Private tour, Wonder of İstanbul

Recommended by 100% of travelers

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Istanbul, Turkey

6 to 8 hours (approx.)
Offered in: English

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Istanbul Private Old Town and Shopping Tour in Grand Bazaar

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5.0

(2)

Istanbul Private Old Town and Shopping Tour in Grand Bazaar

from $130

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Overview

Capital of empires for more than 1,500 years, Istanbul’s Sultanahmet neighborhood is rich in history and world-class attractions. Explore with a private guide who tailors timings and explanations to your group’s knowledge and interest levels on this enriching cultural experience. You’ll visit the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Hippodrome, and Basilica Cistern, with stops at the Grand Bazaar and Egyptian Bazaar. Entrance fees are at your expense.

See the key sights of the historic Sultanahmet district with a private guide
Travel through time as you visit Roman, Byzantine, and Ottoman remains
Capture photos of the eerie underground Basilica Cistern
Guide can meet you at central hotels for ease of navigation

What's Included

Private tour
Guide Meets You at Central Hotels
English and Russian Speaking Guide
Organising tour according your desire

Tickets for Museums
Food and Beverage
Transport between places
Gratuities
Private transportation

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

German Fountain
Binbirdirek, At Meydanı Cd, 34122 Fatih/İstanbul, Türkiye
We contact our guests, if their hotels are close, we meet them at their hotels and start our tour. Even if the hotels are not close, we determine the most suitable meeting method together.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Itinerary

TopkapI Palace

2 hours • Admission Ticket Not Included

Blue Mosque

40 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque

1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included

Basilica Cistern

1 hour • Admission Ticket Not Included

Grand Bazaar

1 hour • Admission Ticket Free

Egyptian Bazaar

45 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Hippodrome

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

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
Please note that the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays
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)

Reviews

5.0

based on 73 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

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This is a fantastic, high...

TienAn_Y, Apr 2026

This is a fantastic, high yield day for a first time visit to Istanbul. It allowed us to do way more in a single day than we could have done on our own. Gulsen was very accommodating and met us at our hotel and adjusted the time to something that worked better for us. We are so glad we booked with her!

Great excursion in Russian and English languages

Inna_R, Dec 2025

I met my mom in Istanbul for a quick family get together and decided to book a tour with Gulsen because she can speak both languages Russian and English. The total excursion took about 4 hours and we all had fantastic time. Gulsen is very knowledgeable, professional and very pleasant on the personal level.I highly recommend her as a tour guide. She can customize your experience to meet your needs in terms of sites you want to see and the content you want to hear. Absolutely the best!

It was great !! Thank you...

Anastasiya_I, Aug 2025

It was great !! Thank you Gulsen for such an interesting tour. Definitely will recommend it! Learned a lot during this tour:)

Gulsen showed us so much of Istanbul in just one day!

thomas_d, May 2025

Ask for guide Gulsen! She is so very knowledgeable in all of the Turkish history for the many sites we visited. We were stunned at the beauty of the cistern and the Blue Mosque and learned so much about the Hagia Sophia. She still had time to take us through the Bazaar and the spice market and brought us to her favorite lunch spot. A great adventure made so enjoyable by Gulsen book this one even if you have gone throne or two of the stops before on your own.

A wonderful experience

Paul_S, Dec 2024

This was an amazing tour experience of Istanbul. Gulsen was a fantastic guide, so knowledgeable and friendly and she made the whole tour a wonderful experience. Highly recommend this tour if you are visiting Istanbul

Istanbul a treasury to visit many times

Janice_W, Dec 2024

We loved the tour . Istanbul is a very interesting city . Traffic was crazy even on a Saturday . Guide was knowledgeable and very helpful.

Gulsen’s brilliant tour of Istanbul’s treasures

Sarah_H, Nov 2024

Gulsen’s tour of Istanbul’s treasures was outstanding. We learned so much about the history and culture of this fascinating city, with unique insights and entertaining stories while visiting the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Basilica Cistern, and Palace. Her English was excellent and we saw so much. She also helped us with the tram and recommendations for the rest of our trip. Do not hesitate to book her!

Highly Recommend Gulsen for Everything!

Lainie_W, Aug 2024

Wow! What a phenomenal experience we had throughout the entire day in Istanbul. We credit Gulsen for her kindness, professionalism, knowledge, patience and ability to get us in and out of crowds efficiently. We covered so much ground in the short time we had while having great conversation and fun! She's definitely somebody I'd recommend over and over if you want to experience. Istanbul the right way!

Fantastic personalised tour

Massimo_Q, Jun 2024

We had a lovely day with Gulsen. We went to all the main historical sites in Istanbul and she was really knowledgeable about all the sites sharing great stories and personalised the tour for us. Thank you for a great day!

Awesome tour of Istanbul

Misha_B, Jun 2024

Gülşen was excellent! She did a wonderful job customizing the tour to our group. Highly recommended!

A lovely day!

Yana_F, Apr 2024

We’ve had a lovely day with Gulsen, she tailored the tour to our pace and wishes. We’ve learnt lot’s of interesting facts, enjoyed the sights and just talked about everything. It’s great to have an insight on Istanbul from the local person especially so knowledgeable and professional. More than that Gulsen is a very pleasant person, we enjoyed our tour and will recommend Gulsen to our friends!

Excellent tour

Suzanne_P, Nov 2023

Excellent tour. Really informative. Our guide was kind enough to send us detailed recommendations for things to do on other days. Highly recommend.

Gulsen, best guide in Istanbul!!

Erin_M, Oct 2023

Best tour guide in Istanbul! Gulsen is super knowledgeable, kind, friendly and a great person. Taught us more in one day than I could have learned in a month. She knows all the ins and outs of the areas and how to quickly get around. Hire Gulsen you won’t be disappointed!!

Gulsen is awesome!

Bronson_T, Oct 2023

Gulsen is amazing. Very patient and so knowledgeable about Istanbul. We loved having her around and she was a great resource for us. We definitely made a friend in Istanbul with Gulsen!