Private & Mini Gruppe 7 - 8 Stunden geführte Istanbul Tour / Kreuzfahrthafen

Our guide, Tayfun, was excellent. We did a private tour and communicated with the tour company in advance about what we’d most like to see. Tayfun customized our experience to be exactly what we wanted and gave us tons of historical info for context. Highly recommend!

Turkan, our private tour guide, made the tour very special and shecustomized it to our desires. We saw Hippodrome - Chariot races and Obelisks, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Gülhane (National Park) - The private courtyard of the palace. Then we went to the Spice Market, where she showed us the best places to buy spices, tea, and coffee. We ended up eating lunch in a local restaurant Ocakbaşı, which was fabulous.

For May, 2026 we arranged a 2 day private tour of Istanbul booked through Curio Travel with Ephesus Shuttle Tours and Leyla as our guide. We had general ideas about what we wanted to see and do, hitting historical and cultural sights and experiencing different parts of the incredible city. All the drivers were on time, dependable and careful and Leyla was always on time as well. Leyla, was really great. She was very personable and professional. Her style as a guide was conversational and open, a perfect match for our way of learning and spending time in a new culture. She provided interesting and important historical, cultural and social context to ancient and modern day Istanbul and offered her personal perspectives when we wanted to know. She was flexible and adapted to changes in our energy and availability, provided suggestions and guidance and we liked her so much, that we asked for an additional day which she was able to accommodate. We would use Curio and Ephesus Shuttle Tours again and would definitely ask for Leyla. She added much to our experience and enjoyment.

We had a great time with Ezgi in Istanbul! Her knowledge about the history and architecture of the various places we visited was impressive and made the excursion all the more enjoyable. She was able to steer us away from some of the more obvious tourist traps and used her experience and connections with some of the local vendors to get us into places faster and easier. She was even willing to indulge us by waiting in a lengthy (but fast moving) line to see the Blue Mosque. I’ll never forget her quick thinking when we started getting hounded by all the rug merchants in the Grand Bazaar. I had just purchased a rug from a trusted vendor outside the market and the bag they gave me made it obvious to all the other vendors at the Bazaar that I had just bought one. They were eager to help me buy more when Ezgi had the brilliant idea to put the bag inside another one to disguise it. She also made an excellent suggestion for lunch at Rumeli Kebab & Steak House. Not only was the food delicious but the waitstaff were funny and engaging. Highly recommended Ezgi for your future Istanbul tours and Rumeli for the food and atmosphere.

Haggard Sophia is covered in scaffolding so this should be mentioned if you are choosing this tour. Topkapi Palace was beautiful. Our guide walked a little too fast for us older folks. Honestly we should have taken the T1 tram and done it by ourselves.

Our tour was absolutely fantastic and one of the highlights of our trip. We learned so much about the city’s rich history, culture, and the significance behind many of its architectural masterpieces. The itinerary was excellent — we visited the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace Museum, the Grand Bazaar, and the Spice Market, all while getting detailed historical context that really brought each place to life. Our guide, Tayfun, was exceptional. His knowledge, experience, and flexibility made the tour feel very personalized. He gave great recommendations throughout the day and allowed us to tailor the pace and timing to our interests. One example was the Hagia Sophia Mosque, which was under renovation during our visit. Based on Tayfun’s advice that much of the interior was obstructed, we chose to skip going inside and spend more time enjoying other sites — definitely the right call. This tour is perfect for anyone who wants an immersive overview of the city’s history, landmarks, and cultural evolution. Be prepared for a fair amount of walking, though it was completely manageable and worth it for everything we experienced. If you enjoy fascinating history, stunning architecture, vibrant markets, and don’t mind getting your steps in, this is absolutely the tour to book.

Engi was a fantastic guide. She guided us through all the main sites in Istanbul to include the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia, Basilica Cistern, Hippodrome and the Grand Bazaar! She was very knowledgeable and it was amazing to see and learn about all these sites in one day. She picked us up right at the port and dropped us off there following our tour.

Note to all you English speakers heading to or in Istanbul: Leyla is an exceptionally good tour guide. My husband and I - a travel group of 2 - just spent 3 days (April 6-9 2026) with Leyla as our guide. She is thoroughly knowledgeable about Turkish history,, art, culture, and what tourists need to know to feel comfortable. She is excellent at giving background information leading up to events and famous sites you will visit. She also anticipates what you’ll need to know to feel comfortable on your own in Istanbul. My husband and I have traveled around the world. Leyla is probably the best tour guide we have ever worked with. Many shared laughs and smiles, many memorable moments, and much learning. Many thanks Leyla!

Ceren provided excellent commentary about the places we visited. She was on time for our tour, was very personable, knowledgeable, and made us feel welcome in her city of Istanbul. Highly recommended.

Leyla was an absolute delight to have spend this tour with . She guided us in a way that we were ahead of the crowds . Her knowledge of Istanbul and its history was just amazing . She shared so much insight as we walked through the city . Where we went for lunch was such good food.She also was prompt in getting us back to the cruise ship terminal in time . Sorry it took me a while to write this review