convenient. We highly recommend Resul and this tour.

We had a wonderful day seeing the highlights of Istanbul with our guide! He was kind, funny, and extremely knowledgeable, making the entire experience both enjoyable and informative. What we especially appreciated was how flexible and personalized the tour was. He gave us choices about how much time we wanted to spend on different activities and really customized the day around our interests and pace. We never felt rushed and were able to enjoy Istanbul in a way that felt just right for us. We learned so much and had a fantastic time. We would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a knowledgeable, personable, and flexible guide in Istanbul!

Excellent tour. It covered all of Istanbul’s gems. Resul, the tour guide, was very knowledgeable and helpful! Would definitely recommend

Saban was an excellent tour guide, he was so knowledgeable about everything in Turkish history. We were given plenty of time to explore both the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia. He explained what we were looking at, and answered questions. The only thing I would mention is, the entry fee for Hagia Sophia seemed a little steep. He would've taken us to Topkapi palace but unfortunately it was closed on the day we booked this tour(Tuesday.)

We had a great day with Muhammet. Easy meet up and comfortable van picked us up close by. He was thoughtful to ask exactly what we wanted to do during our time together in Istanbul and did a wonderful job explaining the history of the various sights and buildings. Muhammet is very pleasant and feels like a friend already! The cisterns were fascinating and the Hagia Sophia was beautiful. Istanbul is an amazing city and really we needed a few days here to take it all in but had limited time from the cruise ship and my knee gave out by the time we got to the Grand Bazaar. We were there long enough to see how fun it would be to browse for a couple of hours shopping in the spice shops and other stores. Thank you for a wonderful time!

We had a great time with Berkcan, we got to ride the train, walked around as Berkcan showed us the sights of Istanbul on foot.

Muhammet was a great guide- very informative and flexible. We met him at our hotel and first sat down and talked about what we wanted to do and see during the tour. He also had suggestions. Highly recommend this tour!

Anil was a fantastic guide and a great companion for the day. He got us through the queues quickly and was extremely knowledgeable. He was also flexible and gave us options to choose from based on our interests and the time we had. Was definitely worth the cost. Highly recommend.

Fettah ( our guide) was great! He knew his history with names, dates and stories. We did the Blue Mosk, Higha Sophia, Bassilica Cistern and Topkapi Palace with all the historical details.

What an amazing day! Muhammed was an outstanding guide…great communication before we arrived to confirm meeting point and right where he said he would be. He made sure we were on the same page before we began the tour. Started at Hagia Sophia before heading to the Basilica Cistern, which was the highlight of the morning! Then a break before Topkapi Palace and finally the Blue Mosque. Great conversation throughout the day…he was great at answering our questions. He even made sure to get us to the meeting point for an evening activity. Great tour, guide was even better…highly recommend!

Fettah was EXCELLENT. He provided insights and explanations throughout the tour. His knowledge of Istanbul is extensive, his English is perfect, he is engaging and personable. He willingly accommodated two special requests we had. Definitely one of the best guides we have had in many years of traveling.

Muhammed was a great tour guide for our first day in Istanbul. He has a lot of knowledge about the history and culture of the city! Super helpful and great at curating a plan that’s best for you. Definitely recommend.

We learned so much from Rasul, our guide for the day. He was friendly and helpful and we were all so glad we opted for a tour because we had such a full experience. Rasul was quite the historian and his English was impeccable! I would highly recommend this tour!

Our guide John tailored the day in Istanbul to suit us, which was perfect. We wanted to see the main historical sights and skipped the Topkapi Palace and the Grand Bazaar to visit the following day. John was very knowledgeable and spoke perfect English. He asked what type of food we wanted for lunch and took us to a local restaurant off the tourist trail which offered lots of vegetarian options. We have no complaints!

Great walking experience. Sema was a great guide, very knowledgeable and accommodating to to our needs. I would high

Our guid Berkcan did an excellent job taking us through some major histoic sites in Istanbul. He is friendly, competent and generally a good guy. The tour took around 6 hours. Berkcan was very flexible and at the start of the trip we decided what we are going see, what's worth the ticket price and whats renovated, he also helped with additional ticket return that were upsell to us by Hagia Sophia. We also decided what lunch we're going to have. The tour is a great way for first timers to learn about main attractinons and basic cultural differences. ---------- Some addtional Info ----- One thing to be aware of is that tickets and lunch are not included (lunch is optional). Tickets are expensive compared even to other major tourist attractions in western Europe. As of Sept 2026: Higia Sofia - 25 euro - ticket office will try to upsell another display for another 25 euro. Topkapi Palace 55 euro - we didn't go because many rooms are under renovation Blue Mosque - free! Cistern Basilica - 40 euro Grand Basaar - technically free, but the marchands are very good at selling you stuff :)

Mustafa (Jake) was incredible. He was flexible, knowledgeable and made the day easy for us all. We stopped for a wonderful rooftop lunch.. everything was well organized and delightful. I recommend this tour+ Jake .

The tour was structured around our interests and our pace. There was no rush, great flexibility and terrific information. It was well done and definitely an excellent way to spend our time. Thank you!

Enjoyable and enlightening, but was not prepared for the amount of walking. Kind and easy to communicate with our guide. Unsol was patient and attentive.

Hired this company and had Rasul as my tour guide. Highly recommend this experience. I wanted to go to the old town with a guide so I could get the history of Istanbul as I looked at the Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazzar and Basilica Cistern. Rasul didn’t disappoint. He’s very knowledgeable And pleasant to have as a guide. He helped with photos and took his time explaining things and taking me around town. Highly recommend this tour and the guide.

We hit the important historical/cultural sights in the old city: Hippodrome, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia and Basilica Cistern. Anil was super informative, very personable and kind, and took into account the needs of our party of four. We highly recommend him!

It’s an informative walking tour that provides a lot of history. John was an amazing guide, great personality, and very accommodating. I highly recommend this tour if you want a personalized visit to the main highlights of Istanbul.