Imperial and hidden treasures of Istanbul

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Explore the imperial highlights of Istanbul, visit the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Hippodrome, Grand Bazaar, Suleymaniye Mosque, Fener, Balat, Istanbul Walls, Iron Church and the Orthodox Patriarchate on this full-day tour that we think you will find interesting.

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About this activity

  • Departure Location: Istanbul
  • Event days:
    Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
  • Tour duration (Approx - including transfers): 8 Hours
  • Guiding & Support: English
  • Booking confirmation: Instant confirmation
  • Printed or mobile voucher: Both is accepted.
  • Cancellation policy: Flexible
  • Easy Online Booking: Fast, Easy & SSL Secure Booking
  • Vegetarian & Vegan meal: Available
  • Skip the ticket line: Available
  • Tour ID: 401

Highlights | Overview

  • Hagia Sophia
  • Blue mosque (Sultanahmet mosque)
  • Hippodrome Square
  • German Fountain
  • Grand Bazaar
  • Suleymaniye Mosque
  • Golden horn Fener and Balat Region
  • Bulgarian Iron Church
  • Fener Orthodox Patriarchate
  • Traditional Turkish Tea / Turkish Coffee

Full Description

Istanbul Imperial Tour

This tour can be done with a minimum of 4 people or with a smaller number of participants paying the price of 4 people.

We will start our tour with a visit to Hagia Sophia, which is considered one of the Eight Wonders of the World, has a unique place in the history of architecture and is one of the rare works of this size and age that has survived. Hagia Sophia is called the "master of the buildings". Our next visit will be the Blue Mosque (Blue Mosque), named after the world-famous exquisite blue Iznik tiles that adorn its interior. The Blue Mosque (Blue Mosque) is the only imperial mosque in the world that was originally built with six minarets. We will continue from the Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet mosque) to the famous Hippodrome Square, which was the sports and social interaction center of the former Byzantine, which hosted 100,000 spectators, and where objects from all corners of the empire such as the Egyptian Obelisk and the Serpent Column are located.

Next, we will stop by the German Fountain, also known as the Kaiser Wilhelm Fountain. The fountain, German Emperor II. It was built to commemorate the second anniversary of Wilhelm's visit to Istanbul in 1898. The fountain was made in Germany, then transported piece by piece and assembled in 1900 at its current location in Istanbul. The octagonal dome of the Neo-Byzantine style fountain has eight marble columns, and the interior of the dome is covered with gold mosaics. And then we visit the Istanbul Grand Bazaar, the world's largest and oldest covered bazaar. It was a very important commercial center of Asia Minor with more than 4000 shops. After the Grand Bazaar, we will have a delicious lunch at a restaurant nearby.

Lunch: Seasonal vegetables marinated in homemade olive oil, traditional fried pastry with "Smoked Beurreck" cheese, seasonal garden greens salad, traditional grilled meatballs served with rice and boiled seasonal vegetables, seasonal fruits.

*Vegetarian menu also available

Hidden Treasures of Istanbul Tour
After lunch, we will visit the Süleymaniye Mosque, a masterpiece of architecture, the largest and most magnificent of Istanbul's imperial mosques. It dates from the heyday of the Ottoman Empire in the 16th century, and was designed by architect Sinan, the greatest architect of his time and creator of Classical Ottoman architecture. The Süleymaniye Mosque and its complex are among the most important of the 2,000 structures designed by the great architect Sinan.

Then we will visit the Fener and Balat regions on the shores of the Golden Horn. Fener and Balat, one of the oldest districts of Istanbul, are quite famous for their historical colorful houses, which are worth seeing in the narrow streets of the districts. We are sure that you have seen at least one photograph of Balat so far. During the late Ottoman period and the first years of the Republic, mainly the Armenian and Greek people of Istanbul lived in Fener and Balat districts. Therefore, the food culture here is very diverse, and these districts are known for their delicious restaurants. While listening to your guide's info, we will take a break to taste our famous Traditional Turkish Tea & Turkish Coffee.

During our visits in the Golden Horn, we will also see the remains of the city walls of Istanbul; Originally dating from 5 AD, the city walls remained largely intact until sections began to be dismantled in the 19th century as the city crossed its medieval borders. Many parts of Istanbul's walls are still standing today.

Another interesting point of our trip in the Golden Horn region will be St Stephen's Iron Church. This is a Bulgarian Orthodox church and is famous for being made of prefabricated cast iron elements in neo-Byzantine style, and is quite interesting. The church belongs to the people of Bulgarian origin in Istanbul. We will see the Aya Nikola Greek Orthodox Church before visiting the Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate and the Saint Hireşdagabet Armenian Orthodox Church.

The Balat district is frequented by auctioneers, where remnants of the past change ownership at auctions and in antique shops in the area. Antique hunters love to wander around these parts of the city, because you never know what unknown values ​​you might encounter in this area. And here our beautiful tour ends and we go to the hotels.

Price included

  • Entrance fees stated in the itinerary
  • Professional Guidance
  • Pick-up and drop-off from centrally located Istanbul hotel
  • Lunch
  • Traditional Turkish Tea and Turkish Coffee Treats
  • Transportation by air-conditioned vehicles
  • Donations for all religious visits
  • Drinks and personal expenses

Pick Up Place

Pick-up and drop-off from all central Istanbul hotels is included in the price. It is possible to join tours from hotels far from the pick-up and drop-off area, but either an extra fee will be charged, or a pick-up and drop-off will be made from a point in our pickup area.

Pick up Point

The meeting point in hotels is the hotel lobby or the hotel entrance door. Please be ready 5 minutes before the stated pickup time.

Details to know

Please be ready in the lobby of your hotel 5 minutes before the pickup time given by us.

This tour can be done with a minimum of 2 participants

Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet mosque) is visited from outside until 13:00 on Friday mornings due to the noon prayer.

Since the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays, we visit Nuruosmaniye Street around the Grand Bazaar.

This tour is not suitable for those with walking difficulties.

Additional information

Imperial and hidden treasures of Istanbul, full day tour

tour itinerary

  • Pick-up from centrally located Istanbul hotels
  • Hagia Sophia
  • Sultanahmet Mosque (Blue mosque)
  • Hippodrome Square
  • German Fountain
  • Grand Bazaar
  • Suleymaniye Mosque
  • Fener and Balat Regions
  • Historic colorful houses
  • Traditional Turkish Tea / Turkish Coffee
  • The Walls of Istanbul
  • St Stephen's Iron Church
  • St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church
  • Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate
  • St Hiresdagabet Armenian Orthodox Church
  • End of tour and return to hotels

Period & Price

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