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Guided Tours

Blue Mosque Guided Tour with Options

Blue Mosque courtyard with central fountain and domes, Istanbul.
Interior view of Blue Mosque with ornate chandeliers and stained glass windows, Istanbul, Turkey.
Hagia Sophia exterior with minarets and domes in Istanbul, Turkey.
Hagia Sophia interior with ornate dome and Islamic calligraphy, Istanbul, Turkey.

Duration

1 hr - 5 hr

Open today

09:00am - 06:00pm

Book now, pay later

Book now without paying anything. Cancel for free if your plans change.

Audio guide

Enhance your experience with multilingual audio guide

Guided tour

4.2/5

(2,211)

Colin Buggey

Colin

Oct 2025
Verified booking
4/5
The tour itself was enjoyable. The guide was very knowledgeable and his English was good. However the organisation was poor. As requested, we arrived 15 minutes before the scheduled start time but the tour didn't actually begin until almost an hour later. As the first part of the tour consisted of a rather long section covering the history of Turkey, there was too much standing around. This could be a serious issue on a hot day, or for anyone who is not young & fit. Once we got going the mosque visits were excellent and it was great to miss the queues. The guide had genuine enthusiasm and really brought the history and architecture alive. So on balance a 5 star tour but with only 2 or 3 star organisation.
Marina Zawaher

Marina

Oct 2025
Verified booking
5/5
We joined a four-hour guided tour around the main highlights of Sultanahmet, and it was a wonderful experience. Despite the large crowds, the tour was concise, well-structured, and very informative — the perfect introduction to the area’s rich history. Special thanks to our guide, Buse, who was absolutely fantastic! She has such a dynamic personality, great energy, and an engaging way of explaining everything. Her enthusiasm and clarity made the whole experience so enjoyable and memorable. Highly recommended to anyone visiting Istanbul for the first time!
Riccardo d errico

Riccardo

Nov 2025
Verified booking
4/5
Our guide was a very good girl and explained the history and interesting details of the three tour stops. The combo blue mosque,santa sofia and basilica cisterna with the line-jumpers allows you to optimize your time and in about 3 hours have a good smattering of the three attractions. The only thing that could be improved is the acoustics because at times listening to the guide in the earpiece in crowded places and with a group of about 20 people becomes a bit scattershot and unclear so sometimes you miss pieces of explanation.

    • Walk straight into the Blue Mosque with a licensed guide who reveals why its minarets caused a stir and how its architecture enhances prayers.

    • Gaze at the vast marble courtyard, elegant cascading domes, colossal columns nicknamed “elephant feet,” and inscriptions hand-drawn by Ottoman calligraphers.

    • A guide leads the way through the mosque and an Old City walking tour past the Hippodrome, ancient Obelisks, and Byzantine relics.

    • Enhance your journey with a Bosphorus cruise for unbeatable skyline views, take a Hagia Sophia tour to uncover its hidden frescoes, or explore the Basilica Cistern.

    • Fun fact: Various verses from the Quran and the words of the Prophet Muhammad adorn the high walls of the mosque.

    • 1-hour guided tour of the Blue Mosque

    • Entry to Blue Mosque

    • Expert English-speaking licensed guide

    • Walking tour around Old City

    • Istanbul Old Town map

    • 1.5-hour Bosphorus cruise ticket (as per option selected)

    • Audio guide for cruise in English, French, German, Italian, Polish, Russian, Spanish, Turkish, Arabic & Chinese (as per option selected). The audio guide is available for you to download. Instructions will be shared with your ticket. Do bring your own headphones.

    • Bosphorus cruise map (as per option selected)

    • 1.5-hour guided tour of the Hagia Sophia (as per option selected)

    • Skip-the-line entry to Hagia Sophia (as per option selected)

    • 30-min guided tour of the Basilica Cistern (as per option selected)

    • Skip-the-line entry to Basilica Cistern (as per option selected)

  • Blue Mosque

    1. Blue Mosque

    Tickets included
    60 min
    Istanbul Old Town

    2. Istanbul Old Town

    30 min
    Hagia Sophia

    3. Hagia Sophia

    Tickets included (based on selection)
    90 min
    Basilica Cistern

    4. Basilica Cistern

    Tickets included (based on selection)
    30 min
    Bosphorus Cruise

    5. Bosphorus Cruise

    Tickets included (based on selection)
    90 min

  • These tickets can't be cancelled or rescheduled.

  • 4.2
    2,211 reviews

    How do we collect reviews?

    These ratings include verified reviews from both Headout guests and our trusted partners who operate this experience locally. All reviews come from real travelers who've taken this experience.

    1.2K
    587
    183
    82
    142
    Guests from United States, Italy, United Kingdom and over 10 countries have loved this experience

    What our guests say

    RETEGAN MIHAI ALEXANDRU

    Retegan

    Nov 2025
    Verified booking
    5/5
    First of all i would like to mention the guide that took us to Sultanahmet Mosque and Hagia Sophia. She was very well prepared with the information that provided us, spoke a very fluent english and was very helpful in all the matters related to the tour. I also appreciated a lot the fact that she gave us ear devices, like head-phones so that we could hear her very well amid the noise of the street. She told us many many things not only about the hystorical background of the places we visited but also information related to Istanbul culture, everyday life etc. Unfortunately i did not understand her name to mention it here. She was opened to jokes and free-talk, very social and open-minded. I liked her a lot, that is the way a toursit guide has to be in related to tourists. Second, the places we visited were absolutely fantastic. I liked Hagia Sophia and its enormous size, but what truly impressed me was the Blue Mosque and the fact that we had to take-off our shoes inside the Mosque gave a sense of equality between all people. It was splendid. Next time i come to Istanbul i want to deepen my visit in the city, since now i spent only a few hours and did not have much time to visit the city itself.
    Riccardo d errico

    Riccardo

    Nov 2025
    Verified booking
    4/5
    Our guide was a very good girl and explained the history and interesting details of the three tour stops. The combo blue mosque,santa sofia and basilica cisterna with the line-jumpers allows you to optimize your time and in about 3 hours have a good smattering of the three attractions. The only thing that could be improved is the acoustics because at times listening to the guide in the earpiece in crowded places and with a group of about 20 people becomes a bit scattershot and unclear so sometimes you miss pieces of explanation.
    Martin Kajana

    Martin

    Nov 2025
    Verified booking
    5/5
    We really enjoyed our visit to the Blue Mosque! Our guide, Faik, was amazing — he shared so much interesting information about Sultan Ahmed’s reign, how he commissioned the construction of the mosque, and why it has six minarets. He also explained the architectural design, the different sections of the mosque, and some fascinating historical details. It was an insightful and memorable experience — definitely recommend!
    Lise Raven Lothe

    Lise

    Nov 2025
    Verified booking
    5/5
    Fantastic guiding by the one and only, Mrs Kiss. She was extremely knowledgeable and delivered all the information in a very understanding and interesting manner. I felt like I had plenty of time at the different sites and never felt rushed. Definitely book this guided tour and ask for Mrs Kiss!
    Andrew Murray

    Andrew

    Nov 2025
    Verified booking
    5/5
    Extremely knowledgeable guide with good pace of speaking and walking. Buse was engaged the whole time with the people on the tour and not distracted by other things.

  • Blue Mosque

    Monday09:00am - 06:00pm
    Tuesday09:00am - 06:00pm
    Wednesday09:00am - 06:00pm
    Thursday09:00am - 06:00pm
    Friday09:00am - 06:00pm
    Saturday09:00am - 06:00pm
    Sunday09:00am - 06:00pm

  • What to bring

    • Bring your walking shoes, water bottle, hat, sunglasses, and snacks for comfortable exploration.

    • Bring local currency or your preferred payment method for meals, souvenirs, and extra delights not covered by the ticket.

    • Stay ahead of the game; download the audio app beforehand to dodge any network glitches at the location.

    • Don’t forget your trusty earphones for an immersive audio guide experience.

    What's not allowed

    Hagia Sophia

    • The prayer area on the first floor can only be entered by Turkish citizens.

    • Strict dress code: Women should not wear knee-length shorts, skirts, or clothing with exposed shoulders or chests. Hair should be partially covered with a scarf. Men should not wear knee-length shorts or clothing with exposed shoulders.

    Accessibility

    Basilica Cistern

    • This experience is wheelchair accessible.

    Hagia Sophia

    • This tour is not suitable for wheelchair users.

    Additional information

    • If you do not have a scarf or body cover, you can buy them at the entrance (a scarf is 1€ and a body cover is 3€).

    • You can choose to take the Bosphorus cruise on the same day or the next day. In addition to midday and afternoon departures, enjoy a special evening cruise at 6pm, available from April to October.

    • While you can breeze through the ticket lines, security screening is standard for all guests. Be prepared for wait times of up to 60 minutes during peak travel periods.

    • Hagia Sophia is under renovation, therefore, not all parts of the building are open to the public.

    • Due to the Friday prayer, the Mosque will be closed to tourists from 12pm to 2pm. For a smoother experience, it's recommended to visit after 4pm to avoid the lengthy security line anticipated between 2pm and 4pm.

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