Old Istanbul Highlights: Top Sites Half-Day Tour

Uncover the majesty and historical significance of Istanbul on a half-day small-group tour. Explore the top sites of Old Istanbul and discover the city’s rich heritage.

Duration: 4 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • The Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, Istanbul - Originally the main church for all Christians, the Hagia Sophia became the leading church for the Orthodox community after the Christian schism. Following the Turkish conquest of Istanbul, it was converted into a mosque. Your guide will take you inside and provide detailed information to enhance your…
What's Included
  • Skip the ticket lines at Hagia Sophia and Basilica Cistern (Entrance fees not included)
  • Professional guide
  • Tea or Turkish coffee
What's Not Included
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Tipping your guide.
  • Entrance fees
  • Entrance fees
Additional Information

This outstanding small-group tour provides an opportunity to visit the most renowned landmarks in the Old Town, such as the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, and Basilica Cistern, with the added benefit of bypassing the ticket queues. An expert tour guide will join you at each location, offering captivating insights to enhance your understanding of their…

Location
Pudding Shop Lale Restaurant
Divan Yolu Caddesi
Meeting point is 1 min walking distance to the tram stop
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(268 Ratings)
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Jennifer_b
Jun 6, 2025
What an Amazing experience!!!! - Jamil was an expert tour guide! He explained the history of the mosques and Istanbul . He explained everything in great detail and took the time to wait while we took pictures and stopped at the gift shops. The Apple tea was amazingly good! I highly recommend taking this tour! There is alot of walking, so wear comfy shoes. It was just breathtakingly beautiful!
Review provided by Viator
Apadrontravel
May 26, 2025
The best small group tour of Istanbul! - Amazing and in depth tour led by the knowledgeable and personable Muhammad. He took us to the Hippodrome, blue mosque, haggia Sofia, basilica cistern, then we stopped for THE BEST doner I’ve ever had and ice cream then proceeded to Grand Bazaar. During the small group tour (4 people in total) Muhammad helped guide us to all the key sites and assisted with taking pictures and answering various questions. We walked close to 3-3.5 miles if I had to guess and saw beautiful attractions while learning more than we ever could from YouTube.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Fulyat171
May 15, 2025
Highly recommended! - We had a lovely couple of hours with our guide, Cumali, while exploring highlights of Istanbul. He walked us through the main historical places in Old Town, events and its connections with today by his brilliant storytelling skills. We were able to picture the history of Istanbul in our minds as it used to be the most popular location for ages. It was a fun, live history lesson. Thank you, Cumali.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Diane_d
May 6, 2025
Outstanding tour with Muhammad! - We had a fantastic time with Muhammad turned out just to be two of us instead of a group so we had him all to ourselves, he modified the tour for us. We got to see so much of all the highlights :) stopped when we wanted to stop to use the restrooms. Explained in detail everything we were seeing and why….. we learned so much from him. He knows all the shortcuts. Would definitely recommend him. I couldn’t have ask for a better guide. Extremely pleased from San Antonio, Texas
Review provided by Viator
Jasonle8135es
May 6, 2025
Great intro to Istanbul by Gove! - We were lucky to have a small group guided tour with Gove, who was so lovely, friendly, and knowledgable, as she guided us through the hits of Old City Istanbul. Gove was incredibly knowledgable, and was able to pace our visits very well, spending a good amount of time at each location. She was also very generous as a host and in sharing her love of the city.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ivona_p
Apr 28, 2025
Great tour with Mohammed - Mohammed was knowledgeable, friendly, with a great sense of humour and took really good care of us, especially when we ran into difficultiy with paying one of the attractions for which we are grateful. . I recommend this tour 100% it was a great experience
Review provided by Viator
Victoria_p
Apr 22, 2025
A perfect introduction to Istanbul - I initially booked for a Sunday, Very good communication from Yunus to say I was the only one and would I like to go on a different day. Communication was fantastic throughout. We had Mohammed as our guide and he was so knowledgeable. He was punctual. He explained about the history of the places. I felt that he was passionate about what he was doing.
Review provided by Viator
Robert
Apr 18, 2025
Mohammed is the one you want. - Mohammed was a fabulous guide. Very knowledgeable on history and culture of Istanbul.He took time to explain and answer our questions. A good sense of humor too. Showed us around Grand Bazar and how to plan our way out of the maze.Highly recommend him to other travelers.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Nitsa_w
Apr 16, 2025
Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque & Basilica Cistern - The tour was informative and enjoyable. Mohammed was a brilliant guide and made history come alive for us. Would highly recommend, particularly with this guide.
Review provided by Viator
Nancy_s
Mar 29, 2025
Istanbul highlights - Our tour guide was absolutely excellent. He gave us a great history of Turkey and all the sites we were seeing.
Review provided by Viator
From $51
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).