Classic Istanbul, on foot
Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome and the Basilica Cistern, in the order that avoids the queues.
About this tour
Sultanahmet fits into one day if the order is right. We start early at the monument that fills up first and save for the afternoon whatever the big groups will already have emptied.
Hagia Sophia functions as a mosque today and takes visitors along a route of its own. The Blue Mosque closes to visitors during the five daily prayers, and for longer at Friday midday — the day is built around that rather than against it.
In between: the Hippodrome with its Egyptian obelisk, the Basilica Cistern, and the tea break that separates the two halves of the day.
Where this day goes
Hagia Sophia
For a thousand years the largest cathedral in the world, then a mosque, then a museum, and a mosque again today.
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The Blue Mosque
Twenty thousand İznik tiles inside, six minarets outside, and still a working neighbourhood mosque.
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Topkapı Palace
Four courtyards instead of one building — the logic of a campaign tent, in stone.
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The Basilica Cistern
Three hundred and thirty-six columns under the street, holding the water of a city that could be besieged.
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