Best Small-Group Tours

A small-group tour is cheaper because you share the guide's day, not because the guide has fewer qualifications. These groups are led by the very guides, all licensed, who run our private tours. You lose control over route and pace; you gain a lower price and, if you travel alone, people to talk to. Below, the group departures sit next to private tours that follow an identical route, letting you weigh one format against the other.

Group tours, cheapest first

• The morning group tour of Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and the Grand Bazaar (Hagia Sophia ticket included), priced from $120 per person, is our lowest-priced group tour. It lasts six hours and includes museum tickets, pick-up and drop-off at central hotels, and assistance at the ticket queues.
• The afternoon group tour of Topkapi, Hagia Irene and the Grand Bazaar, priced from $170 per person, focuses on the palace side of the old city and includes the Topkapi ticket. No return transfer is provided at the end.
• The full-day old city group tour with tickets and lunch, priced from $220 per person, combines both halves into eight hours and adds lunch.

The morning tour and the afternoon tour are built to match, so taking each on a separate day covers the full-day sights, with a free afternoon between.

When a private tour costs less

For one or two people, group tours are the cheaper option. With three or four, do the sums. A private tour such as the Private Istanbul Heritage Tour from $200 per person is more expensive per head, but the Best of Istanbul private guided tour has a group price, from $199 for roughly seven hours of guiding each day, so a family of four may pay less than for four group seats. On a private tour you also choose the start time, drop stops that do not interest you, and let young children decide the pace.

Private also makes more sense if anyone in your party walks slowly or needs regular breaks. Groups move at the pace of the average member, and the schedule does not change.

Who should join a small group

• Solo travellers, who would otherwise cover the whole cost of a private guide.
• Couples watching their budget who want tickets and pick-up taken care of.
• People who like meeting fellow travellers.

It works less well for those who want an hour in a single room at Topkapi, or who would rather skip the Grand Bazaar entirely.

Outside Istanbul

Beyond the city, the Small Group 9 Days Turkey Tour visits Istanbul, Cappadocia, Ephesus and Pamukkale, with domestic flights, four-star hotels including breakfast and dinner, and lunch on full touring days. Within Istanbul, our street food tour of local neighbourhoods, from $90 per person, also runs as a small group and appears among our food tours.

Practical tips

From April to October, old city group tours are at their busiest. The morning departure gets to Hagia Sophia ahead of the late-morning rush, which is the main argument for picking it over the afternoon. Wear shoes suited to stone paving; the old city route looks short on a map but takes time on foot.

On a longer stay, pair a group day in the old city with a private or group outing from our day tours, for example Bursa or the Princes' Islands. Before you visit the palace, read our Topkapi Palace guide on the Harem ticket and the sequence of courtyards.