Istanbul True Discovery Tour

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. Start your day with a pickup from your European-side Istanbul hotel, Dolmabahçe Palace, recent residence for Ottoman Sultans built by two Ottoman architects Karabet and Nikogos Balyan on a 110.000 m² area and served as the main administrative center of the Ottoman Empire. Famous with great collection of European antiquity, furniture and 4.5 tons chandelier, the palace has 285 rooms and 46 halls.

   2 hAdmission included

2. Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Bazaar), mystical smells of different aromas of various spices. Shops selling fruits, vegetables, fish, flowers etc.

   1 h

3. Byzantine City Walls surrounded the Acropolis of Byzantium with 22 kms. long fortification with 96 towers and 9 main gates dating back to the 5th century.

   Passes by

4. This beautiful strait, sometimes spelled Bosporus and sometimes Bosphorus, was so called from the earliest ages by the ancients; from the mythology of 10, the mistress of Jupiter, having passed over it in the shape of a cow. It resembles the Dardanelles, in length, breadth and current, and like it, is a narrow separation which divides Europe from Asia; but it has many features familiar to itself. Instead of being a solitary stream running between deserted shores, it is a body of water full of life and animation, winding its way through banks covered with palaces and villages, shaded with magnificent forest trees, presenting to the eye, at every mile, a new scene of crowded existence.

   2 h

5. Bosphorus Bridge, unique chance to step from one continent (Europe) to another (Asia) in 2 minutes.

   Passes by

6. Pierre Loti Hill The hill was named after the French novelist and naval officer Pierre Loti who visited Istanbul several times and stayed many years. -Fly Over by Cable Car Enjoy the beautiful view from the cable car all the way down to the hill.

   2 hAdmission included

7. We are visiting Eyüp Sultan Hazretleri in Istanbul's Eyüp neighbourhood, outside the city walls, near the Golden Horn, the Eyüp Sultan Mosque (Turkish: Eyüp Sultan Camii) stands. The building today dates back to the early 19th century. The mosque complex consists of a mausoleum, the place where the typical born and companion of Muslim prophet Muhammad, Abu Ayub al-Ansari, is said to be buried. We shall visit the tomb as well.

   1 h

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

Ratings come from 4 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

How it compares in Istanbul

• Its from-price is close to the median of the 530 city tours we list in Istanbul.
• Its length is typical for the group.
• By number of reviews it ranks 251 of 530.
• The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Istanbul

Istanbul straddles Europe and Asia across the Bosphorus, with Byzantine and Ottoman monuments, busy bazaars and ferries crossing between continents.

The historic peninsula holds the greatest landmarks. Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and the Hippodrome face each other in Sultanahmet, the Basilica Cistern lies beneath the streets, and Topkapı Palace spreads across the hill above the Golden Horn. A short walk away, the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar have traded for centuries, and Süleymaniye Mosque, built by the great Ottoman architect Sinan, crowns one of the city's seven hills.

Top-ranked sights in Istanbul: Dolmabahce Palace (Dolmabahce Sarayi), Bosphorus, Bosphorus Bridge (Bogazici Koprusu).

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