Istanbul Tours for Korean Travellers: 8 Picks with Real Prices

For most Korean visitors, the Istanbul tours worth booking are a guided day in the Old City, a Bosphorus cruise, an evening dinner cruise and one half-day outside the centre, such as the Princes' Islands or a food walk. With us, those start from $38 per person for a Bosphorus lunch cruise and from $199 per group for a full day with a private licensed guide. Below are the eight tours we recommend most to travellers flying in from Seoul, what each costs, how long it takes and where it fits in a short trip. If you only have time for one, start with the Istanbul Old City private tour.

Before you book: visa, flights and the time difference

Korean passport holders do not need a visa for Türkiye. The Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists citizens of the Republic of Korea with ordinary passports as visa-exempt for stays of up to 90 days. You do not need an e-visa, and there is no entry fee. Your passport must be valid for at least 60 days beyond the last day of your stay.

Korean Air and Turkish Airlines both fly nonstop between Incheon and Istanbul Airport (IST), and the flight takes around 12 hours. Istanbul Airport is on the European side, the same side as Sultanahmet, Galata and Taksim, so most hotels are a single drive away. Our page on the Istanbul airport private transfer explains how a driver meets you at arrivals.

Istanbul is six hours behind Korea all year, because neither country changes its clocks. That matters for tours: an early-morning arrival is fine for an afternoon walk, but book the full guided day for your second day, when you are rested. Tours that start at 8 or 9 a.m. are much easier once your body clock has adjusted.

The eight tours at a glance

These are real tours with their current starting prices. "Per group" means one price for your party, which suits families and couples travelling together.

The Old City and the Bosphorus are the two non-negotiables on a first trip. Add the rest according to your days and interests.

Old City and history: the first three picks

1. A full day in the Old City with a private guide

Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome, Topkapı Palace and the Grand Bazaar are all within walking distance of each other in Sultanahmet, yet many visitors lose half a day in queues and in finding the right entrance. Our Istanbul Old City private tour covers these sights in one guided day, from $200 per person. A guide also knows when each site pauses for prayer, which changes the order of the day.

2. A private guide by the day for families and groups

If you travel as a family of four or more, a guide priced per group usually works out cheaper per head. The private Istanbul tour with a licensed guide runs from $199 per group for an eight-hour day, and you can book one, two or three days. You decide the plan with the guide: palaces one day, the Asian side and markets the next. Our page on hiring a private tour guide in Istanbul explains what a licensed guide can and cannot do.

3. A small-group morning at Hagia Sophia

Solo travellers often prefer a small group. The Hagia Sophia small-group tour includes the entry ticket and also visits the Blue Mosque and the bazaar, from $120 per person. It leaves your afternoon free for Galata or a cruise.

On the water: the Bosphorus by day and by night

4. A Bosphorus lunch cruise

The Bosphorus is what makes Istanbul different from other old capitals. A cruise passes Dolmabahçe Palace, the Ortaköy Mosque, the bridges, the wooden waterfront mansions and Rumeli Fortress, with Europe on one side and Asia on the other. Our Bosphorus lunch cruise with hotel pickup and guide starts from $38 per person.

5. A dinner cruise with a Turkish night show

For an evening, the Bosphorus dinner cruise with a Turkish night show starts from $57 per person. Dinner is served while the boat passes the lit bridges and palaces, and the evening ends with a Turkish night show on board. It works well on your first night, when you are too tired for a late restaurant hunt, or on the last night before a flight home. For more on the options, see our guide to the Bosphorus dinner cruise in Istanbul.

6. A private yacht for two hours

Couples on a honeymoon and travellers who want photos without strangers in the frame often book a private boat. The private Bosphorus yacht cruise with guide is from $600 per group for two hours. Sunset is the most popular slot, so book it early in summer.

Beyond the monuments: islands, food and neighbourhoods

7. The Princes' Islands

The Princes Islands full-day tour visits Büyükada and Heybeliada from $34 per person. Private cars are not allowed on the islands, so you walk or ride the electric vehicles past old wooden mansions and pine woods. It is a good choice for a slower day between two busy ones, and it works best from April to October, when the ferries are full of locals and the cafés are open.

8. A street food walk

Korean travellers often say the food was the surprise of the trip. The Istanbul street food tour covers local neighbourhoods, baklava and Turkish coffee, from $90 per person. A local guide takes you to the small places that are hard to find on your own.

Balat is also worth a few hours on your own. Its coloured houses and steep lanes are popular for photos, and our page on things to do in Balat lists the best streets. Go early on a weekday to have them mostly to yourself.

Can you get a Korean-speaking guide?

A Korean-speaking guide can be arranged on request, subject to availability. None of the tours above has a fixed Korean-language price, so we confirm whether a guide is free on your dates and then quote the price. Licensed guides in Türkiye are registered for the specific languages they work in, and far fewer of them work in Korean than in English, so send the request as soon as your dates are fixed. Peak months such as April, May, September and October fill first.

If no Korean-speaking guide is free, the tours run with a licensed English-speaking guide. Many Korean visitors choose this anyway: guides speak slowly and clearly when asked, and a private tour lets you stop and ask questions at any point. A practical tip is to send your guide a list of what you most want to see before the day. A guide can plan around it far better when they know in advance.

Fitting the tours into a 4- or 5-day trip

Most Korean visitors spend three to five nights in Istanbul. Here is how the eight picks fit:

• 3 nights, 4 days: Old City guided day, Bosphorus lunch cruise, dinner cruise on the first or last night, and a free half-day in Galata or Balat. Our Istanbul itinerary for 3 nights and 4 days from Korea sets it out day by day.
• 4 nights, 5 days: add the Princes' Islands or a food walk. See the Istanbul 5-day itinerary.
• A week: add Cappadocia. The 2-day Cappadocia tour from Istanbul with flights and cave hotel starts from $404 per person, and our page on a Cappadocia tour from Istanbul compares the options.

Mind the closing days. Topkapı Palace is closed on Tuesdays, Dolmabahçe Palace on Mondays and the Grand Bazaar on Sundays. Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque are open every day but pause visits at prayer times, longest on Friday around midday.

Tickets, money and practical tips

Foreign visitors pay €25 to enter the Hagia Sophia visitor route to the upper galleries, and the Topkapı Palace ticket with the Harem and Hagia Irene costs 2,750 TL. The Blue Mosque, the Grand Bazaar and the Spice Bazaar are free. Check whether a tour includes tickets: some of ours do, and the tour page says so. Our news page on the Hagia Sophia ticket price explains the entrance in detail.

Korean Visa and Mastercard cards work in hotels, restaurants and most shops in the centre. Keep some Turkish lira in cash for small cafés, street food, public toilets and tips. Türkiye uses type C and F plugs at 220-230 V, the same as Korea, so your chargers work without an adapter.

For what to wear at mosques, cover shoulders and knees, and women cover their hair; scarves are handed out at the main mosques. A light scarf in your bag saves time at the door.

Tours that cover this

• Istanbul Old City Private Tour: Hagia Sophia, Topkapi & Grand Bazaar: from $200 per person, the single best first day.
• Private Istanbul Tour with a Licensed Guide: 1, 2 or 3 Days: from $199 per group per day, for families who want their own plan.
• Istanbul Bosphorus Lunch Cruise with Hotel Pick-Up & Guide: from $38 per person, the Bosphorus in a half day.
• Istanbul Tour Package: 4 Days / 3 Nights with Hotel & Bosphorus Cruise: from $699 per person, if you want hotel and touring in one booking.

To compare more city tours, our sister site Get Istanbul Tours lists other formats, and the full list of our Istanbul tours is on this site.

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