Bosphorus Full-Day Cruise: Istanbul's Spice Bazaar, Dolmabahce Palace, and Çamlica Hill
4.1
15 Ratings
Fatih
Experience the vibrant sights, sounds, and aromas of Istanbul on a full-day cruise. Visit the Spice Bazaar, cruise down the Bosphorus, enjoy lunch at a traditional Turkish restaurant, explore Dolmabahce Palace, and take in the breathtaking view from Çamlica Hill.
Duration: 8 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Misir Carsisi (Spice Market) - Guests will find chance to buy Turkish Delights, Turkish spices and souvenirs
    Aside, from the spices, there are: rosebud, jasmine, and fruit teas; >Turkish delight in every color and flavor; herbal remedies; dried fruits such as apricots, figs, dates and even strawberries and kiwis; honey and nut soaked baklava; olive oil soaps; Turkish coffee; and much more besides.
  • Bosphorus Cruise - Pass the marble palaces and ancient wooden villas, which date back to the Ottoman Empire. Glide past the imposing Rumeli Fortress, built in the 15th century by Sultan Mehmed II as he prepared to conquer Constantinople
  • Dolmabahce Palace - Dolmabahce Palace, home to the sultans of the powerful Ottoman Empire and featuring an incredible 4.5 ton chandelier
  • Camlica Hill -
    Camlica Hill for an awe-inspiring panoramic view over the city and the Bosphorus.
  • Bosphorus Bridge - Imagine, in 2 minutes you will be between Europe and Asia,
    The Bosphorus Bridge is one of three bridges that spans the Bosphorus Strait, connecting the European and Asian sides of Istanbul. It stretches from Ortakoy on the European side to Beylerbeyi on the Asian side and is sometimes referred to as the First Bosphorus Bridge.
What's Included
  • In-vehicle air conditioning
  • All fees and/or taxes
  • Lunch
What's Not Included
  • Bottled water
  • Gratuties
Additional Information

Enjoy an immersive experience of vibrant Istanbul on this complete tour of its most renowned attractions. This city which spans across both Europe and Asia is a unique fusion of cultures and offers a residence to over 14 million individuals. Divided by the dominating Bosphorus and packed with historical significance and fascination, Istanbul is a spectacle that can’t be forgotten.

Start your journey at the renowned Spice Bazaar. Experience the heavy Egyptian inspiration, and let your senses be overrun by the intoxicating scents of fruits, flowers, and an array of spices.

Drift calmly on a boat along the Bosphorus, taking in the view of marble palaces and ancient wooden villas from the era of the Ottoman Empire.

Take a break with a meal at a traditional Turkish restaurant.

The Dolmabahce Palace, which served as a residence for the imposing Ottoman Empire’s sultans and where an amazing 4.5-ton chandelier is displayed.

Finish your trip at Çamlica Hill, and absorb the stunning panoramic view of the city and the Bosphorus.

Location
Tamara Restaurant
Küçük Ayasofya Caddesi
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.1
(15 Ratings)
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1 star
Karenmt2114gn
Sep 16, 2023
Delightful birthday! - It was very interesting to be on the Bosphorus during the military conflict between Russia and the Ukraine. Significantly less shipping traffic on the waterway during this time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Matt_s
Oct 5, 2020
Great tour! - I would definitely recommend booking this tour. Aykut was an excellent tour guide! Very knowledgable and fun to talk to. He even provided us with some tips for our trip to Cappadocia that turned out to be very helpful. The tour was really well organized, and we enjoyed the variety. Only negative comment I could make was that the lunch was not very good, but all in all we had an excellent time, and would definitely book again.
Review provided by Viator
K6711nelukem
Mar 16, 2020
Full Tour - We really enjoyed our day. The boat trip was informative and great fun. Highly recommended if you have time on your visit.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Moosa
Nov 8, 2019
Amazing tour with very helpful tour guide - The tour was very good. It was a mix of both walking and transport by the car. The tour people picked us up on time and dropped us back at the hotel too. Our tour guide, Ludwig was very helpful. He always made sure that the entire tour group was engaged (which had a very good amount of people in it, first 4 and then 8). He did a very good job of explaining the history behind the various places that we visited and also kept asking us questions to make sure that we were attentive. He was very joyful and took all of our pictures as well. The cruise was beautiful and so was Dolmabache palace. Would definitely recommend!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kmt6537
Oct 27, 2023
Overall good time - The cruise was lovely. The staff were nice. Some crossed wires re: inclusions as it seems two diff tours assigned to same guide - not guides fault. They were very accomodating to fit in as much as they did
Review provided by Viator
P7364kbahmads
Aug 11, 2023
Knowledgeable guide, poor transportation. - Aykut Gonul, our tour guide was really professional and informative. The pick and drop was not well organized.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ahammad1
Jun 20, 2022
Not my top choice - Would not recommend as a top option while in Istanbul. Shuttle late 45 mins for pick up, went to Egyptian bazzar where guides took us to certain shops to get us to buy from their friends, does not visit top tourist destinations at Istanbul inclusing Hagia Sophia, Topkapi palace museum. Lunch place was not bad and destination visited at Asia side was ok! Honestly, nice tour if you are bored and want something different. Overall 6-7/10.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Franklyn_d
Sep 27, 2021
Full day bosphorus cruise with Spice bazaar and Dolmabahce palace - Good and very friendly tour guide, her name is EMEL. The tour is ok, specially having a tour bus to pick you up and drop you off. Makes your trip comfortable. But the whole deal may be done cheaper on your own timing and phase specially if you're familiar with the place.The cruise was plainly a boat ride along the strait, the Lunch is so so, dropby spice bazaar to bring us to their commissioned shops and the Dolmabahce palace is okay to see, nothing really fancy. And taking pictures is not even allowed inside the palace. Overall i find it pricey for the quality of the tour.
Review provided by Viator
S7351oidavidh
Oct 16, 2020
One nice site - Tour guide better very experienced with highlighting site. Tour is mainly by van. Lunch was OK at best. Only 1 site better would be 2 best would be 3. Boat cruise was weak because the boat's guide could not be heard or understood. Boat was also too far from shore.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Laurase3923zr
Sep 20, 2023
Long winded tour with a lot of waiting - Terrible long tour. We were first driven to a viewpoint in the Asian part (30 minutes), a few photos and you could drink coffee, it took 45 minutes, back to the European side we got into a traffic jam and it took 45 minutes to drive to Dolmabahce Palace (so it took us 2 hours). to take a few pictures at the viewpoint), a beautiful palace, we only had 40 minutes. Someone from the participants of our tour turned out to have left the palace at the exit, we searched for more than an hour and we waited in the sun, but it turned out that she had gone back to the hotel by taxi. As a result, more than 1.5 hours late for lunch, which had to be done quickly. With the bus in the traffic jam towards the boat, a beautiful 1.5 hour trip. Then in a traffic jam to a cable car/viewpoint, nice to see. Then back to the drop-off point again in traffic for an hour. We didn't get to the Spize market because we were already on the road 3 hours longer than we would have been. We really regretted booking the whole day as we saw little during the 11 hour trip!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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up to 15 guests
1 Adult
July 2024
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