Istanbul Two-Day Walking Tour: Old City & Two Continents

Istanbul two-day walking tour, Old City and two continents: the key facts

This is a two-day group walking tour of Istanbul with a licensed English-speaking guide. Day 1 stays in the Old City: Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, the Blue Mosque and the Grand Bazaar. Day 2 starts at 09:00 at Beyazıt Square and the Ottoman Book Bazaar, continues to the Rüstem Pasha Mosque, Istiklal Street and Galata, and ends with a ferry across to Kadıkoy on the Asian shore. Entry fees and public transport are included; meals are not.

It suits first-time visitors who already have a hotel in Istanbul, are happy to walk for most of the day and want a guide for the main sights rather than a full package. The price is from $440 per person.

Is a hotel night included in this two-day tour?

Not as far as the page shows. The duration reads "2 Days / 1 Nights", but the inclusions list only the guide, public transport and entry fees, and the exclusions do not mention a hotel either way. Treat the tour as two guided days and plan to book your own room, ideally close to the Old City so the Day 1 start is easy. Because the page contradicts itself here, ask us to confirm in writing whether a night is part of the price before you pay. See Sultanahmet hotels and where to stay in Istanbul.

What do we see on Day 1, and how long is each stop?

The page gives a time for each visit: about 1 hour inside Hagia Sophia, 2 hours at Topkapi Palace with its views over the Bosphorus, 45 minutes at the Blue Mosque and 1 hour in the Grand Bazaar. That is close to five hours of visits, plus the walking between them. Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesdays, while the booking form offers every day, so if your Day 1 falls on a Tuesday, ask how the programme changes. The Harem at Topkapi is not mentioned on this tour.

What happens on Day 2, when we cross to Asia?

Day 2 starts at 09:00. You spend about an hour around Beyazıt Square and the Ottoman Book Bazaar, an hour at the tiled Rüstem Pasha Mosque, and an hour on Istiklal Street and in Galata, including a view from a rooftop café (anything you order there is yours to pay, since drinks are excluded). The last two hours are the ferry ride and the local markets of Kadıkoy. The tour ends on the Asian side, so ask the guide which ferry takes you back to your hotel.

How much walking is it, and what should we wear?

Expect several hours on foot each day, on stone paving, cobbles and the steep streets around Galata, so wear comfortable shoes. Three stops are working mosques: Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and the Rüstem Pasha Mosque. Cover shoulders and knees, women also cover their hair, and shoes come off inside. At Hagia Sophia foreign visitors follow a separate route to the upper gallery, and visits pause around prayer times, with the longest break at Friday midday. A light scarf in your bag solves most dress questions. More tips: what to wear in Istanbul.

Where does the tour start, and is hotel pick-up included?

Pick-up is not part of the base price. The page lists hotel pick-up and drop-off as an optional add-on for $55. Without it, you meet the guide at a point we send you after booking. The booking form shows start times from 08:00 to 14:00 with 09:00 marked as suggested, and Day 2 is listed at 09:00, but the Day 1 meeting time is not written on the page. Tell us your hotel when you book and we will confirm the meeting point and times for both days in writing.

Is food included, and what can we add in the evening?

No meals or drinks are included on either day, so budget for lunch and snacks. Day 1 passes the Grand Bazaar area, and Day 2 ends in Kadıkoy, where the market streets are a natural place to eat. For the evening, the page offers the Whirling Dervishes show at Hodjapasha as an add-on for $30; you can read about it on the Hodjapasha whirling dervish page. Other optional tours or activities are not included in the $440 price.

Can we do the same two days privately or at our own pace?

This package is a group tour. If you prefer your own guide and timing, look at the private 2-day Istanbul walking tour, from $535 per person. If you only have one day, the full-day Old City small-group tour with lunch from $199 per person covers the Sultanahmet sights. For ideas on how to fill the rest of your stay, read our Istanbul 2-day itinerary.

How do we book this walking tour?

Use the booking form on this page to choose your date, start time and number of guests, and add hotel pick-up or the Hodjapasha show if you want them. You can also message us on WhatsApp at +90 545 307 67 88. We confirm the meeting point, the Day 1 start time, what happens if a site is closed on your date and whether any hotel night is included, and we send the full plan in writing before you make any payment. Get Turkey Tours holds TÜRSAB licence A-15751.