A full day tour with St. Sophia (Closed on Mondays), one of the great  architecturural marvels of the ancient world,  constructed as a basilica in 536  AD by Emperor Justinian, turned into a mosque in 1453 and now into a museum, takes the breath away with the sheer size of its interior and its magnificent dome.

Facing the church is Blue Mosque, famous for its mosaics with some 20.000 blue Iznik tiles and its six minarets, built in the name of Sultan Ahmet in the 17th century, one of the best examples of classical Turkish art. is Cross through the Hippodrome, the scene of Byzantine chariot races, athletic events, victory celebrations and political activities of the old city where one can also see the “Obelisk of Egypt”, “Serpent Column” from Delphi, the “German Fountain of Wilhelm II” and the “Colossus”. Grand Covered Bazaar (Closed on Sundays), which is the biggest “souk” in the world with nearly 4000 shops of antiques, jewellery, gold, carpets, ceramics and leatherware. In the afternoon tour with Topkapi Palace - Harem section is excluded- (Closed on Tuesdays); built in 1468 on one of the seven hills of Istanbul by Mehmet the Conqueror, the seat of the Ottoman sultans for 400 years and a huge complex  serving as a museum today facing superb views of the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and the Golden Horn.

The palace houses the treasures of the Sultans including the extravagant Treasury with its magnificent jewels, and the priceless Chinese porcelain, one of the best collections in the world, weapons, calligraphy section, and more.

A short ride on to Suleymaniye Mosque, masterpiece of Sinan, the chief architect of the Ottoman Empire, built in the name ofthe Sultan Suleyman, the Magnificent, during the 16th. century, considered as the best amongst the imperial mosques.

-If required, Suleymaniye Mosque can be replaced with Yerebatan Underground Cistern.