![]() ![]() Note that the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays, so if you choose a Sunday departure, you’ll explore the nearby vibrant Spice Market, filled with delectable and colourful Turkish spices, treats, coffees, and teas. Meet a few of the local characters, perfect your haggling skills, have a true Turkish coffee, and shop till you drop. Lastly, you’ll seek out treasures of a different kind in Istanbul’s famed Grand Bazaar, which offers up 3,000 shops to explore along 61 streets. This opulent complex overlooking the Bosphorus is a true Istanbul treasure, with many colourful stories about the rich sultans who lived there between 14. Once you’re filled with Turkish cuisine, Topkapi Palace awaits. You’ll enjoy friendly conversation with members of the community and learn about daily life in Istanbul. Need a break? We’ll step back to the present and join the locals as we lunch in a hidden café. Chariot races once took place along this strip, which was also home to the notorious Nika riots - a dramatic political protest in 532 AD that led to the massacre of tens of thousands of people. Today, this charming promenade is a popular meeting point for Istanbulites, but it is also an integral part of Turkish history. ![]() Next, your Istanbul city tour will take you to the ancient Hippodrome. Don’t forget to ask your guide the significance of those six spires. Sultan Ahmet I’s Blue Mosque is one of the most striking sights in Istanbul, with its iconic blue-tiled walls (the tiles number in the tens of thousands!), 260 windows, and six minarets. You’ll then head just across the street to the jewel in the Istanbul crown. It’s also a movie star: anyone who’s seen From Russia with Love will feel a bit like James Bond when they step inside. This mind-bogglingly beautiful site is also somewhat of a chameleon - it has lived its long life as a church, a mosque, and now as a museum. This masterpiece of Byzantine architecture stands tall and proud in downtown Istanbul, holding within its walls more than 1,500 years of Turkish history. Start your Istanbul tour with a dose of awe at Justinian the Great’s Hagia Sophia. On this tour you will have a chance to try different Turkish delicacies at local cafes, and in doing so you will be supporting small, locally-owned business.Ĭan you “conquer” Istanbul in just one day? We’re certainly going to try! Take a journey from Byzantium to Constantinople to Sultan Mehmet Fatih’s city of Islam on this historical tour that stops at some of the most iconic sites in Turkey while also showing you the city’s exciting present.Your tour includes entrance fees to all of them, which helps to preserve these important cultural sites. On this tour you will visit cultural heavy hitters like the Hagia Sophia Museum, the Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome, and Topkapi Palace.Local Impact: How you will help the local community by joining this tour: Listen to colourful stories of sultans at Topkapi Palace and explore all the site’s ancient treasures.Haggle with local vendors and get lost in the labyrinth of alleys that make up the famous Grand Bazaar.Enjoy a tasty Turkish lunch with locals in a hidden restaurant.Stop at the spine of ancient Hippodrome and imagine the chariot races and glorious gatherings in the very heart of the city for thousands of years.Take in the majestic Blue Mosque and learn about the delicate, intricate art of tile that makes up this world-famous site.Visit the mesmerising ancient site of Hagia Sophia and marvel at this 1,500-year-old masterpiece of Byzantine history.Finish it all off with a backstreet tour and some good-natured haggling with local artisans in the Grand Bazaar. Eat a tasty Turkish lunch with locals at a hidden restaurant, then listen to stories of how generations of sultans lived at the grand Topkapi Palace, overlooking the gorgeous Bosphorus Strait. Visit Turkey’s iconic UNESCO-listed historic spots such as the jaw-dropping Hagia Sophia, the beautiful Blue Mosque, and the pretty, tree-lined ancient Hippodrome, and learn how Istanbul has stood strong through the centuries. This is the ultimate all-in-one introduction to the sites everyone must-see in Istanbul, with a locals-know twist. ![]() Journey in the footsteps of the city’s most famous ruler and conquer Istanbul in just a day. Either I conquer Istanbul or Istanbul conquers me. ![]()
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