Basilica Cistern Skip-the-Ticket-Line Entry with Audio Guide
Description
Visit the Basilica Cistern, built in the 4th century and enlarged in 532 AD, used as water storage during Byzantine times. Listen to your guide as they explain the mystery of Medusa heads from Greek mythology. Explore this cathedral-size cistern, built during the reign of Emperor Justinian I in 532 A.D. to supply water to the Great Palace. It stores up to 80,000 cubic meters of water, delivered via 20 kilometers of aqueducts from a reservoir near the Black Sea. An audio guide is included and available in 25 languages: English, German, Russian, Persian, Arabic, French, Italian, Chinese, Dutch, Spanish, Hindi, Romanian, Ukrainian, Korean, Turkish, Bulgarian, Polish, Swedish, Japanese, Indonesian, Greek, Hungarian, Portuguese, Urdu, and Croatian. Guests who have selected the Basilica Cistern Guided Tour are required to meet their guide at the meeting point, Dsign Cafe, at least 15 minutes before the scheduled tour time.
Tour Options
Itinerary
At the Basilica Cistern, visitors step into an impressive underground space built in the 6th century by the Byzantine Emperor Justinian I. The cistern, which once stored water for the Great Palace of Constantinople, features 336 marble columns and a peaceful, cool atmosphere. One of the highlights is the Medusa head columns—two ancient stone carvings of Medusa, one placed upside down and the other sideways. These add a mysterious touch to the site. As you explore, you’ll also learn about the cistern’s history and its importance in Istanbul’s water system. The Basilica Cistern is a unique and fascinating place to visit for anyone interested in history, architecture, or just looking for a special experience. For guided tours: Please meet your guide at Dsign Cafe at least 15 minutes before the tour time. For easy recognition, look for the white flag with the Istanbul Tourist Pass® and logos.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(7)
Overall great experience!! Tickets were given on the day of entry, and the audio guide was also very exceptional. 10/10 experience!
Dear Guest, Thank you for your wonderful feedback! We're delighted to hear that you had a great overall experience and that both the ticket process and audio guide met your expectations. We look forward to welcoming you again for another 10/10 visit to Istanbul. Warm regards, The Istanbul Tourist Pass® Team
The Basillica Cistern was an amazing experience. The ruins are beautiful with changing lighting. A memorable experience, worth a visit if in Istanbul.
Dear Wanny, Thank you for your wonderful feedback! We're thrilled to hear that you had such a memorable experience at the Basilica Cistern. It's truly one of Istanbul's most magical and iconic sites, and we're glad the Istanbul Tourist Pass helped make your visit smooth and enjoyable. We hope to welcome you back soon for more unforgettable moments in this incredible city! Warm regards, The Istanbul Tourist Pass® Team
The place is amazing, but the people that work there are soooooo rude. I wouldn’t go back just because of that reason. A place full of history should be run by people that treat other kindly, we never received the QR code from Viator, we were showing them what the email said “tickets” but they didn’t give a crap. Rude, rude, rude.
Dear Buddita, Thank you for sharing your feedback, and we’re truly sorry to hear about the experience you had. While we’re glad you found the location itself amazing, we sincerely regret that the behavior you encountered affected your overall visit. Please note that we work with a variety of partners and venues across the city, and while we do our best to ensure a smooth experience, we unfortunately do not have control over the behavior of third-party staff at certain attractions. That said, we take this kind of feedback seriously and will forward your comments to the relevant team to help improve service standards. Regarding the QR code issue, we recommend always reaching out to our team directly through WhatsApp or email in case of any ticketing trouble — we’re available to assist and make sure our guests are taken care of. We hope to have the opportunity to welcome you again and provide you with a much better experience in the future. Warm regards, The Istanbul Tourist Pass® Team
I do not recommend buying tickets in advance from this tour operator. No QR code was provided making it difficult to get in. Ticket counter was not able to help. You are better off buying your ticket at the site. Basilica Cistern was eerie but impressive.
Dear Sir, Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re sorry to hear that your experience did not meet your expectations, particularly regarding the entry process. Please note that all access details, including QR codes or instructions for guided entry, are provided within the confirmation email and the Istanbul Tourist Pass mobile app. Our live support team is also available every day to assist guests in real-time should any difficulties arise. The Basilica Cistern is indeed a unique and atmospheric site, and we’re glad to know you found it impressive. If there’s anything we can do to assist you further or clarify your experience, we would be happy to help. Kind regards, The Istanbul Tourist Pass® Team
An amazing feat of engineering and incredible to think how long ago it was done. Lighting really adds atmosphere. There were quite a few tours but it felt quiet and we could most of the time on our own. It's not a white knuckle ride and pretty much all of it consists of water and columns. But it was a lovely hour or so.
Hi, Thank you for your fantastic review! We’re delighted to hear that you enjoyed your visit to the Basilica Cistern and appreciated its incredible history and engineering. The unique lighting truly does create a magical atmosphere, and we’re glad you had the chance to take it all in at your own pace. We hope to welcome you again on your next adventure in Istanbul!
The Basilica Cistern itself was amazing. Very atmospheric and enjoyable. The audio guide itself (on our phones, we used our own AirPods to listen, some listened without but it didn't feel intrusive when ours was silent (though the attraction wasn't busy when we were there) was quite good. Go early and it is less busy. Hardly a queue to get through security. We had bought tickets through Tripadvisor which were priced competitively. BUT almost none of the very many staff spoke any English (or French or German we tried) and none of them recognised our tickets even though we had followed all instructions to download, add to wallet etc.. they kept trying to make us wait for an actual person to guide us although we had the link for the audio guide. They even tried to send us back to do security again (only 10 minutes as we were early but could have been 20+ later in the day) because we were there at 09.29 for an 09.30 slot. After 15 minutes and 6 people who didn't recognise our ticket and could speak no English we got through and then had to wait again to get someone else to download the audio guide. Such a shame as the space is fabulous. The audio guide itself was quite good but would have preferred clearer chronological history. Go, it's worth it. But be ready!
Dear Guest, Thank you for sharing your detailed feedback about your visit to the Basilica Cistern. We're thrilled to hear that you found the site itself "amazing" and enjoyed its atmosphere as well as the audio guide. However, we're truly sorry to hear about the difficulties you experienced with the staff and the ticket recognition process. Please note that the staff inside the Basilica Cistern are managed by the museum itself and are not part of our team. While we strive to ensure a smooth experience for all our customers, some aspects, such as museum personnel, are beyond our direct control. That said, your feedback is incredibly valuable to us. We’ll share your concerns with the museum management to encourage improvements in their communication and ticket-checking processes, especially regarding international visitors and different languages. We're also sorry for any confusion about the audio guide setup and the timing of your entry. We'll review our instructions and information to ensure they are as clear as possible to avoid similar issues in the future. Thank you again for your honest review and your kind words about the Basilica Cistern itself. We hope you'll give us the opportunity to serve you again on another visit to Istanbul. Kind regards, Istanbul Tourist Pass Team
The cistern is a wonderful place to visit in Istanbul. There were quite long queues, but with the Istanbul Tourist Pass we used during our 3 day stay, everything was much easier as we had priority.
Lieber Martin, Vielen Dank für Ihre fantastische Bewertung! Es freut uns sehr, dass Sie die beeindruckende Atmosphäre der Basilika-Zisterne genießen konnten und dass der Istanbul Tourist Pass Ihnen geholfen hat, die langen Warteschlangen zu umgehen. Wir freuen uns, dass der Pass Ihre Zeit in Istanbul erleichtert hat und hoffen, Sie bald wieder bei Ihrer nächsten Reise willkommen heißen zu dürfen! Herzliche Grüße,