Istanbul Old City: Basilica Cistern - Blue Mosque - Grand Bazaar
Recommended by 95% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Istanbul, Turkey
- 3 hours (approx.)
- Group discounts
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Visit the historic ‘old town’ of bustling Istanbul on this tour. Photo opportunities await at Sultanahmet’s notable religious sites including the Underground Basilica Cistern and Blue Mosque. Wander through aromatic spice markets after exploring the Byzantine heritage of the Hippodrome. Witness the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Empire influences in this part of Turkey's great metropolis.
- Tour the historic reference points of the old town with an English speaking tour guide
- Benefit from a smaller tour group that can be customised to your interests
- Sample Turkish delights in the Grand Bazaar and visit a local carpet workshop
- Enjoy the best scenery of Istanbul from Blue Mosque
What's Included
- Small Group
- Professional Guide
- Basilica Cistern entry ticket (*if all-inclusive option selected)
- Hotel pickup and drop-off
- Gratuities
- Admission Fee - Basilica CisternTRY1,600.00 per person
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Foodie-ist Cafe and BrasserieAlemdar, Muhterem Efendi Sk. No:13 Zemin kat, 34122 Fatih/İstanbul, Türkiye
Meet your guide outside 'FOODIE-IST CAFE AND BRASSERIE,' just a 2-minute walk from the (T1) Sultanahmet tram stop. Your guide, easily identifiable by their tour guide badge, will be waiting for you at the cafe entrance.
End point
- Tahtakale, 34116 Fatih/İstanbul, Türkiye
Itinerary
1
Basilica Cistern
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
2
Blue Mosque
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
3
Hippodrome
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
Sultanahmet Square
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque (Pass By)
5
Grand Bazaar
15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Historic Areas of Istanbul (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Near public transportation
- Infants must sit on laps
- Most travelers can participate
- Modest clothing should be preferred when visiting the Sultanahmet Blue Mosque. Shorts for men or women should be below the knee. Women cover their heads and exposed shoulders with a scarf or shawl, skirt should be below the knee.
- It may be challenging to do the tour with a stroller, not recommended.
- Grand Bazaar is closed on Sunday
- It is a walking tour, so there is a moderate amount of walking involved
- IF ALL INCLUSIVE OPTION IS NOT SELECTED: Entrance to Basilica Cistern (900TL per person) is not included in the tour price. Once you pay your entrance fee to your tour guide, you will have the privilege of skipping the ticket queue. You can pay the tour guide preferably cash in TRY (or in equivalent to USD or EURO).
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 8 travelers
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.8
based on 125 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Matthew_T, Jun 2026
The underground water cistern with its beautiful columns was my favorite part of the tour. Coming from my hotel, I didn’t realize I needed to take a ferry to the meeting point—that was completely my mistake. I arrived about 30 minutes late, but my host was easy to communicate with and went out of their way to meet me after I missed the first stop. I really appreciated their flexibility and excellent customer service.
Jenni_T, Jun 2026
We had a great time exploring the city with our guide. He was knowledgeable, friendly, and knew exactly what to do to heighten our experience. It was so hot outside and there was a long line at the Blue Mosque - he let us wait in the shade while he held our place in the sun. It was a very kind gesture and we appreciated that.
Gay_A, Jun 2026
Excellent guide and knowledgeable about tour sites.
Very informative and beautiful!
Provides open conversation during the tours
Lynda_T, Jun 2026
Very easy to follow excellent English and very good mwoth the history of Istanbul
Erol was an excellent guide would thoroughly recommend booking him for your tour!!!
daveneumann01, May 2026
Erol was a great tour guide. Very informative and interesting. He really knows the history and culture, we learned a lot and had fun. Would definitely be this trip with Erol. Thank you.
Page_J, May 2026
Valuable use of time in Istanbul. Erol was knowledgeable about the city, attractions and overall area and global history. Erol was a great tour guide. We really enjoyed the Basilica Cistern and Blue Mosque with Tombs.
Damiyenne_W, May 2026
Beautiful experience, not only do you get to see some of the main beauties in Istanbul you get Ana amazing look into the streets/shops around the city, and you are left in the most perfect part of town to continue exploring, our tour guide was a delight and very knowledgeable!
Angela_E, May 2026
Wonderful experience, fantastic guide! She was so knowledgeable and also fun. 10/10 highly recommend!
Wendy_H, Apr 2026
Our guide Erol was so knowledgeable and friendly we learnt so much about the history of Istanbul’s major sites . Cistern Basilica was particularly amazing !
Kacie_P, Oct 2025
Kim took us through a very great day! It was raining very hard but we all made it through. Kim was great with our kids ages 7 and 9.
Lori_H, Oct 2025
Our guide, Huseyin Bagir, facilitated one spectacular tour of Istanbul's Old City and sites, which included the Basilica Cistern and Blue Mosque. Mr. Bagir exceeded all expectations with regard to his knowledge of local (& world) history; knowledge/experience with local religions, norms, & practices; and mastery of multiple languages (Kurdish, Turkish, English, & Russian). He was not only patient with regard to our group's different interests and questions, but he made sure that we spent sufficient time at each of the various sites...the Bazaar, included, that came towards the end of our tour, which Mr. Bagir kindly & generously extended since we all had asked to stop for a late lunch & visit a local music instruments store.
These stops were above and beyond the formal tour sites so we appreciate greatly the degree to which Mr. Bagir went out of his way to tailor this tour according to everyone's interests. And, we felt fortunate to also learn about our guide's musical interests and talents. (Mr. Bagir is a professional musician; a very talented and quite humble one.)
Mr. Bagir was the quintessential host and guide in Istanbul. We feel so grateful for all of the time he spent with us; his warm style & ability to connect with everyone in our group; and for the many ways he made this tour a momentous one for all! If we had more days to spend on this trip, we would have enjoyed seeing the other places & nearby sites that our guide recommended. In fact, our group agreed that we would have booked any other tours that our guide, Mr. Huseyin Bagir, was leading for the week. We highly recommend any of the tours that Mr. Bagir leads in and around Istanbul & Turkey. He went above and beyond with regard to the time and knowledge he shared...and he also helped us take some incredible photos along the way!
We highly recommend Viator since their guides are not only exceptionally knowledgable and professional, but this company ensures a most remarkable experience in each city and country our group has been fortunate to explore and visit.
Thank you, Huseyin Bagir, for a most spectacular tour & day in Istanbul! :)
Christine_F, Sep 2025
Really worth doing during our time in Istanbul, Kim is such a knowledgeable and well informed guide, she was caring and flexible, showed us places we wouldn't have found on our own
Julio_C, Sep 2025
Kim was great ! And the tour was just perfect in time. You don’t wait in line for the Basilica cistern
Louise_F, Jul 2025
Was excellent, just long enough, good pace, Tolga very informative. Ask all your questions as Tolga knows the answer.
Julie_P, Jun 2025
Tours through high end hotels and ceramic shop were not appreciated or what we were looking for. If we wanted to shop we would do a shopping tour. The guide was very knowledgeable and great - apart from the above. We want sightseeing not being pushed into buying. Expensive Local products. That would include carpets.
Glen_D, Jun 2025
Safe and fun! Take the other reviews that the city is not safe w/ a grain of salt, no hassles at all, great guide
Anna_E, May 2025
Great experience! The small group size made maneuvering the crowds manageable. Our guide was knowledgeable, pleasant, and helpful. There is so much to see in Istanbul, but this was an amount that didn’t have me running ragged. Next time I’m in Istanbul though, I’ll make it to the Hagia Sophia and a historic Turkish bath!
SaraLee_H, Apr 2025
This was a great tour of the ancient city of Constantinople. We loved the whole thing, and our tour guide, Erol, was excellent in knowledge and conversation as we moved around the city. I would highly recommend it and hope that you get the pleasure of having Erol as your guide.
Stephen_P, Feb 2025
Erol was a fantastic guide--filled with information about the history of Istanbul/Constantinople and Islam
Krystal_S, Jan 2025
Erol is a true gem. I basically booked this tour to do Basilica Cistern (with a guide) and had no interest in the other sights as we'd seen them before. Not only was Erol early to our meeting point , he was able to think on his feet and planned a different itinerary according to our needs that was still interesting and helped us end where we wanted. Erol gave us loads of interesting facts and was a cool guy to hang with who was really funny and very knowledgeable. We enjoyed our time with him and he made sure that we were okay throughout the day. Highly recommend him!
David_H, Dec 2024
We had an incredible experience exploring Istanbul Old City with our expert guide, Tolga Kinas. Tolga’s deep knowledge, engaging storytelling, and ability to answer all our questions about Istanbul’s rich and fascinating history made the tour truly exceptional. We cannot recommend Tolga highly enough!
LILIAHELEN_D, Nov 2024
Our guide was fantastic! Mohammed is very knowledgeable and made sure we had a great experience during our tour.
Loved it!
Ludo_V, Nov 2024
We really liked this tour around the blue mosque. Our tour guide Tolga was very good and adapted to our level of knowledge and interest. The group was small and the pace was well adapted and timely. We LOVED the cistern which the guide had “cut the line” access to. The grand bazar was closed on Sunday but we were taken (by tram!) to the Egyptian bazar instead. We also liked that there were no unnecessary “sales pitches” from unwanted stores. All in all a great experience. Highly recommended.
Alexey_S, Nov 2024
Very interesting. Loved the stone columns, especially the Medusa heads. Worth the visit. The line was long but the wait was not too long
Kate_B, Nov 2024
I had a wonderful afternoon exploring the Old City of Istanbul, guided by Erol, who was a wealth of knowledge and charm. He was punctual, friendly, and full of fascinating insights about Istanbul, its history, and the many sights we visited. Having Erol all to myself felt like a personalized experience, and the tour was perfectly timed—not too long, not too short, which was ideal for someone who typically finds tours a bit confining. I highly recommend this tour!
Misael_M, Nov 2024
Nice small tour with very helpful tour guide. Unfortunately, tickets for the Cistern complex was not included and you have to fork out 25 Euro extra PP. Despite that, the information we got out of it was very helpful and made us understand Istanbul even more.
Jane_C, Oct 2024
The most memorable part of this tour was our guide Gamze - she was terrific! Entertaining, informative, full of energy, and so nice. Highly recommend her. The tour was awesome, and Viator should rename it the Sultanahmet Mosque - because that is its name!
Sevil_B, Oct 2024
The guide was excellent, however the tour included the grand bazar, but was closed on Sunday. This is something that should be considered and communicated when tour is organized.
Neha_M, Oct 2024
Loved the basilica cistern and the blue mosque visit. More than the sights it was our guide huseyin who was absolutely wonderful. Kind, honest, informative, it was a great experience.
The grand bazaar was not nice at all so easy to skip. Coming from india a bazaar like this is not uncommon so we didn’t find it interesting at all. Added to that the store keepers are aggressive and rude. So I would not recommend that.
Priya_P, Sep 2024
Great tour, erol was very knowledgeable. He took the time to explain things in detail and give us tips and hints for the rest of our time here.
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