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Appointments strongly advised

Half Day Byzantine And Ottoman Marvels

Day Trip, Group Tour
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Tour the wonders of Istanbul on this half-day tour that will take you to St. Sophie Church, the Hippodrome, the Blue Mosque, and the Grand Bazaar to experience the glory of the Ottoman Empire.

Half Day Byzantine and Ottoman Marvels

If you want to experience the marvels of Istanbul, this half-day Istanbul sightseeing tour is the perfect option. Tour one of the most famous architectural creations in history, Hagia Sophia, and visit the Hippodrome and Blue Mosque. This half-day Istanbul tour will take you to all the highlights of this magical city.

The Hagia Sophia was originally an orthodox patriarchal basilica before being converted to a mosque and is now an informative museum. Famous specifically for its huge dome, it is often regarded as the essence of Byzantine architecture. As the largest cathedral in the world for over a thousand years, Hagia Sophia is an element of history that you will be amazed to witness. Next, you will tour the Hippodrome of Constantinople, which is a famous square in the city of Istanbul. During the reign of Emperor Constantine the Great around AD 324, the Hippodrome functioned as a circus and a site for other entertainment purposes. Today the area is officially called Sultan Ahmet Square and is an exciting and historical visit on the tour.

The Blue Mosque, otherwise known as the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, is the next stop on the tour. The culmination of two centuries of both Ottoman mosque and Byzantine church development makes this mosque overwhelming due to its size, brilliance, and majesty. Built-in 1616, this mosque consists of a facade, interior, and general architecture that will amaze due to its vast size and overwhelming beauty.

The Grand Bazaar will be the last stop on your tour. The Grand Bazaar is one of the oldest and largest markets in the world and contains more than 4,000 shops over an area that consists of 61 streets. Inside the walled city of Istanbul, during your Grand Bazaar tour, shop and enjoy the Turkish culture that this market has to offer. The Istanbul half-day tour is the best way to explore the marvels of this historical city excitingly and educationally.

Please note: The covered area of the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sunday; a visit to the Spice Market will be substituted. The Blue Mosque will not be visited on Fridays, as it does not open until 2:30 PM. Hagia Sophia is closed on Monday; a visit to Topkapi Palace will be substituted.

About Shore Excursions Group
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ABOUT US
Shore Excursions Group was created with one goal in mind: to provide exceptional travel experiences to cruise passengers in the ports they visit around the world. To accomplish this, we have compiled an exceptional array of tours delivered by local experts with decades of experience serving travelers and delivering excellent tours. Our owners and management team are comprised of seasoned travel industry executives who leverage their considerable experience to deliver memories of a lifetime.

We are experts in providing exceptional shore excursions. We understand that in today's fast paced world, vacations have become an increasingly important way to relax, reconnect with family and friends, and experience new and interesting places. With this in mind, we provide the highest quality tours by performing extensive research, and detailed reviews. While other companies also offer excursions, we strongly believe our expertise and approach set us apart. The large cruise lines sell shore excursions - typically in very large groups visiting high traffic sites. We focus on smaller groups visiting more interesting and authentic locations using more personalized local operators. While the cruise lines are experts in delivering cruises, we are experts in delivering shore excursions.

Our Approach
We believe quality service is not only highly valued by customers, but ultimately leads to better experiences and higher satisfaction. Unlike the cruise lines and other tour companies that rely almost entirely on websites, we encourage customers to call us. We want to invest our time answering your questions, providing input, and selecting the excursions that best meet your needs.

Our Tours
Our goal is to provide customers a wide array of exciting, appealing, and enriching tours. For those customers who prefer to travel in smaller groups with more personalized service, we offer a wide variety of small group tours around the world. These tours generally range in size from 2-12 people compared to larger tours which can number up to 50 people. While exploring the destinations and ports on this website, feel free to search for these "Small Group Tours". For those customers interested in private tours, we offer many outstanding excursions that allow you to travel with your party alone and, in many cases, to fully customize your tour. Search for "Private Tours" if you are interested in this experience. Our "Scenic" tours provide up close and personal access to some of the most spectacular natural environments on Earth from majestic glaciers in Alaska to spectacular reefs in the Caribbean. Our "Cultural" tours allow customers to experience local customs, entertainment and culinary delights ranging from tribal dances in Alaska to an outstanding local meal in Santorini, Greece. Our "Active" tours offer a multitude of exciting and adventurous ways to experience our destinations. Our customers can kayak the turquoise waters of the Caribbean, hike to a spectacular waterfall in Hawaii, or bicycle through quaint villages in France. Our "City" tours allow travelers to see the highlights of great cities around the world with unique insights provided by our expert tour guides.

Our People
In our experience, exceptional travel experiences are almost always delivered by exceptional people. With that in mind, we utilize a comprehensive approach to select and employ the leading tour guides and tour providers around the globe. We hold our people to very high standards which we measure by our comprehensive Quality Control process and, most importantly, by our customer feedback, which we will actively seek from each of our customers.

Our Owners
Shore Excursions Group is owned by seasoned travel executives possessing extensive experience across many sectors within the travel industry.

Bradford J. Miller
Mr. Miller is the former Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer for Abercrombie & Kent, the World's leading luxury travel company. In that role, Mr. Miller was responsible for contributing to Abercrombie & Kent's international growth through the development and acquisition of tour products and travel experiences around the world with a specific focus on cruising and land based experiences. Prior to joining Abercrombie & Kent, Mr. Miller held a variety of executive positions with Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises for more than a decade. These positions included Vice President of Guest Sales & Service, Vice President of Brand Development, and Vice President of Onboard Revenue (which included shore excursions). Mr. Miller also led Celebrity Expeditions, a collection of outstanding and unique tours around the World.

Michael Bonner
Mr. Bonner has over a decade of experience working in the cruise industry in a variety of roles for both Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. and Viking River Cruises. Most recently, Mr. Bonner was the Chief Operating Officer for The Scholar Ship, a Royal Caribbean program aimed at providing college students onboard educational programs in conjunction with enriching shore excursions around the world. Mr. Bonner also helped co-manage Viking River Cruises U.S. Operations, and he ran the corporate, strategic, and deployment planning functions at Royal Caribbean. While at Royal Caribbean, Mr. Bonner was responsible for forming Royal Celebrity Tours, Royal Caribbean's land-based tour operation in Alaska, which takes cruise passengers on multiple day tours through the interior of Alaska either before or after their cruises. Prior to working at Royal Caribbean, Mr. Bonner was a consultant for Booz Allen & Hamilton.
Starting At
$62.00 USD
Per Person
 
Tour Type
Group
 
Group Size
Standard
 
Activity Type(s)
Scenic, Cultural
 
Tour Duration
4 Hours
 
Activity Level
Moderate
 
Tour Leaves From
Cruise Ship Pier
 
Food/Beverage Provided
Not Included
 
Special Instructions
Shoulders and knees should be covered during visits to religious sites. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended.
 
Restrictions
This tour is not handicap accessible.

Location