Istanbul Private Tour to Hagia Sophia & Bosphorus Boat Cruise

Istanbul Private Tour to Hagia Sophia & Bosphorus Boat Cruise

Istanbul Private Tour to Old City & Bosphorus Cruise
09:00 am – We will be collected your hotel or cruise port and you start the Istanbul private tour. You will have an amazing private tour of Istanbul to discover Old City and Bosphorus. You are the boss of the day and your Istanbul private local guide will give you information about the day after the meeting. You are going to start to private day tour by visiting the Hagia Sophia Mosque. After visiting the interior of Hagia Sophia, continue to walk to the old Hippodrome of Byzantium. While you are walking in the Hippodrome, you see the German Fountain of Wilhelm II, the Obelisk of Theodosius, the bronze Serpentine Column, and the column of Constantine. Afterward, pass by and walk to the famous Blue Mosque, visiting inside the Blue Mosque. Then visit Grand Covered Bazaar which is known as Big Bazaar. You will have time to explore this old bazaar.  Walk to the cruise port where you will embark on the boat for a lovely Bosphorus Sightseeing Cruise. You are going to sail between Europe & Asia continents around 1hr 45 min. While we are sailing, you will see the old Ottoman pasha villas and mansions on the Asia and Europe shores.
Around 17.00 – At the end of the private tour, drive back to your hotel or Istanbul cruise ship port.

Visiting Sights:
Hagia Sophia Mosque
Blue Mosque                    (Sultanahmet Mosque)
Hippodrome of Constantinople
Grand Covered Bazaar
Bosphorus Boat Cruise  between Europe & Asia Continents
Beylerbeyi Palace            (from the Sea)
Dolmabahce Palace         (from the Sea)
Ortakoy Mosque              (from the Sea)
Rumeli Fortress               (from the Sea)
Ciragan Palace                 (from the Sea)
Bosphorus Bridges          (from the Sea)

Brief Info about the sites:
Hagia Sophia Mosque: This ancient basilica, built by Constantine the Great, in the 4th century and reconstructed by Justinian in the 6th century, is one of the architectural marvels of all time. It has been used as a mosque recently.
Hippodrome (At Meydani): The scene of ancient chariot races, the ancient Hippodrome, with its four monuments; the German Fountain of Wilhelm II, the Obelisk of Theodosius, the bronze Serpentine Column, and the Column of Constantine.
Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii): Across from St. Sophia built in the 17th century by the architect Mehmet, this is known as the Blue Mosque because of its magnificent interior decoration of blue Iznik tiles.
Grand Covered Bazaar (Kapali Carsi): In this labyrinth of streets and passages are more than 4,000 shops with each trade having its own area; the goldsmiths’ street, the carpet sellers, Turkish arts and crafts, such as handpainted ceramic plates, hand-honed copperware, brassware and trays, water ewers, onyx ware and meerschaum pipers.
Bosphorus Boat Cruise Sightseeing: A traditional excursion by boat along the waterway separating Europe and Asia. The shore is lined with old wooden villas, palaces of marble, fortresses, and small fishing villages. During the excursion, you will pass the magnificent Dolmabahce Palace, and further along, the parks and imperial pavillions of Yildiz Palace. On the coastal edge of this park, is Ciragan Palace, 300 meters of its marble facade faces the shore. At Ortakoy a great variety of artists gathers every Sunday to display their work along the street. Ortakoy is a symbol of tolerance with a church, a mosque, and a synagogue existing side by side for centuries.
Golden Horn (from the bus): The arm of the Bosphorus and a natural harbor of the historical peninsula separating the old and the new parts of İstanbul where the first colonies settled during the Byzantine. The residential area for Byzantine Jews, Italian traders, and other non-Muslim minorities. Drive along the traces of history at Balat viewing Metal Church of St. Stephen the Bulgarian, 21 km. long City Walls(from the bus), the strongest fortification of the Middle Ages.