Best of Istanbul: 1, 2 or 3-Day Private Guided Istanbul Tour

based on 5403 reviews

Duration:7 hours to 21 hours (approx.)
Location: Istanbul, Turkey

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Visit highlights of Istanbul with your private tour guide in 1, 2 or 3 days with a flexible itinerary.

Day 1 - Highlights of Topkapi Palace Museum, Byzantine Hippodrome / Sultanahmet Square, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Grand Bazaar.

Day 2 - Bosphorus Cruise by Public Ferry, Dolmabahce Palace, Taksim Square, Istiklal Street, Cicek Passage, Galata Tower (from outside), Spice Market.

Day 3 - Suleymaniye Mosque, Fener and Balat Districts, St. Stephen Church (Iron Church), Pierre Lotti Panoramic Hill by Cable Car, Rahmi Koc Museum (or alternative sites).

Important Notes:

- Skip the line service is not available for active mosques - there is a queue for the entrance.

- If one of the mosques is not visited, Basilica Cistern will be visited as a replacement.

- For the tours that start later than 11 am, kindly note that you may have to skip one/a couple of sites as the sites are closed by 7 pm. Your guide will adjust the program according to your priorities.

WHAT'S INCLUDED

WHAT TO EXPECT

1. Sultanahmet District
Sultanahmet District
2. Hippodrome
Hippodrome Square / Atmeydanı Hippodrome; where the chariot races were held in the Roman Empire times, Egyptian Column from Byzantine Empire time and today German Fountain is the main cornerstone of the square of Ottoman Empire.
3. German Fountain
Germa Fountain / Alman Çeşmesi
4. Sultanahmet Square
Sultanahmet Square
5. Hagia Sophia Mosque
Hagia Sophia Museum / Ayasofya / Santa Sofia Built in the 6th century by Emperor Justinian, played a very important role in the Christian and Islamic World. After the Ottoman conquest the bells, altar, iconoclastic, and sacrificial vessels were removed, and many of the mosaics were eventually plastered over to convert the church into a mosque then a museum and now it’s a mosque for the second time. The most important stop of an Istanbul tour is operated in Old City Istanbul / Constantinople. *Please note that as it's not a museum anymore, tour guides don't have skip-the-line priority there. You may need to wait in the security line, in order to avoid queues we suggest departing at 8:30am or 9:00am.
6. Blue Mosque
Blue Mosque / Sultanahmet Camii Built in the early 1600s for Sultan Ahmet I of the Ottoman Empire, the Blue Mosque is truly a magnificent masterpiece of architecture with amazingly delicate proportions for a building of such massive scale.
7. Basilica Cistern
Have to skip one of the mosques to save time to visit the interior of The Basilica Cistern. A former water storage chamber and one of Istanbul's greatest surviving Byzantine sites.
8. Grand Bazaar
Grand Bazaar / Kapalı Çarşı One of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world with over 4,000 shops with colorful products of ceramic, leather, rugs, carpets, handicrafts, clothes, silver, and gold.
9. Bosphorus Strait
Bosphorus Cruise by Public Ferry or Private Cruise ( if option is chosen) Take the public ferry for Bosphorus Cruise to see both Istanbul’s European and Asian sides, Galata Tower, Dolmabahce Palace, Beylerbeyi Palace, the Rumeli Fortress, old Ottoman villas, Bosphorus bridges, mosques. Your best Istanbul tour memories will definitely include the Bosphorus.
10. Dolmabahce Palace
Dolmabahce Palace / Dolmabahçe Sarayı Elegance and beauty with the most luxury decoration, chandeliers, rugs, crystals, ceramic fireplaces. Beautiful palace, right on the Bosphorus with gorgeous furnishings, paintings, porcelains made in particular to Dolmabahce.
11. Taksim Square
Taksim Square / Taksim Meydanı A great place defining modern Turkey which witnessed important historical moments. Close to Istiklal Street (Istiklal Caddesi) and Galata Tower along with embassies of European countries in Taxim. Cicek Passage has very good food joints, cafes, shops, bars, night clubs around Taksim.
12. Topkapi Palace
Topkapi Palace Museum / Topkapı Sarayı More than just an Imperial Residence of Ottoman Sultans, it was the seat of the Supreme Executive and Judiciary Council for almost 400 years long. Topkapi Palace is a great monument of Oriental architecture which resembles the power of the Ottoman Empire.
13. Istiklal Caddesi
Istiklal Street is the modern and colorful face of Turkey with churches, modern art galeries, embassies, pubs, cafes and shops selling different kind of products.
14. Galata Tower
We will see the tower FROM OUTSIDE, due to the regulations unfortunately tour guides don't have skip the line priority here so it takes long time to wait queue. Your tour guide will make you explanation about tower.
15. Misir Carsisi (Spice Market)
Spice Market / Mısır Çarşısı Egyptian Bazaar is a colorful indoor bazaar and has lots of shops offering a variety of spices, purses, flavored teas, Turkish delight, nuts, as well as ceramics, and small souvenirs. Spice Bazaar is located in Eminonu Square which is the connection point of Bosphorus and Golden Horn.
16. Cicek Pasaji
Cicek Passage / Flower Passage Originally named as Cite de Pera, a combined structure of traditional and modern construction methods and architectural style by Ottoman Empire is reflected and today we see the small shops and cafes here.
17. Suleymaniye Mosque
Suleymaniye Mosque / Süleymaniye Camii is the largest mosque in Istanbul and is as impressive on the inside as it is on the outside. In the garden behind the mosque, the Suleymaniye terrace offers lovely views of the Golden Horn and Bosphorus.
18. Balat
Fener-Balat Neighborhood backstreet walk Continue exploring Istanbul’s rich religious history with a stop at the Church of St. George. Since the 1600s, the church has been the location of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and is recognized as the spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Religion. Balat District; lines of drying laundry stretch across steep, winding streets. Century-old Ottoman houses lean against each other in a combination of reds, blues, and greens. And art galleries and design shops dot the area along the water.
19. Fener Rum Patrikhanesi
Orthodox Patriarch
20. Historic Areas of Istanbul
Historic Areas of Istanbul
21. Pierre Loti Tepesi
Pierre Loti Hill and Cable Car are some of the most popular sights to visit since it offers great views for visitors. Take the cable car to reach the top and enjoy the beautiful scenery while sipping your Turkish coffee or tea.
22. KadIkoy CarsIsI
Kadikoy's Fish Market and its well-known "Bahariye Street" are the best places to visit in Istanbul's Asian side, Kadikoy
23. Halic
Golden Horn region which is one of the oldest settlements of the city of Constantinople.
24. Bulgarian Orthodox Church
St. Stephen Church; Located on the shore of the Golden Horn, the church is also known as the Iron Church due to the fact that it’s made entirely of prefabricated cast iron in 19th century.

ADDITIONAL INFO

• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Specialized infant seats are available
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels
• Skip the line service is not available for active mosques - there is a queue for the entrance.
• If one of the mosques is not visited, Basilica Cistern will be visited as a replacement.
• On Fridays, Hagia Sophia or Blue Mosque will be visited from outside because of the worship.
• Dolmabahce Palace is closed on Mondays. Due to museum regulations, live guide service is not available at Dolmabahce Palace.
• Tour guides don't have skip-the-line priority in Hagia Sophia. You may need to wait in the security line, in order to avoid queues we suggest departing at 8:30am or 9:00am.
• Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays can be replaced with Spice Market.
• Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesdays can be replaced with alternatives.
• For the tours that start later than 11 am, kindly note that you may have to skip one/a couple of sites as the sites are closed by 7 pm. Your guide will adjust the program according to your priorities.

CANCELLATION POLICY

Posted By : abowser90
Pelin was a great guide! She provided a lot of great information about the sights, was flexible with what our group wanted to see and do and was very sweet! We had a great day in Istanbul with her!
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-30 02:52:09

Posted By : JO G
An excellent experience that we were old recommend. Tuber tailored the visit to our personal interests and experiences
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 16:08:41

Posted By : F8321MKandyb
We had a wonderful day tour in Istanbul. Our guide made the day a perfect experience. We have two young children and she helped to adapt our tour schedule to accommodate them with extra rest and snack breaks. She also had pre-arranged tickets for the team and top sights so we didn’t waste precious time in lines. Her knowledge of the history of Istanbul gave is a much richer perspective of the city and its history. We would highly recommend this service for anyone wanting to get the most of their time in Istanbul.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 14:21:09

Posted By : 302rayaans
Hilal was a fantastic guide, her expertise of local and offbeat places in Istanbul was very impressive. More than that, a very very sweet person, felt like having a friend in an unknown city. 10/10 recommended.
- Rayaan/Safeer/Farooq/Sabina
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 12:20:48

Posted By : GrandTour94715
My son and I had a great time on this tour. Burak was our guide and we couldn’t have been happier. He was friendly, informative and flexible. If we come back to Istanbul, we will do this tour again.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 11:17:38

Posted By : Steven C
Awesome customized 2 day tour of Istanbul. Umran, our guide, spoke fluent English and was very friendly. Best of all though she was extremely knowledgeable and was able to answer all our questions. I highly recommend!
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 10:32:52

Posted By : Iain C
Serdar Armagan has been a fantastic guide today. Chilled guy, whilst extremely knowledgeable. Can't recommend high enough.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 09:02:13

Posted By : Erika_W
Hulya created the most magical day in Istanbul for us. We only had 1 day to tour the city and I knew I wanted to see a lot :) Hulya contacted me the day prior to arrange where to meet, and talk about what was important to us. She was on time, friendly, resourceful, knowledge, and very skilled at her job. Her English was perfect and best of all - I left with a new friend in Turkey!

I highly recommend you reach out and request Hulya for your guide.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 08:20:56

Posted By : Icaro199
We loved our Guide Ahmed we went to all the places we wanted, he took amazing pictures, he knew all the spots and we got to experience the city, the history, the culture and the food!! We loved we had an amazing time!
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 06:43:59

Posted By : michaeldA7664FB
Istanbul is an amazingly diverse city and we only had 1.5 days to visit, so we needed an expert guide to help us see as much as possible but also to provide insight into the history and culture. Our guide Arif Rakici was perfect for our family group. He contacted us the day before our tour to understand what we wanted to see most and learn about our family (we were a group of 6 and have some food allergies and mobility limitations). Arif was waiting when we got off the ship, greeted us warmly, and we were off to the Hagia Sofia. Arif is very well educated and shared not only what we were seeing, but also why it was important and how it came to be. Afterwards, Arif took us to a secluded bar for a rest and drinks before we continued to the Topkapi palace. Arif helped us navigate through the lines and see the best parts, talking with us the whole way. We needed a break, so Arif got us a table at a local restaurant. Sharing a delicious meal was the perfect recharge and we then headed to the Blue Mosque and the hippodrome which Arif timed perfectly to avoid prayer times. Then Arif surprised us by adding a visit to the cistern, which wasn’t originally on the itinerary but was something we all wanted to see. The group was exhausted, so we skipped the Grand bazaar and Arif had us back in the air conditioned van with a water for the ride back. Day 2, Arif took us to the Dalambace Palace first thing to avoid the lines and then on a Bosphorous cruise to see all the great palace architecture along the water. He continued to share his amazing knowledge of history, architecture, politics and culture as we toured. Thank you Arif, you are an excellent guide and will always be remembered when we share our stories of Istanbul.
Rating : full ratings
Posted On : 2024-06-29 04:48:59