Top Istanbul Private Sightseeing Tours

This private walking tour is really great to learn and experience about Istanbul city. Our tour guide, Mustafa Kemal is very outstanding while guiding us, he knows the city history very well and explaining to us clearly. He is also very informative and could arrange the itinerary and schedule in very structured way, so we could go to so many highlight places in the city. Mustafa is also very friendly and helpful. Recommended to ask for Mustafa for guiding the tour.

We had a great time with Ezgi in Istanbul! Her knowledge about the history and architecture of the various places we visited was impressive and made the excursion all the more enjoyable. She was able to steer us away from some of the more obvious tourist traps and used her experience and connections with some of the local vendors to get us into places faster and easier. She was even willing to indulge us by waiting in a lengthy (but fast moving) line to see the Blue Mosque. I’ll never forget her quick thinking when we started getting hounded by all the rug merchants in the Grand Bazaar. I had just purchased a rug from a trusted vendor outside the market and the bag they gave me made it obvious to all the other vendors at the Bazaar that I had just bought one. They were eager to help me buy more when Ezgi had the brilliant idea to put the bag inside another one to disguise it. She also made an excellent suggestion for lunch at Rumeli Kebab & Steak House. Not only was the food delicious but the waitstaff were funny and engaging. Highly recommended Ezgi for your future Istanbul tours and Rumeli for the food and atmosphere.

What a fantastic day - Hamide was the best guide we have had the pleasure of meeting. We first went to Haggia Sofia and there was a long queue - immediately offered us the choice of skipping to the Cistern and returning later after queue reduced. That pattern repeated all day - something that is impossible on large group tours. It was like walking around the city with a knowledgable friend. We are so pleased we decided to go with this tour and guide. Worth every penny !

What a day in Istanbul! Eylem arrived on time at our hotel and took us on a tram to the Blue Mosque, providing narrative of the sights all along the way. Next was Hagia Sophia with several more stops along the way 8ncluding the Grand Market. After a break for coffee and baklava, she took us to a local shop so my wife could buy some Turkish towels. Then we saw a very informative ceramics demonstration. The day was capped off at the Topkapi Palace. Eylem's wonderful narrative made the experience enriching and fun. Don't go to Istanbul without booking with Eylem!

We had the best guide ever, for our 2 day tour of Istanbul. Kenan was the ultimate guide for our private tour. Professional, accommodating, and very knowledgeable. I would love to do another tour with him. Be prepared for a lot of walking. We did over 20000 steps the first day. A hat, or umbrella, comfortable footwear, sunscreen, and water are a must. We were there in late April, and it was quite warm.

This is why you need to book this tour. It is private so you don’t have to wait or share with strangers. Since it is private you can start at anytime and go at your own pace. J was awesome. He let us at the Intercontinental Hotel and taught us how to use the metro to get to all the sites. For some reason our credit cards didn’t work and he paid for us which was so nice. He was super well informed on his history and taught us a lot about the sites and the history and the different religions. We landed the night before and were super jet lagged during the tour and I needed a break with a little food so we stopped to get a tea and a snack. J was awesome. Thank you so much for a great tour!

I had a lovely tour with Zel who was informative and tailored the tour as it was just me. She collected me at my hotel and gave me information on tram stops and tips about the area I was staying in. She is passionate and knowledgeable about all aspects of Istanbul and Turkey and I liked her immediately. She gave me plenty of photo opportunities and became my photographer for certain photos! We toured the Blue Mosque, the Topaki Palace, the Hippodrome, the Grand Bazaar, & had lunch. I would 100% recommend Zel on this tour as your guide. Thank you Zel.

Kenan was a fantastic guide, and we packed in a ton of siteseeing in a 10-hour day! He was knowledgeable about the city’s history, and we saw the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, the Hagia Sofia, the spice market, and more. We also had a wonderful lunch at a rooftop cafe. We highly recommend this tour, and please ask for Kenan. (Be aware that we walked about 15,000 steps, so might be too much for some.)