The Best 12-Day Istanbul Vacation Package Tour

Your guide picks you up at 08:30 for a full day through the peninsula where the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman empires each left their mark side by side.

• Roman Hippodrome: The former chariot-racing stadium, home to the Egyptian Obelisk, the Serpentine Column and the Column of Constantine.
• Blue Mosque: The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, built 1609–1617 and still an active place of worship famed for its blue Iznik tilework.
• Hagia Sophia: The 6th-century Byzantine masterpiece that has served as a church, mosque and museum across the centuries.
• Topkapı Palace: The former administrative seat and residence of the Ottoman court from 1478 to 1856, now a museum of imperial collections.
• Grand Bazaar: One of the world's oldest covered markets, with 61 streets and over 4,000 shops.

A day that blends Ottoman-era grandeur on land with the view from the water, finishing with two of the city's best-loved market streets.

• Dolmabahçe Palace: Turkey's largest palace, with 285 rooms across 45,000 m², built as the Ottoman Empire's 19th-century modernisation showpiece.
• Bosphorus Cruise: A roughly 1.5–2 hour boat ride from the Golden Horn along the strait that divides Europe from Asia.
• Pierre Loti Hill & Cable Car: A ride up to one of Istanbul's best viewpoints over the Golden Horn, passing sections of the old city walls en route.
• Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Market): One of Turkey's largest and oldest covered bazaars, in the Eminönü quarter of Fatih.

A museum-focused day for travellers who want to go deeper into Istanbul's archaeology, science history and Islamic art.

• Basilica Cistern: A vast 6th-century underground water reservoir supported by 336 columns.
• Istanbul Archaeological Museums: The Ottoman Empire's founding museum institution, tracing its origins to 1869.
• Turkish and Islamic Arts Museum: A dedicated collection of Islamic calligraphy, ceramics and textiles.
• Istanbul Mosaic Museum: Preserved floor mosaics from the Byzantine Great Palace complex.
• Museum of the History of Science & Technology in Islam: Instruments and models illustrating the Islamic world's scientific heritage.
• Sirkeci (Europe) Train Station: The historic terminus of the Orient Express on the European side.

A walk through Istanbul's 19th- and 20th-century European quarter, then down into two of its most colourful historic neighbourhoods.

• Taksim Square & İstiklal Street: The city's modern civic heart and its famous pedestrian avenue of shops, cafés and late-Ottoman architecture.
• Saint Antoine Catholic Church: Turkey's largest Catholic church, rebuilt in the early 20th century on its 1725 site.
• Galata Tower: The 14th-century Genoese watchtower with a panoramic viewing floor and small museum.
• Fener Greek Orthodox Patriarchate & St Stephen's Church: The seat of the Greek Orthodox Church and its distinctive cast-iron "Bulgarian Church".
• Historical Balat: Colourful, narrow streets lined with Ottoman-era houses reflecting the district's Jewish, Greek and Armenian heritage.

A change of pace by boat to the car-free islands where Byzantine royals were once exiled, with time to explore, swim (seasonal) and shop.

• Kınalıada (viewed from the sea): The nearest island, historically used as a place of exile for emperors.
• Heybeliada: The greenest of the islands, with about an hour of free time to explore on foot or by horse-drawn carriage.
• Burgazada (viewed from the sea): Recognisable by the dome of its Hagia Yani Church and its Byzantine-era dungeons.
• Büyükada: The largest island, where you'll have a Turkish lunch and free time to swim (summer), cycle or simply relax before the return crossing and a shopping stop in Istanbul.

Widely rated the best day of the package for children, mixing a theme park with two of Istanbul's most engaging small museums.

• Vialand Theme Park: Turkey's first combined theme park, shopping mall and entertainment complex, spread across 600,000 m².
• Miniatürk: A 60,000 m² miniature park with scale models of Turkey's most famous landmarks.
• Rahmi M. Koç Museum: Turkey's only industrial museum, covering transport, communication and engineering history on the Golden Horn.

A full countryside escape to the Black Sea coast, crossing from Europe to Asia over the second Bosphorus bridge before the city gives way to pine forest and fishing villages.

• Şile Fishing Village: A fishing settlement since 700 BC, today a relaxed beach town home to Turkey's largest lighthouse.
• Ağva: A quiet riverside village nicknamed the "Lost Paradise", reached along the Göksu River.
• Göksu River Boat Ride & Riverside Lunch: A gentle river cruise followed by a Turkish lunch at a riverside restaurant.
• Black Sea Beach Time: Free time to relax where pine forest meets the Black Sea, with a look at local Şile Bezi cotton textiles on the way back.

A second historical day covering ground the earlier tours didn't reach, plus a stop built for younger travellers.

• Pierre Loti Hill: Named after the French writer Julien Viaud, with sweeping views over the Golden Horn.
• Eyüp Sultan Mosque & Tomb: Built in 1458 around the tomb of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, one of Islam's holiest sites in Istanbul.
• Istanbul Aquarium: The city's largest public aquarium, in the Florya/Yeşilköy district.
• Olivium Mall: A modern indoor mall for a shopping break, including its well-known Tuesday outlet market.
• Panorama 1453 History Museum: The world's first fully panoramic museum, recreating the 1453 conquest of Constantinople.
• Yedikule Dungeons Museum: A Byzantine-era fortress that formed part of the city's historic defensive walls.
• Süleymaniye Mosque: Built 1551–1558 for Suleiman the Magnificent, one of the finest examples of classical Ottoman architecture, with sweeping city views.

A deeper dive into the Byzantine layers of the Historical Peninsula, visiting sites that most short trips to Istanbul never reach.

• Basilica Cistern: Revisited in more depth as part of this itinerary's bazaar-and-history day.
• Istanbul Archaeology Museums: The republic-era successor to the Ottoman Empire's founding museum collection.
• Boukoleon Palace: Evocative seaside ruins of a Byzantine imperial palace, dating back to Emperor Theodosius II.
• Little Hagia Sophia (Church of Sergius & Bacchus): A 6th-century church-turned-mosque, older than the main Hagia Sophia.
• Kariye (Chora) Mosque: A former Byzantine monastery church renowned for its mosaics and frescoes.

Most visitors to Istanbul never cross to the Asian side — this full day by private minivan covers its historic bazaars, waterfront icons and green spaces.

• Kadıköy Bazaar: A lively historic market district of fresh food stalls, antique dealers and coffeehouses.
• Moda Street & Seafront: A leafy, café-lined district with a seaside promenade and the St Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church.
• Haydarpaşa Train Station: An iconic red-brick railway terminus rising directly from the water's edge.
• Üsküdar Bazaar: A historic market quarter dotted with Ottoman-era mosques and fountains.
• Maiden's Tower: The legendary islet tower at the mouth of the Bosphorus, wrapped in centuries of myth.
• Mihrimah Sultan Mosque: An Ottoman mosque with sweeping views across three sides of the Bosphorus.
• Anadolu Hisarı (Anatolian Fortress): An Ottoman-era fortress overlooking the Bosphorus from the Asian shore.
• Beykoz Grove & Aydos Forest: Green, forested escapes on the edge of the city for a slower final afternoon.

A private transfer collects you from your hotel 4–5 hours before your flight and takes you to Istanbul Airport, bringing the 12-day package to a close.

• Private Airport Transfer: A dedicated vehicle timed to your departure flight, no shared shuttle waiting required.