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Here are some sample Istanbul city
tours, excursions and airport
transfers.
(The actual programs of each tour
company will vary from the descriptions
below, but these samples give you an
idea of what you may see.)
A half-day or full-day
Istanbul city tour is a
good way to get your bearings and
a sense of the city's geography.
Turista
Travel organizes out-of-the-ordinary small-group
tours of Istanbul, stopping
at places most tours never see,
as well as at all the best-known
sights. More...
Backpackers
Travel offers innovative half-day
tours to see some out-of-the-way
Istanbul sights such as the City
Walls,Yedikule (Fortress
of the Seven Towers), Kariye
Museum (Church of the Holy
Savior in Chora), Pierre
Loti café, Eyüp
Sultan Mosque, Greek Orthodox
patriarchate, and Egyptian
Spice Bazaar for as little
as €15.
How can it cost so little? It's transportation
only! More...
Byzantine Relics (3
hours)
See Istanbul's
top Byzantine sights
in this short tour which includes Aya
Sofya (Hagia Sophia), the cathedral
built by Emperor Justinian in 537 which was the largest
church in Christendom for a thousand years. You'll
also descend to the Sunken
Palace Cistern (Yerebatan Sarniçi)
where scenes from the James Bond movie From
Russia With Love were filmed. Finally,
you'll tour the Byzantine Hippodrome,
with its various monuments including a 3500-year-old
red granite obelisk brought from
Egypt and erected here in 390 AD. Details & Reservations...
Ottoman Relics (4
hours)
The Ottoman
Empire produced marvelous architecture and
you'll see two of its finest works: Topkapi
Palace, home of the sultans, and the
famed Blue
Mosque of Sultan Ahmet I. After a stroll
through the Hippodrome,
you'll venture into the labyrinthine Grand
Bazaar for some shopping (carpets,
antique jewelry, leather apparel, meerschaum and
porcelain are specialties). Details & Reservations...
Istanbul Tour (8
hours)
This all-day tour is a combination of the two Istanbul half-day
tours above: Byzantine Relics and Ottoman
Relics. Details & Reservations...
Istanbul Sightseeing Tour (full
day)
A variation of the full-day tour that operates from April
through October only. Details & Reservations...
Bosphorus Cruise (4
hours)
Start at the Egyptian
Market on the Golden
Horn in Eminönü,
at the foot of Galata
Bridge. It's also known as the Spice
Bazaar, and you'll see why! Board your Bosphorus
cruise vessel for the voyage north toward the Black
Sea, passing the sultan's palaces of Topkapi, Dolmabahçe,
Yildiz, Beylerbeyi and Küçüksu,
and the mighty castles of Rumeli
Hisar and Anadolu
Hisar. You'll have the opportunity to visit
Rumeli Hisar, the larger fortress, and also the Sadberk
Hanim Museum, one of Turkey's finest
private collections housed partly in an Ottoman mansion. Details & Reservations...
Two Continents (4
hours)
Start with a tour of Dolmabahçe,
the sultan's gigantic 19th-century palace, then drive
across the lofty Bosphorus Bridge to
enjoy views of the Bosphorus and
the city. Your goal is Çamlica (CHAHM-luh-jah),
the highest hill in the city, with its Ottoman-style
coffeehouse and tea garden from which you'll enjoy panoramic
views. Details & Reservations...
Istanbul by Night (3
hours)
Turks love nightlife, and if you
do too, join in! Your Turkish night out includes
a drive through Istanbul's
illuminated streets to a supper club featuring
Turkish and European cuisine. The floor show includes
live traditional Turkish music,
regional folk dance troupes, and—of
course—a belly-dancer.
Want to try it yourself? Get up there and dance! Details & Reservations...
Troy & Gallipoli Battlefields (2
days)
A driver/guide takes you by private
car from your Istanbul hotel
westward along the Sea
of Marmara to the Dardanelles (Hellespont).
Youl'' stay the night in the fortress town of Çanakkale on
the Anatolian shore, but first you'll tour the ruins
of legendary Troy,
and probably not be able to resist snapping a photo
of the reconstructed Trojan Horse.
Gaze northward across the Troad (Plains
of Troy) and you'll see the Gallipoli peninsula,
site of the monumental World War 1 Gallipoli
campaign conceived by Winston Churchill,
but won by Mustafa Kemal
(Atatürk). You'll tour the Gallipoli
battlefields to see Anzac Cove, Lone
Pine and other places hallowed by the heroism
and sacrifice of half a million men. Details & Reservations...
Anzac Tours (6
days/5 nights)
The ANZAC Day ceremony, commemorated
on the Gallipoli bttlefields on April
25th, is the centerpiece of this 6-day,
5-night tour departing from Istanbul.
It includes the Troy & Gallipoli program
(above) as well as a tour of Istanbul's
major sights, and an excursion to Pergamum
(Bergama) and its Asclepion. Details & Reservations...
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