Bursa Day Trip from Istanbul

Unfortunately, the experience fell significantly short of what was advertised and what we reasonably expected from a professionally organized tour. There were numerous unnecessary stops, serious safety concerns, poor organization, and significant deviations from the advertised itinerary. The following issues occurred during the tour: Unscheduled car wash: The bus stopped at a manual car wash, where we were required to remain sitting on the bus while the vehicle was washed. This was completely unrelated to the advertised tour and resulted in valuable sightseeing time being wasted. Unscheduled ATV stop: We stopped at an ATV location that was not part of the advertised schedule. We spent approximately 20 minutes there without doing anything or receiving any meaningful activity or experience. Turkish delight shop: We were taken to a Turkish delight store. The stop appeared to be primarily a commercial/vendor stop rather than something included for the benefit of the passengers. Jam store: Similarly, we were taken to a jam store that was not on the advertised itinerary. Again, this appeared to be a commercial stop and contributed further to the loss of sightseeing time. Frequent cigarette stops: The tour guide was a chain smoker and repeatedly required the group to make stops so that he could smoke. These personal smoking breaks were not part of the advertised itinerary and further reduced the already limited time available for sightseeing. Poor lunch experience: The lunch provided was extremely disappointing, both in terms of the food and the location. No drinks were provided, and numerous items required additional payment. This was not what we expected from a tour where lunch was included. Insufficient sightseeing time: The mosque was essentially the only stop we felt was yet we were given only approximately 15 minutes to see it. This was completely inadequate. Dangerous driving behavior: The driver repeatedly used his mobile phone while driving on the highway. On numerous occasions, he was texting while driving, as well as talking on the phone. This was extremely concerning and made passengers feel unsafe. Ferry timing: The ferry crossing was advertised as taking place in the morning, during daylight hours. Instead, it took place at approximately 8:00PM, when it was dark and there was essentially nothing to see. This was a significant departure from what had been advertised. Failure to follow the advertised itinerary: Overall, the tour did not follow the itinerary that we had paid for. A substantial amount of our time was spent on unnecessary personal and commercial stops instead of the sightseeing experiences we were promised. Unsafe and unacceptable drop-off: We were specifically offered hotel pick-up and drop-off. However, at approximately 10:45 PM, two female passengers were dropped off at an intersection and expected to walk approximately 1.3 km back to our hotel. This was particularly unacceptable given the late hour and the fact that hotel drop-off had been offered as part of the service. Taken together, these issues made the tour feel poorly organized and very different from the experience that was advertised and paid for. The repeated commercial stops, personal cigarette breaks, changes to the itinerary, inadequate sightseeing time, poor lunch arrangements, and especially the driver's repeated use of his phone while driving were extremely disappointing. The late-night drop-off was also unacceptable from both a customer-service and safety perspective. When a tour company advertises hotel pick-up and drop-off, passengers should not be left at an intersection late at night and expected to make their own way back to their accommodation. This tour should NOT be offered by Viator!

It was an amazing experience. Tour guide was a great guy

Overall, it was an average tour. Please note that the ATV ride and Open Cable Car are optional activities and are not included in the standard tour package. The ferry crossing and the closed cable car ride were enjoyable and offered good scenic views. While the experience was decent, the tour provides average value for money, especially considering the additional charges for optional activities, which are quite expensive.

It was a very well-organized and enjoyable trip. The supervisor was cooperative, organized, hardworking, and focused on every detail. May God reward him.

it was a nice experience, but the journey felt quite long, and some of the stops along the way didn’t really feel necessary. The best part of the trip was definitely the cable car and skiing — it was fun and a great change from the city. However, the lunch wasn’t very good, which was a bit disappointing.

My daughter and mom both enjoyed the trip. My mom needed extra time considering her age for planned activities. Our guide Medyan was very supportive and guided us through out.

Hello The trip was enjoyable; we went with them on a trip to Sapanca, Mount Uludağ, and the snow. The tour guide is polite and answers all your questions and explains things, and the driver is also excellent. May God grant you good health.

The tour was great. We visited good places we had free lunch with good food and we went to the Uludağ mountain and it was snowing. Highly recommended

We had an amazing time in Bursa. The guide was a superb guy who knew what's the best way to show us around. We loved the cable car rides and snowmobile rides. I felt a lot of time was spent on the adventure park and we could have spent more time on the mountain. A little heads up could have been nice in terms of being prepared for the trip by bringing warm clothes and carrying cash.

I rarely write negative reviews, but this tour was extremely disappointing and nothing like what was described in the listing. The organization, timing, and overall execution were far below expectations. What was sold as a 12-hour tour ended up taking approximately 16 hours, which made an already exhausting day even more difficult. Several key elements that were advertised did not match the reality of the experience, and many guests were visibly unhappy throughout the day. I do want to acknowledge our guide, Mustapha. He maintained a consistently positive and professional attitude and genuinely tried to manage the frustration of multiple dissatisfied customers. He even created a crowd-pleasing playlist on the bus to lift the mood, which was appreciated. The driver was also excellent — safe, professional, and courteous. Unfortunately, the issues were significant: • Téléphérique (cable car) was cancelled, and we only found out once we were already on the mountain, despite having paid extra for it. • Lunch became a 7:00 pm dinner after a very long day. The restaurant was low quality, portions were small, and many of us had to pay extra just to eat enough. • Transportation was a small, tight bus, and approximately 65% of the day was spent inside it. • The “Turkish delight factory” was simply an upstairs empty kitchen in a store — no demonstration or real experience, just sweets being sold. • We stopped for about one hour at a farm where quad rides were pushed. Those who participated were disappointed, and for others it felt like wasted time. • Bursa old town, which was charming, was limited to only about 35 minutes. • The mountain stop is essentially a ski resort area — pleasant scenery, but not the unique highlight it was presented to be. The issue here is not the individuals on the ground, but the way the tour is structured and marketed. Expectations were set at a certain level and not delivered. I would strongly advise future travelers to clarify details before booking