Istanbul Half Day Afternoon Old City Tour

Length : Half Day
Duration : 4 hours
Operated : Everyday except Tuesday (Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesday)
Guide in : English, (Spanish, Italian, German, Arabic : need our confirmation)

What is Included?
Hotel Pick-up & drop-off
Entrance fees as per itinerary
Guide and Air-conditioned Vehicle
What is Excluded?
Meal, beverage
Tips and gratuities
Personal expenses

highlights

Topkapi Palace is the largest and oldest palace in the world to survive to our day. In 1924 it was turned into a museum at Ataturk's request. Situated on the acropolis, the site of the first settlement in Istanbul, it commands an impressive view of the Golden Horn, the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara. The palace is a complex surrounded by 5 km of walls and occupies an area of 700,000 sq. m at the tip of the historical peninsula. Following the conquest of the city in 1453, the young Sultan Mehmet moved the capital of the empire to Istanbul, His first palace was located in the middle of the town. The second palace, which he built in the 1470's, was initially called the New Palace, but in recent times it came to be known as the Topkapi Palace. Topkapi is a classical example of Turkish palace architecture. It consists of tree- shaded courtyards, each serving a different purpose and opening onto one another with monumental gates. The courtyards are surrounded by functional buildings. From the time of its construction, the palace developed constantly with alterations and additions made by each sultan.

Rustem Pasha Mosque was designed by Ottoman imperial architect Mimar Sinan for Grand Vizier Damat Rustem Pasha. It is located above the Hasircilar Carsisi, the Weavers' Market, in the Eminonu district next to the Golden Horn, in the Tahtakale neighborhood of Istanbul. To the west of the mosque is a cemetery, and a square was later added behind its qibla wall. As indicated by a four-line inscription. It was constructed in the place of a Byzantine church converted into a mosque in the fifteenth century by Haci Halil Aga.

The Golden Horn, or Halic in Turkish, is a horn-shaped fyord on the European side of Istanbul and is fed by two small streams. It is a natural harbor where Byzantine and Ottoman fleet and commercial ships were anchored. Today, it's surrounded by parks and promenades with ancient sites around it. Its name comes from the color of the water when at sunset it shines with a gold color because of the reflection of the sun. There is no specific visit or stop, we just pass/drive over.