Private Layover Tour at Istanbul: Explore Byzantine and Ottoman Monuments From the Airport

Discover the rich history of Istanbul on a private layover tour. Explore Byzantine and Ottoman monuments, visit the iconic Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque, and shop at the Grand Bazaar.

Duration: 8 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Sultanahmet District - Sultanahmet District
  • Blue Mosque - Blue Mosque (TEMPORARILY CLOSED BETWEEN JANUARY 1 - APRIL 1 ON 2023)
  • Hippodrome - Hippodrome
  • Sultanahmet Square - Sultanahmet Square
  • Hagia Sophia Mosque - Hagia Sophia Museum
  • Topkapi Palace - Topkapi Palace
  • Grand Bazaar - Grand Bazaar
What's Included
  • Round-trip airport transfers
  • Private transportation throughout the tour
  • Expert local guide for personalized experience
  • Exclusive private tour for your group
What's Not Included
  • Museum/Attraction Tickets
  • Lunch
Additional Information

This layover tour of Istanbul covers all the highlights of the city. Visit the monuments from the Byzantine and Ottoman empires, go to the Hagia Sophia, shop for all kinds of souvenirs in the world’s oldest covered market, Grand Bazaar, and see the imperial residence of the Ottoman sultans, Topkapi Palace and admire the blue Iznik tiles of the Blue Mosque. Accompany of your local tour guide will be useful for your family and young kids.

Skip the line service is not available for Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque - 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.

  • Topkapı Palace and Hagia Irene is closed on Tuesdays
  • Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays.
  • Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia are closed until 2pm on Fridays.
  • Kid-Friendly tour guide will be accompanying your family on this tour.
Location
Sultanahmet District
Cancellation Policy

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

Customer Ratings
5.0
(34 Ratings)
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Posysilas
Jul 16, 2024
Great one day tour! - Great tour! Ahmed was kind, knowledgeable, and experienced. I fully enjoyed the experience and will highly recommend his services!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jabraham3
Jul 15, 2024
Unforgettable and wonderful - It was worth every penny, the Istanbul Guided tour was a wonderful Unforgettable experience for my family Mr. Volkan was very knowledgeable and helped us not only learn the history, but also experience the great food and shopping. He is very knowledgeable about history and gave us up-to-date information about what we saw in the city. It was a delight to be in his company and learn about the city and also taste local food, which was an awesome experience. My family had a great time. Thank you.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jabraham3
Jul 15, 2024
Awesome unforgettable - We had a wonderful Istanbul experience. Our guide Mr. Valkan is very knowledgeable and ensured that we were immersed in the history . We would not have had this unforgettable experience without our guide. He is also knowledgeable about the best local shops and food as well. Thanks very much for Guided Istanbul tours and our Guide Mr. Valkan
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Briannac479
Jul 3, 2024
Quick sightseeing tour during layover. - Great layover tour. Short time but learned a lot! Highly recommend. Your guide was very knowledgeable and was conscious of our short time frame.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Arlene_p
Apr 27, 2024
Perfect - Volkan was a perfect guide for our layover tour. He listened to what we were interested in and shaped our limited amount of time in a way that allowed us to experience everything we wanted to.
Review provided by Viator
Arlene
Apr 24, 2024
Perfect Layover Tour - Volkan was a great guide. He was able to get us to the sites and experiences we wanted during an abbreviated layover tour. We enjoyed his historical knowledge as well.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Hinterman61
Mar 16, 2023
A Perfect Sample of Turkish Delights - Great tour for a quick 18-hour layover. Saw a surprising amount of sights for such a short time. At last I made it to the Hagia Sohia! Spectacular! Our guide, Ozun, was absolutely terrific. Very personable and friendly. Kept the tour moving and knew how to time things to avoid the crowds. Took us to a perfect lunch spot to sample a bunch of Turkish dishes. He knew his stuff and even modified the tour on the fly so we could visit a rug shop. We had a really good time with him and enjoyed both his company and expertise. Airport pick-up and drop-off made it totally simple. We really felt like we got a much better taste of Istanbul than we had any right to expect given our short stay. Highly recommended.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
927metas
Jan 6, 2023
Istanbul tour express - Kemal was top. The guide fulfilled all our wishes. Unfortunatelly we didn't have much time to see more, but have seen the basic of the city.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Josephgr5878wd
Nov 13, 2022
Absolutely Outstanding - Turkey was my 50th country I had been to and beyond all the tours I have done in my past this tour was absolutely incredible especially for the time given. Our tour guide, Ozan, was incredibly knowledge and exciting to be around as we walked through Istanbul. Although we were there for less than 24 hours, this tour and our tour guide truly made every part worth it and I will even consider doing this exact tour with new family members when I come back due to the ease of pickup and return back to the airport.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Torontoimport
Oct 5, 2022
Even with a slight hiccup we had an amazing tour. - We had an incredible experience with our driver and our tour guide Tolga. First I want to make mention that there was a miscommunication that is ultimately my fault but the tour completely rectified. Our flight landed at 5 am so my wife and I decided to schedule our tour to start at 9 am. We had a 21 hour lay over and wanted as much of the daylight to be spent on the walking tour in the city. In the original email we set up 9 am, however in subsequent communication the tour operator kept making mention that they would “track our flight.” To me this meant that they were just making sure we weren’t really late but they meant that they expected to pick us up at 5 am. As I was arriving in a new city I didn’t have my phone connected to any network until right before 830 (when we decided to make our way to the meeting point.) Sure enough they were waiting for me and we were almost 4 hours late. We felt TERRIBLE, but they quickly assured us it was fine and sorted through all the details to get us up and running. Tolga was a fantastic tour guide. Personable and knowledgeable. He showed us through all the major sights and helped us skip the lines. (GUIDES can jump the cue for tickets and entry at many attractions.) We had a fantastic time and can say enough good things about Tolga. We look forward to returning with a little more time to further explore this beautiful city!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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