Tours in Istanbul
Istanbul is quite a large city where public transport can often be confusing. It is hard to avoid long lines and get accustomed to the hustle-bustle of a large city. You may like to prefer to hire a tour guide and a minivan with driver for your party. Hiring a tour guide and driver will save you time and make your trip a memorable experience.
A Full-Day Classical City Tour
A Half-Day Bosphorus Cruise
A Full-Day Byzantium Heritage Tour
A Full Day Mosques Tour
A Half-Day Golden-Horn Tour
A Full-Day Prince's Islands Tour
A Half-Day Asia Side Tour
Istanbul By-Night, Dinner and Shows
A Full-Day Classical City Tour
This tour includes the very basic highlights of the city, as Hippodrome Square, The Blue Mosque, The Hagia Sophia Church, The Underground Cistern, a Lunch Break and afterwards the imperial Topkapi Palace and finally the Grand Bazaar. The tour usually starts at 9 a.m and finishes at 4-5 p.m. Organized tours are accompanied by a professional tour guide and a van depending on the location of the hotel. The Underground Cistern may be replaced by the Suleymaniye Mosque in some itineraries. If you have a limited
time in Istanbul, this tour is definitely for you. Local Guides in Hagia Sophia or Topkapi Palace are also available. Among the guidebooks, "The Blue Guide Istanbul" or "Strolling Through Istanbul" by John Freely is strongly recommended. These books give a general framework as well as practical information. If you like to see Istanbul on your own, “Rick Steves’ Istanbul Book” is an excellent choice. Note that Old City is pedestrian only. Hagia Sophia Church is closed on Mon. Topkapi Palace is closed on Tue.
A Half Day Bosphorus Cruise
This tour can be taken on the second day of your arrival. If you have booked a tour, you'll be accompanied by a tour guide and a van to take you from your hotel to the ferry station. The ferry station is located in "Eminonu", the port number is #3. It's written "Bogaz Hatti" in Turkish meaning Bosphorus Cruise. The ticket office is next window of the station. The prices are quite reasonable but subject to change often. The organized tour with a guide takes about 1,5 hours and you get off the ferry at "Sariyer". Your van takes you to a fish restaurant and after the lunch, the tour is over. If you are on your own, you can continue until 3 p.m and give a lunch break at "Anadolu Kavak".. It's a small and cozy fishing town where you can taste fresh and delicious fish as well as fresh fruits and vegetables.
A Full-Day Byzantium Heritage Tour
This tour is special for the guests who would like to hear more about the Byzantine Heritage, churches, cisterns or aqueducts from the 3rd century up to the 13th century. This tour will include the Church of Sergius and Bacchus (Renamed as "Kucuk Ayasofya Mosque" in Turkish), Hagia Eirene Church, Pantocrator Church (Imrahor Mosque) Church, Pammakaristos Church (Fethiye Mosque), Aquaduct of Valens, the Seven-Towers Citadel (Yedikule in Turkish), Chora Church, Old City Walls of Theodosius II and Underground Cistern. This is a very history-intensive tour and perfect for archeologists ,historians or guests who is specially interested in Byzantium History. Note that some of the buildings will be visited from outside. Chora Church is closed on Wed.
A Full-Day Mosques Tour
This tour will include the Ottoman-time mosques starting from the 16th century. The world-famous architect Sinan has constructed different mosques, aqueducts, cisterns, soup kitchens for the poor and hospitals in the Ottoman Empire Era. The famous Blue Mosque is the first stop. This mosque was also constructed by a pupil of Architect Sinan: Sedefkar Mehmet Aga.
After the Blue Mosque, a big complex; including a mosque and tombs of Suleyman the Magnificient and his wife, Hürrem Sultan will be visited. This complex is called "Süleymaniye Mosque". With red carpets and notable acoustics, it's a really beautiful architectural piece. This mosque is another masterpiece by Architect Sinan. Due to the recent renovation work, tombs and several sections may be closed without prior notice.
After the Suleymaniye Mosque, the beautiful Şehzade Sultan Mosque is visited. This mosque was constructed with the order of Suleyman in the name of his beloved son, Şehzade Mehmed. Mehmed died of T.B at a very young age. It's small and cozy mosque, reflecting the typical earlier style of Architect Sinan.
Another mosque complex to be visited is “Eyup Sultan Mosque”. Eyup Sultan (Eyyub-El Ensari) is a highly revered religious figure as he died as a martyr during a campaign on Byzantine Constantinople, led by Prophet Muhammed. , His shrine and mosque complex are visited by hundreds of Muslims every year. People visit his tomb, pray, show their respect and make wishes there. It is a tradition for newly married couples, sick people seeking remedy or recently circumsized boys with their parents to visit his tomb.
The next mosque to be visited is the "New Mosque (Yeni Camii)" next to the Spice Market. It's called "new", because unlike many 16th C mosques, this mosque was constructed in the 17th C. It's also called as "The Pigeon Mosque" due to the pigeons fed by people. This mosque is not usually visited by tourist groups, therefore you may see many local Turks praying in the mosque.
The last mosque in our tour is the last Sinan work, “Rüstem Pasha Mosque” which is located within the market area of the Spice Market. It was built for the prime minister and sister’s husband of Süleyman the Magnificent, Rüstem Pasha by architect Sinan and has gorgeous pieces of Iznik Tiles from the 16th C.
The order of this tour is subject to change due to the pray times and the season changes.
A Half-Day Golden Horn Tour
This is a half-day tour which you may start at 9 a.m to 12 p.m and end up in a restaurant overlooking the Golden Horn for lunch or at 1 p.m to 3-4 p.m. If you have booked this tour, you are accompanied by a van and a tour guide. This tour requires a taxi or a car. There's a long road along the Golden Horn which is an inlet of the strait Bosphorus. The car takes you along the Golden Horn and along the way, you’ll get to see the Bulgarian Church, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate, the Greek High School for boys, the Jewish Hospital and the Eyup Sultan Mosque complex. The car takes you along the old city-walls from the 5th C and the tour finishes at a cozy cafe called "Pierre Loti". Loti is French and he used to spend most of his time at that café. The Café is overlooking the Golden Horn and you may see the relections of the sun on the water. It's a great spot. Visit the Chora Church which is famous for its beautiful mosaics and frescoes from the 14th C. Note that Chora Church is closed on Wed.
A Full-Day "Prince's Islands" Tour
This is a lovely tour on a sunny Istanbul Day. The tour starts at 9:45 a.m. If you have booked the tour, you are taken from your hotel to the ferry station by a van and tour guide. You may take a ferry from Eminonu or a hydrofoil from Kabataş. A ferry ride will be slower, but will be much more scenic. If you want to go on your own, the ferry leaves at 10:20 a.m from Eminonu,Port ADALAR. First you purchase your tickets and get on the ferry. It takes about 40 minutes to get to the islands. The largest and mostly populated island is called "The Grand Island"(BUYUKADA)". You can watch for the names of the stations and leave the ferry at that station. There's no motor vehicle on the island, so you hire a horse carriage and enjoy the island. If you hire a horse car, you ask for "Kucuk Tur"(Kuchuk Tour) meaning "Small tour". The car takes you around, you see beautiful, old houses , lovely gardens, roses and breathe the fresh air. At a hill, the driver stops to rest the horses, so you can stop by a café and drink something. This tour takes about 1 hour,15 minutes, so after you finish the tour, you make the payment. If you like, you can hire bikes and enjoy the island by bicycles. At the very top of the island, there's a lovely Church called "Hagia Georgios"(St. George). There was a considerably big Greek population on the island and it was their church. This church is still active..
If you like to have a great meal, you can walk down to the shore and find a cozy restaurant. Nice sea food and fresh fish as well as fresh salad are available in those restaurants. You can check the departure time from the island back to the city from the ticket office next to the restaurant area. Another ticket must be purchased for your return.
A Half-Day Asian Side Tour
This tour usually starts at 9 a.m and requires a car. First of all, you cross the Bosphorus Bridge and pass on the Asian Continent. The first stop is called "Üskudar". This is a colorful spot, full of people. While you are driving along the coast, you can observe the European Side, The 5-star Ciragan Palace Kempinski Hotel and the Dolmabahçe Palace. On your right, you’ll see a tower called "The Leander's Tower". This is a tower from the 12th C. According to the myth, when the Byzantium Emperor had heard from a fortune teller that his beloved daughter one day would have been bitten by a snake and die, to protect her he had had the tower built and sent her to live there. One day, a fruit basket had been along the way for her and there had been a snake hidden inside the basket. She had been bitten by the snake and died. The prophecy had come true…
After Uskudar, the car takes to the highest point of Istanbul: The Camlica Hill. There are many TV and GSM Antennas on the hill and in the cafés, while you are sipping your coffee, you can see a wonderful panoramic view of Istanbul.
The last stop of the tour is Beylerbeyi Palace. This palace was constucted as a summer palace in 1870s. It is a mixture of French and Ottoman Architecture. The cooling system and the Czech Bohemian Crystal Chandellliers are worth seeing. It's just by the sea, nearly under the Bosphorus Bridge.
Istanbul By Night - Dinner and Turkish Shows
There are various dinner and night shows in the city.
You may choose to enjoy the show with limited drink option or full course meal option.
You may contact your hotel, a travel agency or me for a show with good food , service and spectacle.