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Free booking and cancellationFree payment tour, no set price, booking and cancellation are free
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We're a duo of full-time licensed tour guides in Istanbul, Hakan & Emre, both with many years of experience in guiding and interesting background stories. Hakan is a born & raised Istanbulian, he grew up in urban Istanbul in a traditional family that owns a bakery. Spending his entire life in Istanbul, Hakan had the privilage to become a student in the most historical school in Turkey, Istanbul University. Having the opportunity to spend his student years in the only school located in the Old City of Istanbul, he learned the area like the back of his hand. After graduating from collage, he got his first job as a journalist. Fascinated with his hometown's history and the tourism sector, he went to his second university, and became a licensed tour guide. He's been working since 2019. Emre on the other hand, has his roots going back over a century in Istanbul. He spent his childhood in central Istanbul, and found himself abroad for his highschool studies. Later came back to Istanbul, and decided to learn the world's hardest language: Chinese. Spent 4 years in China, mastering the language and even participating in a band that performed in bars and festivals. Came back to his hometown Istanbul to finally realize his teenage dream of becoming a tour guide, did his masters in guiding and got his license. He's been guiding tourists in multiple languages since 2018.
Don't just book a tour. Book an adventure.
Start with the must-see sites of the Old City, learn about Istanbul's most important landmarks, and delve deeper into lesser-known sites that are massively underrated in the same tour.
You will witness the change of environment as you walk from the most touristic part of the city into a more serene and beautiful area where the blue meets the green and poetically ends with an incredible sea view.
The tour includes:
✅ Must-See sites (check route below for details)
✅ Lesser-known, underrated sites
✅ Bosphorus viewpoint
✅ Insider tips & recommendations
✅ Best photo spots
✅ Small break
✅ Active walking tour, 4 km route
✅ Essential information on all sites
✅ Access to online PDF guides
✅ Additional offers
You will not only access all the essential information about the Old City of Istanbul but will unlock an underrated area of the city with a local that you probably would have missed otherwise.
You will love it.
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Your guide will be waiting in front of the Egyptian Obelisk (Obelisk of Theodosius) with a GREEN flag. The obelisk is a giant stone column with ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs on it, located in the center of the Hippodrome, which is located between the Blue Mosque and Turkish & Islamic Arts Museum.
We meet in front of the 3500 years old Egyptian Obelisk.
We walk through the ancient Hippodrome Square where once tens of thousands of Romans and Byzantines watched violent chariot races.
We walk through the courtyard of the stunning Blue Mosque, talk about its history and the story of Sultan Ahmet.
We take stunning pictures of Turkey's #1 historical landmark, the time defying 1500 years old Hagia Sophia, and unveil its deep history.
We pass in front of Turkey's #1 hammam, a 500+ years old historical Turkish bath commissioned by the most famous woman in Ottoman History: Hürrem Sultan.
We'll see one of Istanbul's most famous meeting points, a gift from the last German emperor, Kaiser Willhelm II.
The name says it all. But there's more to it, and you won't be expecting it.
We'll discover the hidden favorite of local shopkeepers where they chill with a bubbly shisha and a cup of tea after a long day at work.
We enter and pass from one of the oldest book bazaars in the world, the Ottoman second hand book bazaar.
We'll see the largest and oldest city square in Old City: Beyazit Square, the square of Istanbul University, the oldest and biggest university of Turkey.
Biggest and arguably the most beautiful mosque built during the Ottoman empire. The most underrated site in Istanbul that is truly breathtaking.
We'll take incredible pictures of the city from above, with the stunning Bosphorus strait in the middle.
Can't spill all the beans at once!
Free tours do not have a set price, instead, each person gives the guru at the end of the tour the amount that he or she considers appropriate (these usually range from €10 to $50 depending on satisfaction with the tour).