Turkey Museum Prices 2027: Galata Tower €35, Ephesus €45 From April

Yes, Turkey's state museums get more expensive in 2027. Under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism's new tariff, most foreign-visitor tickets rise by €1 to €5 from 1 April 2027: Galata Tower goes from €30 to €35, Ephesus from €40 to €45 and Pamukkale from €30 to €35. The Hagia Sophia History and Experience Museum moves earlier, from €25 to €30 on 1 January 2027. If you are planning an Istanbul Old City private tour or a trip to Ephesus or Cappadocia next year, this is the list to budget with.

The ministry's management board approved the new tables on 27 August and 4 September 2026, and they were published in early September. Prices are set in euros and include VAT. At sites marked with an asterisk in the official table, which covers the big names, the audio guide is included in the foreign-visitor price.

What changes and when

Two dates matter:

• 1 January 2027: the Hagia Sophia History and Experience Museum, the paid exhibition near the mosque, rises to €30.
• 1 April 2027: almost every other paid museum and archaeological site on the ministry list moves to its new price, together with the MuseumPass cards and the combined tickets.

Anything you visit up to 31 March 2027 is charged at today's prices. A March trip to Istanbul and Ephesus is therefore a little cheaper than the same trip in April. On a typical one-week route the difference is €15 to €30 per person.

Turkish citizens use the MüzeKart, which is a separate system. Everything below is the foreign-visitor price.

Istanbul: current price and 2027 price

These are the Istanbul sites run by the ministry. Current prices come from the ministry's live price page (DÖSİM). The 2027 prices come from the new tariff tables.

Galata Tower has the biggest rise in euros. It is open every day, and queues at the base are longest in the late afternoon, when people come for the sunset view. If you can, go at opening time.

Ephesus, Pamukkale, Cappadocia and Troy

The big sites outside Istanbul follow the same pattern. Here are the ones most of our guests visit:

At Ephesus, remember that the Terrace Houses are a separate ticket on top of the main site. In Cappadocia, the Dark Church inside Göreme is also charged separately, at €7 from April 2027.

Combined tickets and MuseumPass cards

A combined ticket is valid for 72 hours from first use. The MuseumPass cards are valid for a set number of days. All of them rise on 1 April 2027:

Should you buy a pass? Add up the sites on your plan and compare. For a pass to pay off, you need to see several paid sites in a short time. If you only plan to see two or three big ones, single tickets usually cost less.

What is not on the ministry list

Three of Istanbul's most visited places use a different ticket system. The new tariff does not change their prices:

• Topkapı Palace and Dolmabahçe Palace are run by the National Palaces Administration and priced separately. Topkapı is closed on Tuesdays and Dolmabahçe on Mondays.
• Basilica Cistern is run by the Istanbul municipality and has its own prices.
• The Hagia Sophia mosque itself is not part of this table. For what foreign visitors pay to enter the gallery now, see our Hagia Sophia ticket price update.

So an Istanbul day of Hagia Sophia, Topkapı and the Basilica Cistern is affected only in part. A day built around Galata Tower, the Maiden's Tower and the Archaeology Museums is affected in full.

How to plan around the rise

• Travel before 1 April 2027 if you can. January to March is low season in Istanbul, and you keep 2026 prices at the ministry sites. Our Turkey in winter guide covers the weather.
• Book the Hagia Sophia exhibition before 1 January if you are already in Istanbul this year. That saves €5 per person.
• Count tickets when you compare tours. Some tours include entrance fees and some do not. On a family trip, €5 more per site adds up quickly. Our Istanbul tour prices page lists what each tour includes.
• Lira prices change. The euro price is fixed by the tariff, but the lira amount you pay depends on the exchange rate on the day.

Tours that cover this

• Istanbul Old City Private Tour: Hagia Sophia, Topkapı and Grand Bazaar: from $200 per person, 6 to 8 hours with a licensed guide.
• Istanbul half-day tour: Yedikule Fortress, Galata Tower and Balat: from $45 per person.
• Private Ephesus day trip from Istanbul: from $571 per person, with flights.
• Pamukkale day trip from Istanbul: from $387 per person.

For more ideas, see all Istanbul tours or the Ephesus tour from Istanbul options.

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