Istanbul

I am on a Celebrity cruise in June departing from Istanbul. We are no longer docking overnight and I am arriving the night before so only have the day of departure. Departure is not until 10:30pm. Having never been, I'm trying to figure out how to fit in some sites.

I want to see the Grand Bazaar, Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque. Can I do these on my own or should I book a tour? Is it better to do all my sightseeing and then head to the ship in the late afternoon? Or check in onboard and then leave again?

Any insights are appreciated. Thanks.

You can easily see those three sites in a partial day in Istanbul. All three are in the old town (Sultanahmet). It would be easiest if your hotel is also in this area -- if that's the case, I'd definitely recommend doing all your sightseeing before going to the ship.

Haghia Sofia and the Blue Mosque are right next to each other. Allow more time for Haghia Sofia (don't forget to go upstairs). You don't need a tour if you have a good guidebook (such as Rick Steves).

The Grand Bazaar is a few blocks' walk from these two sites, or a few stops on the tram. (If you prefer to walk, just follow the tram tracks.) Your hotel should be able to give you a map.

Thank you! Our hotel is in that area so I will follow your recommendations.

Is there a lot to do at night or would you recommend staying on the ship?

Any restaurant suggestions for lunch?

You can easily see those three sites in a partial day in Istanbul. All three are in the old town (Sultanahmet). It would be easiest if your hotel is also in this area -- if that's the case, I'd definitely recommend doing all your sightseeing before going to the ship.

 

Haghia Sofia and the Blue Mosque are right next to each other. Allow more time for Haghia Sofia (don't forget to go upstairs). You don't need a tour if you have a good guidebook (such as Rick Steves).

 

The Grand Bazaar is a few blocks' walk from these two sites, or a few stops on the tram. (If you prefer to walk, just follow the tram tracks.) Your hotel should be able to give you a map.

OP - I agree with this advice. I have seen all three of the sites you mention along with others you didn't (Basilica Cistern, Topkapi Palace, Spice Market). If I was you, I would try to do the Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque first and make sure you spend enough time to see them properly, then do the Grand Bazaar with whatever time is left before you head to the port to get on your ship. The Grand Bazaar is a huge maze of shops, and is certainly interesting to see and experience, but expect lots of the same things offered at numerous shops throughout. I wouldn't spend lots of time in the Bazaar if it meant missing out on something else. Just my opinion though :)

Good advice on this thread already. :)

Yes, Sultanahmet for your hotel.

Yes, the Grand Bazaar and/or Spice Bazaar with such "left-over" time as you have - an hour is long enough for a flavour, & unless you're an avid shopper much longer can get your head spinning (I get the same way with Las Vegas slots, have to step outside from time to time ;))

Yes to the tram if you need transport in town (though one sight kinda leads to the next) - but get your hotel to fix a taxi to the port, the trams are usually quite crowded and luggage can be a real problem (this cheapskate's personal experience :o)

Yes to the evening. Perfectly safe around Sultanahmet / Eminonu / Galata Bridge. Plenty of restaurants, those under Galata Bridge are a bit touristy. A very few don't serve alcohol. Perhaps your hotel has (or the hotel staff can recommend) an open rooftop restaurant, there are quite a few & the views are great.

Do check which days of the week the various sights are open. Most close for one day per week, and that might restrict your choice.

Super destination, you'll wish you'd allowed longer

JB :)

 

Do check which days of the week the various sights are open. Most close for one day per week, and that might restrict your choice.

 

JB :)

Looks like the OP will be there on a Saturday, so no problem with closures.

For the record:

Haghia Sofia is closed on Mondays and Topkapi Palace on Tuesdays.

Access to the Blue Mosque is stopped on Fridays until around 2pm for religious services. Also closes for a short time before/after daily prayer times.

Thank you all! We are staying in the Sultanahmet area. I wish we had longer but I thought we were going to have until 6pm on Sunday. Now it's too late to change my flight. Oh well, we'll do what we can. We're going to be with a large group. Celebrating my daughter's high school graduation with her 4 best friends and their families!

We were in Istanbul for one day precruise last April. We did the Blue Mosque first. Perhaps as there is no charge, the lines were the longest. But, the wait wasn't terrible. Be sure to have a head covering with you. We next went to the Hagia Sophia. The wait wasn't long there, but it was quite crowded inside, so it required some patience to get up close to view things. We then walked to the Grand Bazaar. It was a walk of about 25 min ( my husband & I might have done it more quickly, but our friend had bad knees, so walked at a much slower pace ). We spent about 11/2 hrs at the Grand Bazaar (my friend is a shopper) and then had a quick lunch at a Mediterranean food stall there. We then took a taxi back to our hotel (not in Sultanhamet) retrieved our luggage, and were at our ship by 4pm. So, very doable.

Have a great time in Istanbul and enjoy your cruise!

Becki

Thank you all! We are staying in the Sultanahmet area. I wish we had longer but I thought we were going to have until 6pm on Sunday. Now it's too late to change my flight. Oh well, we'll do what we can. We're going to be with a large group. Celebrating my daughter's high school graduation with her 4 best friends and their families!

wow! Sounds like that will be an interesting trip. If I may ask ... you mention that you arrive in Istanbul the night before your ship leaves. What time of day does your flight arrive? Are you perhaps in town early enough the day before to take in some of the Grand Bazaar the day before embarkation? :)

If it was up to me I would skip the Grand Bazaar and try to fit in the Topkapi Palace. And do stop for some wonderful food -- Adana kebab, doner kebab, simit, borak, kofte etc.

@slopoke15 we don't arrive until 5:00pm the day before. We thought we'd have Saturday and most of Sunday in Istanbul. I can't change our flights to arrive on Thursday. Oh well, we'll do what we can and plan to go back another time.

We were in Istanbul for the 3rd time just a few months ago (Celebrity also cancelled overnight in port. I agree for a 1st time go to the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia first, & then go to the Grand Bazaar as it is a great experience. Topkopi Palace will take too long since going to the harem quarters is an important part of it and the Palace is quite large (takes 3 hour to tour with a guide). It's a fascinating and exciting city.

We too have been 3 times to this amazing city……

BEST TIP - Do not miss the Basilica Cistern ! It is right across from Hagia Sophia so very doable along with Blue Mosque and Grand Bazaar. It is a real gem ! I would also skip Topkapi Palace. We did it our second trip and it was only so-so for me……. the Spice Bazaar is interesting but the Grand Bazaar was like DisneyWorld to me :D The history, the sights and sounds….. and shopping. Is it touristy ? Yep but if you head deeper in there are some VERY interesting streets ! Have fun and enjoy Istanbul !

Thank you all. I am so disappointed that we are losing a day there. But it would cost $500 to change our flights each and there are 5 of us.

If you want to see the Basilica Cistern, it really doesn't take long and it is very near Haghia Sofia (across the main street and up about a half block).

If you want to see the Basilica Cistern, it really doesn't take long and it is very near Haghia Sofia (across the main street and up about a half block).

OP - I agree with previous comments that the Basilica Cistern would be a good thing to see if you can. As Cruisemom says, it is very close to Hagia Sofia (approx. 500 feet) and should not take long to visit. If any of your group have watched movies (eg. James Bond :)) then they will have seen the cistern in some movies. I have been to this site, and am glad I went.

Thank you all. I am so disappointed that we are losing a day there. But it would cost $500 to change our flights each and there are 5 of us.

I understand your issue with lack of time. We too were traveling with others and although we wanted to go in 2 days ahead of the cruise, at first they didn't want to go in early at all. So, we compromised on one day early. :rolleyes: We had planned to see the cisterns, but there was a very long line there after we saw the Hagia Sophia. I would have waited, but my friend really wanted to go to the Grand Bazaar, so that's where we went because we didn't want to be separated.

Going in, I was in the mindset to be content with whatever we were able to see in our one day. I had done as you've done here, asked for advice about what we could realistically see in our one day and scaled back my plans accordingly. That way, I was able to relax and enjoy our day and not feel frazzled and disappointed that I wasn't seeing all the "must see's".

Becki

I am on a Celebrity cruise in June departing from Istanbul. We are no longer docking overnight and I am arriving the night before so only have the day of departure. Departure is not until 10:30pm. Having never been, I'm trying to figure out how to fit in some sites.

 

I want to see the Grand Bazaar, Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque. Can I do these on my own or should I book a tour? Is it better to do all my sightseeing and then head to the ship in the late afternoon? Or check in onboard and then leave again?

 

Any insights are appreciated. Thanks.

Do it yourself, Hagia Sophia has wonderful audio-guides that are not expensive. You don't need tour guides for the Blue Mosque and Bazaar. I do recommend having a guidebook with a map of the Bazaar. Also, we found the Spice Market more interesting than the Grand Bazaar.

If you area fan of Dan Brown books, go to the Basilica Cistern, it plays a part in it and it will be in the next movie Inferno, we were there in May 2015 they filmed in the Cistern the day before. I think you should check on the ship to get rid of your luggage, we hired a private tour as we had limited time and didn't want to waste it being lost.

I will say it again. Today's attack (Jan12, 2016) tells me. "Go with a Local guide...and NOT in a big group". Learn more, in a quicker, safer and more efficient manner. Locomotiveman Tom

I hope today's attack is an isolated event because it would be tragic to keep tourists away from this amazing city.

I also highly recommend a visit to the Basilica Cistern. They are truly a sight to behold, and a stop there only takes about half an hour. Go to Hagia Sophia first, then head over to the Blue Mosque. Backtrack toward Hagia Sophia and follow the tram tracks and you'll pass the Cistern. Make a stop there and wander through. Then follow the tram tracks a bit and you'll eventually find the Grand Bazaar. You can wander through the bazaar. We didn't spend all that much time there because a lot of the shops sell the same items.

Rick Steves has a good walking tour that covered all of these spots, plus the spice bazaar. It was very manageable in a short day. I think we had to be back on the ship by 4 p.m. and we managed to hit all of the spots on his tour.

If it was up to me I would skip the Grand Bazaar and try to fit in the Topkapi Palace. And do stop for some wonderful food -- Adana kebab, doner kebab, simit, borak, kofte etc.

I second the advice about skipping the Grand Bazaar and fitting in Topkapi Palace which is an easy walk from the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia. Make sure to see its treasury rooms as well as the outdoor areas overlooking the Bosphorus Straits. We ran into folks that never saw the rooms of treasures or the great views of the straits on their tour at Topkapi.

We self-toured on our stop in Istanbul last October. We used the tram system to get around and it was quite cheap (4 turkish lira per trip). Once we took the tram from the cruise terminal into the old city, we were able to walk to anywhere we wanted to go. We saw pretty much everything we wanted to except Topkapi Palace.

We had Rick Steves Mediterranean Cruise Port travel book and it provided great history and information for everything we saw so a guide was not critical. I blogged about our day in Istanbul on my cruise blog if you want to get a lot of detail and see some photos, as well.

We were really glad that we did not miss seeing this spot due to our nervousness about the unrest. I guess things can happen anywhere you go these days but were happy to have no incidents while we were there. I have to say that after my initial discomfort, I did not think about it again for the rest of the day. We just tried to be as aware of our surroundings as we normally would be when we travel and put the rest out of our head.

I was glad we went to the Grand Bazaar because I had always wanted to see it but, personally, I found it chaotic and overwhelming that I did not buy anything there. We did, however, find a small cafe and enjoyed a great lunch :)

I am in a similar situation as the OP, only our cruise is in July. Like OP I originally had an overnight in Istanbul, so didn't plan on flying in until Saturday (DH has trouble getting more than a week off at a time, and we were planning on adding an extra day or two in Rome at the end)

Our flight gets in at 9:05 AM, and our ship set sail at 10:30 PM. I was thinking going to the ship first to drop off the luggage, and maybe freshen up, and then set out for a short tour to see what I consider the three must-see's; The Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia, and the Grand Bazaar. I don't dare add on more than that because I know we will be tired from our flight, but the following day (Sunday) is now a sea day, so we can rest then.

If this is crazy, or not doable, tell me now so I can cancel! I've been on the fence about cancelling this cruise. I loved the itinerary, and the overnight in Istanbul was a big draw. If all I will see is the view from our stateroom, then it's really not worth flying into Istanbul to just set sail; it takes longer and costs more than most other European ports.

I am in a similar situation as the OP, only our cruise is in July. Like OP I originally had an overnight in Istanbul, so didn't plan on flying in until Saturday (DH has trouble getting more than a week off at a time, and we were planning on adding an extra day or two in Rome at the end)

 

Our flight gets in at 9:05 AM, and our ship set sail at 10:30 PM. I was thinking going to the ship first to drop off the luggage, and maybe freshen up, and then set out for a short tour to see what I consider the three must-see's; The Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia, and the Grand Bazaar. I don't dare add on more than that because I know we will be tired from our flight, but the following day (Sunday) is now a sea day, so we can rest then.

 

If this is crazy, or not doable, tell me now so I can cancel! I've been on the fence about cancelling this cruise. I loved the itinerary, and the overnight in Istanbul was a big draw. If all I will see is the view from our stateroom, then it's really not worth flying into Istanbul to just set sail; it takes longer and costs more than most other European ports.

While I wouldn't advise wasting too much time freshening up, I think you can do what you call your three must-sees. Keep in mind that those places will close around 6-7pm, depending. (For example, the last admission to Haghia Sophia is 6pm, and it closes at 7pm, in summer.)

I am not certain I'd put the Grand Bazaar on my list of must-sees. There are only a few spots in the bazaar that are really photogenic and the shopping is predominantly inexpensive souvenirs. There is better shopping at the Arasta Bazaar (higher end) right next to the Blue Mosque.

And if you don't go to the Grand Bazaar you might also fit in the Basilica Cistern, as mentioned above.

If you aren't too jet-lagged, eating dinner in Istanbul is a wonderful experience too.