Hippodrome
Blue Mosque
Topkapi Palace & Harem Sections
St. / Hagia Sophia
Basilica / Underground Cistern
Grand Bazaar
Sample itinerariesPrivate Tour: Istanbul, the Old City
Duration
6 – 8 Hours
Departure
Everyday
Best time for tour
Early Spring & Late Fall
Guiding in
English – French
Tour Type
Private tour with dedicated tour guide
Walking tour or private van
PLAN MY TRIP
Planning a trip to Istanbul soon?
Sample itinerariesIstanbul, the Old City..
Starting at 8-9am, finishing around 5-6pm, covering:
* Hippodrome (Roman-Byzantine, 1700 years old… a short photo stop en route to Blue Mosque, explanations of the visible columns & their history),
* Blue Mosque (Ottoman, 400 years old),
* Topkapi Palace & Harem Sections (Ottoman, 500 years old),
* St. / Hagia Sophia (Byzantine, 1500 years old),
* Basilica / Underground Cistern (Byzantine, 1500 years old) and
* Grand Bazaar (Ottoman, 500 years old).
Depending on the location of the hotel, this may be a walking tour day since
* Hippodrome is 5 minutes walking away from Blue Mosque
* Blue Mosque is 15 minutes walking away from Topkapi Palace
* St. Sophia is 10 minutes walking away from Topkapi Palace
* Basilica Cistern is across the street to St. Sophia
* Grand Bazaar is 15 minutes walking away from Basilica Cistern.
This may also be a walking tour day for guests arriving Istanbul on board cruise ships. We simply hop on a tram taking us to the Old City in 20 minutes, the rest of the day is walking. When the tour is over, we catch another tram back to the port.
Istanbul the Old City is a day where you can expect to get the maximum of your tour guide since in one day only, we cover Romans, Byzantines, Early Turks, Ottomans, Islamic understanding in our country and a bit of modern Turkey.
Some of the above locations may not be open for visits due to ongoing restoration works, or scheduled museum closures on the day you visit. If this is the case, while planning your trip with you, we will inform you beforehand so that we can make alternate plans together.
Tour Overview
Hippodrome
Roman-Byzantine, 1700 years old
Blue Mosque
Ottoman, 400 years old
Topkapi Palace & Harem Sections
Ottoman, 500 years old
St. / Hagia Sophia
Byzantine, 1500 years old
Basilica / Underground Cistern
Byzantine, 1500 years old
Grand Bazaar
Ottoman, 500 years old
Itinerary in detail
Every single KSG trip is tailored to the personal preferences and interests of our guests.
Below you will find details about the places to be visited during this tour.
With moderate length walks, this day can accommodate guests at any fitness level. Once you make it to end, you will get a very good understanding of the historical background of Istanbul
Hippodrome
The Hippodrome of Constantinople was the social and sporting heart of the Byzantine capital, where chariot races, imperial ceremonies, imperial ceremonies, public gatherings and announcements took place. Today, the former track is part of Sultanahmet Square, marked by monuments like the Obelisk of Theodosius, the Serpent Column, and the Walled Obelisk.
Blue Mosque
The Blue Mosque, a.k.a. Sultan Ahmed Mosque was built in the early 17th century by Sultan Ahmed I and is renowned for its six minarets and interior decorated with thousands of blue İznik tiles. Its architecture blends classical Ottoman design, featuring a cascading dome structure that creates a vast, light-filled interior.
Topkapi Palace & Harem Sections
Located on the European side of Istanbul, but looking nothing like other palaces in Europe, Topkapi Palace is a complex of courtyards which was built to be the first and main palace of Ottoman sultans after taking over Constantinople. For four centuries, it served as the main residence and administrative center of the Ottoman dynasty.
Its Harem was the private inner world of the palace, housing the sultan’s family, favorites and concubines. If the walls could speak, the palace intrigue and dramatic gossip it would tell would put even the stories of Versailles to shame.
St. / Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a monumental building in Istanbul originally constructed in the 6th century as a Byzantine cathedral under Emperor Justinian. Famed for having the largest dome in the world for a thousand years, Hagia Sophia was built to be the Vatican of Eastern Christianity.
With its vast central dome and shimmering mosaics, Hagia Sophia has served successively as a church, a mosque, a museum, and then again as a mosque, reflecting the city’s layered religious and political history.
Basilica Cistern
The Basilica Cistern is a vast underground water reservoir built in the 6th century to supply water to Constantinople’s Great Palace and surrounding buildings. It is supported by 336 recycled marble columns in doric, corinthian and ionic styles – including the infamous Medusa head bases reused from Greek temples 500 miles outside of Constantinople/Istanbul.
Grand Bazaar
The Grand Bazaar is one of the world’s oldest and largest covered markets, established in the 15th century shortly after the Ottoman conquest of Constantinople. With over 4,000 cell-like indoor shops, arranged along vaulted street, it has long functioned as a center of trade, craftsmanship, and commercial life in the city.
Spending more time with us?
Istanbul
Walks
01
Istanbul
Offers
02
Cappadocia
03
