Istanbul Old City Tour for Cruise & Hotel Guests

A friend and I (both in our 70’s) visited Istanbul in July, 2026, during one of the hottest spells on record. We had arranged a 7-hour “Istanbul in a Day” walking tour months before, in the comfort of our Coastal California homes. When we arrived in Istanbul, we feared that the heat and the exercise would be the end of us. On the morning of the tour, Aisha Ozlem Yesildag appeared at our hotel, which was located in the old section of town, near the public plaza, Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. When we expressed our concerns to her, she tailored the tour to our abilities and our specific interests. In addition to a few of the “must see” art & architectural treasures, she suggested that we explore places that would be missed by people rushing from one landmark & mosque to another. A guide for 30 years and a native of Istanbul, Aisha was masterful at satisfying our curiosity about everything, from various religious & social customs, rug-making, ancient Quran manuscripts and cuisine options. She negotiated with street vendors for us, ordered food we would have not otherwise known to try, and kept us cool and hydrated when she saw us failing. We could not have been more happy with the day we spent with Aisha.

I would highly recommend this tour to see Istanbul main sites. We had the best tour guide. Her name was Asiha. She was absolutely amazing. There was supposed to be another couple but they canceled so she was our private tour guide the entire day. She took us everywhere. We ate at this great restaurant for real Turkish Food where all the locals eat. The food was so fresh and delicious. She took us on the tram to the spice market that was truly amazing and a great experience to see. Besides all the beautiful sites she took us too, her knowledge and history of everything we were seeing made the experience amazing. Aishait was our pleasure to have met you and spending the day with you showing us how beautiful Istanbul is. Asiha thanks again for a great day!

Excellent experience . The guide was very knowledgeable and understanding.

Aisha was fantastic! Knowledgeable, friendly. She knows all inside tips and tricks. Our family has a great time and enjoyed the day very much

Hagia Sophia is being renovated with huge steel I-beams crisscrossing the almost the entire floor. Really hard to get an impression of the space with all that in the way. Of course, this was not the fault of the tour provider of the tour guide but it would have been nice to be forewarned. Still, you can’t miss this amazing, historic place.

A lot of walking and go early to avoid the influx of cruise ship tourists. That said the tour was excellent and our guide Merk was very accommodating and knowledgeable.

I want to send my gratitude for all your knowledge and assistant throughout the day it was very informative and my mother and I both felt like a friend was spending the day with us showing us around Istanbul.

The best way to see all the best of Istanbul in a short time. Sevda was great! She made sure we all had a great experience. I would definitely recommend this excursion.

My husband and I enjoyed the tour Sevda took us on. We covered a lot of ground, so much beauty and history in Istanbul. She chose an excellent restaurant, I had no idea how much I love Turkish food. We learned so much from the tour and enjoyed how she presented the information.

Thanks to Sevda for showing us around Istanbul! My little one and I enjoyed her company very much. She's warm, friendly, very knowledgeable about Turkey’s rich history and culture.