Istanbul Bus and Boat: 5 Hours Guided City Tour & Boat Cruise

Istanbul, Turkey

6 hours (approx.)
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

See Istanbul by boat, bus and cable car on a 6-hour tour of the city’s atmospheric neighborhoods, monuments and scenery. See the buildings and mosques along the Bosphorus Strait, with time to visit a 19th-century Ottoman palace. Follow streets lined with historic landmarks to the top Pierre Loti Hill, and enjoy free time to eat lunch, walk or simply enjoy the panoramic views of the city. Descend the hill by cable car, then ride alongside the high walls of the Old City and finish your tour at Sultanahmet Square.

6-hour tour of Istanbul with a sightseeing cruise
Travel by boat and see the sights from the water
Get perfect views of the city from a scenic hilltop
Great overview and orientation of Istanbul
All entrance fees included

What's Included

Professional guide
Air-conditioned vehicle

Hotel drop-off

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

IBO Cruise and Tours
Alemdar, Divan Yolu Cd. No:22, 34110 Fatih/İstanbul, Türkiye
"Next to the Sultanahmet Tram station"

End point

The Blue Mosque
Binbirdirek, At Meydanı Cd No:10, 34122 Fatih/İstanbul, Türkiye
"Tour terminate at Sultanahmet Square"

Itinerary

Kucuksu Pavilion

1 hour • Admission Ticket Included

Eyup

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Dolmabahce Palace (Pass By)

Çırağan Caddesi (Pass By)

Bosphorus Strait (Pass By)

KIz Kulesi (Pass By)

Rumeli Fortress

1 hour • Admission Ticket Included

Suleymaniye Mosque (Pass By)

Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque (Pass By)

Bosphorus Bridge (Pass By)

Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge (Pass By)

Halic (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
The duration of transfers are approximate, the exact duration will depend on the time of day and traffic conditions
Stroller accessible

Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
We visit Rumeli Fortress only on Thursdays On Mondays Both Rumeli Fortress and Küçüksü Palace will be closed and visits replaced with freetime in Bebek neighborhood.
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

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Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Siewmeng_C

The tour experience was reasonable costed. No frills. Team was experienced and friendly. Great views of the straits and golden horn, paired with cable car experience and city tour to view old city walls. Thank you.

Reviews

4.3

based on 47 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Great time! Beautiful sights!

Steven_B, Aug 2024

Our guide was knowledgeable and friendly. The boat tour was fabulous enough but then came the bus tour and some fantastic sights! We even stopped for lunch on a hill top restaurant with some spectacular views!

Response from Host, Aug 2024

Thank you so much :)

Disappointed

Angela_J, May 2024

It was to start at 10. We got notification that it would be 10:45. So we were picked up and off we went to pick up more people. It was well after 12 noon before we got on the boat. The cruise was good but the young tour guide spoke too fast. Perhaps he could slow down so that everyone understood the point he was trying to make. It may also have helped if he stood up when speaking so that he could better identify the sites. I know one person left after the cruise as she had enough. We had lunch very late after the cruise when we were at the cable car ride. We were very disappointed in the whole experience.

Response from Host, May 2024

We will evaluate the suggestions that you gave us. Fırst of all, our guide was trying to explain about all structures which all guests witnessed, that ıs the reason why he was giving highlighted informations on Bosphorus coastline as other guests were demanding all about Bosphorus. would it be possible to change your review to 5 stars, then we would be very appreciated and it would be motivational incentive to upgrade us better by better. Thanks for your review and tryıng to be helpful for us :)

Great tour but definately could have been better to make experience better

Lisa_C, Jan 2023

The guide was excellent. But being a solo traveller.and we were not a big group, I thought it would have just been polite that he asked everyone to introduce themselves to say hi... all of a sudden the tour ended. Did really give any last tips or instructions pn getting home.. it was sort of, go that way. Stated refreshments and snacks available on boat, but no one there. Didnt see toilet either, signs only in Turkish

Response from Host, Jan 2023

We really appreciate your feedback. We take it seriously. Upon your displeasure about the tour, please be sure that we'll do our best to improve our service. We are so glad that you had a day out in Istanbul with us. IBO Team

Cruise was Ok, but City...

Oleg_G, Nov 2022

Cruise was Ok, but City Bus Tour with Cable Car - this part was boring: stop to see garden, but where the garden? We did not see. Cable Car- just 3 minutes down and nothing interesting to see

Response from Host, Jan 2023

Hello, Thank you very much for sharing your experience with us.

No frills fun!

Siewmeng_C, Oct 2022

Response from Host, Oct 2022

Thank you :)

Good for family and a half day experience

Qariatul_S, Sep 2022

Good tour, it was easygoing and the guides were very pleasant. A suitable tour for family, not much walking required but long cruise on the boat that gives you lots of view and history. The only down side is lunch at Pierre Loti restaurant - food was stale and sub par, also the cable car ride was way too short than we imagined, with not much view but just graveyard

Response from Host, Sep 2022

Hello, Thank you for your review. I would like to mention the restaurant at Pierre Loti hill, it does not belong to us and there is no agreement for lunch service with our company, customers are free to have lunch anywhere by themself.

Don't pass up this tour!!

nzkhealth, May 2022

The tour was great but the cruise 🛳 was amazing. Guides were engaging and informative. The views were beautiful and plentiful. Great for families of all ages. Beyond my expectations.

Response from Host, May 2022

Thank you for your kind comment. We are happy that you enjoyed your time with us. Hope to see you again !

I had such a nice time!...

Emma_S, Apr 2022

I had such a nice time! The people at IBO tours were so nice, accommodating and friendly. We saw so much, and the guides were very knowledgeable about the area! I would recommend this 100%

Response from Host, Apr 2022

Hello Emma, We are so thank you for your kind review and for sharing. Love from the IBO team.

A beautiful tour-day in Istanbul

Nicola_M, Oct 2021

we had l'opportunity to vist Istanbul from an alternative prospective. we thank our guide and all his staff for his knowledge and his attention .

Response from Host, Oct 2021

Thank you for your command. It was a pleasure for us to welcome you :)

good excursion

esq007007, Jan 2020

prompt pick up, great cruise and knowledgeable guide. Also, great value.Would highly recommend. It is longer though than half day due to hotel pick ups.

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Thank you for your 5 star

Time changed and no collection

Matthew K, Oct 2019

The tour was good. However, we booked the 10am tour but were told the day before this had to be 11am (this then meant we were extremely rushed as we had a flight that evening, hence us booking the 10am and not 11am tour) also they said they couldn't collect us from our hotel due to traffic so we had to get a taxi to another location at our expense even though this was booked with hotel collection (again informed that we needed to get ourselves to another location the day before).

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Rulls

Excellent cruise tour

Bazil_A, Jul 2019

Nicely set-up tour, punctual and informative staff (especially the lady guide at the end of the tour), excellent cruise, interesting bus tour, good lunch break at Pierre Lotti and thank you for arranging to avoid the queues at cable car. Reasonable price. Only negative point: there is no drop-off at the end.

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Bospherous straight cruise

Karen_M, Jul 2019

Was a great tour - loved the castle and our tour guide was awesome - very knowledgeable Would recommend, lots of history

Response from Host, Aug 2022

The package was funtastic. Tour...

AsrulAzizi_A, Oct 2017

The package was funtastic. Tour guide very informative, helpful and highly enggage with us. The price is reasonable and strongly recommended for istanbul visitors.

Response from Host, Aug 2022

Thank you so much :)

Staff davvero gentile e disponibile...

Virginia_T, Feb 2018

Staff davvero gentile e disponibile. Do' 3 stelle perchè non sono venuti a prenderci in hotel e hanno ritardato circa mezz'ora dall'ora stabilita. Navetta in pessime condizioni. Tour sul Bosforo carino ma non eccezionale.