Tours/Istanbul/Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour
Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour
4.3(1,346)Istanbul8 hours
VIATOR4.3(1,208)TRIPADVISOR4.2(138)
+22 photos
At a glance
Duration
8 hours
Price from
$155 / person
Location
Istanbul, Türkiye
Rating
4.3 / 5 · 1,346 reviews
Languages
EN
Group
Small group, up to 14
Cancellation
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before
Hotel pickup
Available
Confirmation
Instant
Ticket
Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Operator
Neon Tours
Description
Visit six top Istanbul attractions in one day on a full-day sightseeing tour of the city! The action-packed day includes a comprehensive tour of the historical Sultanahmet neighborhood where many of the city’s finest architectural legacies and landmarks are found. Visit the Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace, as well as Istanbul Hippodrome, the sunken palace of Basilica Cistern and the dazzling Grand Bazaar.
Optional visit to Hagia Sophia ( For those who wants to visit , will purchase their own ticket)
Numbers are limited to 14 on this small-group tour ensuring a personalized experience.
Schedule & prices
Runs
Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri, Sat, and Sun
Start times
8:30 AM
Next available
Thu, Oct 15
Adult (ages 12+)
$155
Child (ages 5–11)
$140
From the operator’s live schedule on Viator, checked Oct 13.
Tour Options
Small Group Tour of Istanbul
Include Pick up & Entrance : Transfers and Entrance Fees Indicated as Included.
Pickup included
Itinerary
Hippodrome
25 min
Continue through Istanbul Hippodrome, seeing the granite Egyptian obelisk that was gifted to the city, and hear how the site once represented the hub of the city’s sporting and political life. After stopping for photos.
Blue Mosque
30 min
Head to the Blue Mosque to marvel at its six minarets and the thousands of Iznik tiles that cascade a sea of blue over the building’s interior. One of the finest examples of classical Ottoman architecture, the mosque was built at the bequest of Sultan Ahmet I who demanded a mosque to rival the grandeur of the Hagia Sophia.
TopkapI Palace
Admission included60 min
Like Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace now exists as one of Istanbul’s premier museums, home to a collection of ornamentation that once belonged to the city’s 15th-century sultans and harems.
Basilica Cistern
Admission not included30 min
Might be replaced with Museum of Great Palace Mosaics. Visit Basilica Cistern — Istanbul’s ‘sunken palace’ — a site that famously featured in the James Bond movie From Russia with Love. The site is one of the largest of the city's ancient cisterns that lie beneath the ground.
Grand Bazaar
30 min
Grand Bazaar, one of the world’s most famous souks. Comprising nearly 60 streets and thousands more shops, the bazaar can be overwhelming. Let your guide introduce you to its colorful (if chaotic) highlights, and shop for jewelry, leather, pottery, spices and more.
Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque
Admission included60 min
Optional visit to Hagia Sophia - Entrance fee is on guests own expense
Obelisk of Theodosius
15 min
In between Ibrahim Pasha palace and Blue Mosque 35 hundred years old of an masterpecie and its dept history will be given by your guide.
German Fountain
15 min
In hippodrome square built in late Ottoman period send by German king Whilliam the 2nd.
Hagia Irene Museum
Admission included20 min
6th century church of holly peice
Divanyolu Street
10 min
Ceremonial Street of Ottoman empire
What's included
Included
Walking Tour
Entrance Fees
Guaranteed to skip the long ticket lines
Pick up and drop of from the Hotels
Professional English Speaking Guide
Meeting point for pick up
Not included
Gratuities
Food and drinks, unless specified
Lunch
Pickup Locations & Times
In order to get your final pick up time and your pick up point, please contact us from +90 532 282 45 29 (emergency number) / 48 hours before the tour departure day.
Traveller Ratings
Reviews collected by Viator and Tripadvisor
4.3
1,346 reviews
5
786
4
340
3
111
2
54
1
55
How it compares in Istanbul
No. 18 by number of reviews among 3,635 tours in Istanbul
Starting price $155 is close to the typical $143 for tours of similar length in Istanbul
Excurgo comparison of 3,635 Viator tours, recalculated daily.
Important Information
Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
Travelers should have a high level of physical fitness
Minimum age is 4 years
Children 18 years and under must be accompanied by an adult
Guests must call 24 hours in advance for pick up times
Blue Mosque ang Hagia Sophia are open to visit after 14:30 on fridays due to prayer times
Not recommended for participants with walking difficulties
Cancellation
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
1+ days before100% refund
0–1 days before0% refund
Frequently asked questions
How long does Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour take?
Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour lasts about 8 hours. The itinerary has 10 stops.
How much does Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour cost?
Prices start at $155 per person for this Istanbul experience, booked through Viator with the price shown before checkout. There is 1 booking option, so the final price depends on the option you choose.
What days does Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour run?
According to the operator’s current schedule, it runs on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, starting at 8:30 AM.
How much does Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour cost for children?
Children aged 5–11 pay from $140, adults from $155.
Can I cancel Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour for free?
Yes. Cancel at least 1 day before the start for a full refund. Later cancellations are non-refundable.
Is hotel pickup included?
Yes, pickup is offered. In order to get your final pick up time and your pick up point, please contact us from +90 532 282 45 29 (emergency number) / 48 hours before the tour departure day. Pickup points include The Galata Istanbul Hotel MGallery.
What languages is Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour offered in?
The experience is available in EN.
Is this a private or a group tour?
It is a small-group experience with a maximum of 14 participants.
Is the tour suitable for children?
Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap Children 18 years and under must be accompanied by an adult
Will my booking be confirmed immediately?
Yes, bookings are confirmed instantly.
Is Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour worth it?
Travellers rate it 4.3 out of 5 across 1,346 reviews on Viator and Tripadvisor; it is run by Neon Tours.
Reviews(1,346)
Reviews collected by Viator and Tripadvisor
2
238theah
October 2, 2025 · via Tripadvisor
Yunus is an excellent guide!
Han and I had a wonderful walking tour in Istanbul on October 1st. Our guide Yunus is amazing. He gave us a lot of useful, interesting and practical information. For almost 3 hours! As a retired teacher in Tourism I say he is both excellent and a real professional. We are very satisfied and will booking more walking tours thanks to him. Çok tessekurler Yunus!
Operator response
Dear Guest,
First of all, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us. We are happy that you were satisfied with the service we provided. We hope you leave our country with pleasant memories, and we would like you to know that we are looking forward to seeing you again and welcoming you back to our country. We wish you healthy, happy, and beautiful days.
Thank you.
C
Compass37486243181
June 16, 2025 · via Tripadvisor
Istanbul walking tour
We liked our guide very much .He was very friendly and knowledgeable . We enjoyed our experience . The driver was very safe and helpful taking us back to our accomodation .
Operator response
Dear Guest,
First of all, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us. We are happy that you were satisfied with the service we provided. We hope you leave our country with pleasant memories, and we would like you to know that we are looking forward to seeing you again and welcoming you back to our country. We wish you healthy, happy, and beautiful days.
Thank you.
3
336nannar
April 20, 2025 · via Tripadvisor
Worth the time!
Good day overall. Guide and our driver was on time, which was really nice. Informative tour overall. A good idea is to get the "whispers" as crowds are big and sometimes hard to hear or keep up with, when you see something interesting along the routes.
Operator response
Dear Guest,
First of all, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us. We are happy that you were satisfied with the service we provided. We hope you leave our country with pleasant memories, and we would like you to know that we are looking forward to seeing you again and welcoming you back to our country. We wish you healthy, happy, and beautiful days.
Thank you.
S
Seema_C
November 12, 2024 · via Viator
Highlights of Istanbul
Our designated tour guide was Seviley - she was friendly, kind and knowledgeable - overall a sweet person.
I feel that although the Tour guide was good. I felt Viator could bring down the price of this tour as it was fairly pricy for what it was. I also feel that the commentary on the blurb of this experience is slightly misleading. On the first page it states entrance fees of sites are paid for but if you scroll to the itinerary it states otherwise.
Operator response
Dear Guest,
We are offering our tour with two alternatives:
The first option includes only transfers, excluding entrance fees. This option allows you the flexibility to visit the museums of your choice.
The second option includes transfers along with the entrance to the museums visited during the tour (excluding Hagia Sophia, as this visit is always offered as optional).
We apologize for any confusion caused. Please be assured that we value your feedback and will make the necessary adjustments.
We hope to welcome you back to our country soon.
M
MJ_L
November 4, 2024 · via Viator
Excellent
We had a private tour two of us by Sevilay. She was responsible, proactive to inform meet-up venue, and informative about the history of the places of interest. Best part she has excellent photography skills & helped us take nice photos. Friendly and excellent guide. As expected and informed by previous tourists, there is a carpet sale pitch at shop, ceramic shop and shop at grand bazaar we were brought to. Prices seem bit steep
Operator response
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
T
Tourist09911010529
October 26, 2024 · via Tripadvisor
Terrible
Don’t book the inclusive ticket, the tour was terrible, the company did not handle any of our concerns, and we were left extremely dissatisfied
Couple of notable issues though there were many:
Lunch was not properly scheduled and we ate extremely late
Tour guide didn’t accompany us into rooms even though other groups had guides in there
Tour guide lied to us and told us toilets weren’t available and only when we saw signs ourselves did we realise
Company implied we were lying when we brought up our issues
Grouped with people who didn’t have the inclusive ticket so we still had to queue in the sun to get their tickets and then queue again for entrance
Hagia Sophia is not included and this is not made clear (to us at least)
Operator response
Thank you for sharing your feedback with us. We sincerely apologize that your experience fell short of expectations and that you encountered multiple issues throughout the tour.
We apologize for the delay in lunch scheduling and the lack of clarity regarding access to facilities. The issues with the tour guide not providing adequate guidance and the confusion around amenities are serious, and we are investigating these points to ensure they do not happen again. Regarding the Hagia Sophia entrance fee, it is indeed not included in the tour, and this information is noted in both the itinerary and program description. However, we apologize if this detail was not sufficiently clear.
We value your feedback and are committed to using it to improve our service. Your concerns are being taken seriously, and we appreciate you taking the time to let us know. Thank you again for your feedback.
T
Tracy_M
October 18, 2024 · via Viator
Informative
Our guide so very knowledgeable about the sites and the Turkish history. We would highly recommend this tour.
Operator response
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
G
Guide12378432584
September 25, 2024 · via Tripadvisor
Amazing Istanbul Day Tour with Sevilay
Our intimate tour of Istanbul’s sites with Sevilay Tokmak was incredible. She made sure we were taken care of and answered all of our questions and curiosities with insightful facts about Istanbul and the culture. My husband and I thoroughly enjoyed the day with her and appreciate all of her knowledge about this beautiful city. We highly recommend using Neon Tours for a tour of the grand sites of Istanbul!!
Operator response
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
5
580murielw
September 10, 2024 · via Tripadvisor
Great time
We had such a wonderful time with this walking tour! In one day, we were able to see so much of the Sultanahmet with our guide, Nadriye. We learned so much and had the best time walking around the city!
Operator response
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
S
Susanne_B
September 6, 2024 · via Viator
Recommend
Visited most all the major attractions in the Sultanhamet district of Istanbul. Guide was extremely knowledgeable.
Operator response
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were happy with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
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Tour
Duration
Rating
Price
Istanbul Highlights Small-Group Walking Guided Tour
