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Higlights
Cultural Istanbul Tour 3days - 2nights
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Cultural Istanbul Tour 3days - 2nights
Description :
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Day 1 |
Arrival in Istanbul
Upon arrival to Istanbul Ataturk Airport, you will be met by an ZenTurkey representative and transferred to your hotel. You have the afternoon and evening free to relax and check out the city. Overnight in Istanbul.
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Day 2 |
Guided tour of Old Pera
Meeting tour guide at hotel lobby. We then continue to Taksim Square and walk to Istiklal Caddesi (Independence Avenue), the heart of Beyoglu. Built during the 19th century, this is the more modern district of Istanbul. The city's most popular strolling, shopping and snacking street, now reserved for pedestrians, is lined with boutiques, cafes, consulates, restaurants, galleries, cinemas, banks, and more, with residential apartments above.
When 19th-century travellers spoke of Constantinople (Istanbul) as the Paris of the East, they were thinking of the Grande Rue de Pera (Istiklal Caddesi) and its half-European, half-Asian culture. Halfway along the avenue toward the southwest is Galatasaray Square, easily recognizable by the grand gates to Galatasaray Lisesi, the first European-style lycce (high school) erected by the Ottoman government.
See the Church of St. Anthony, established in 1725 to serve transient foreigners and the many families who stayed on in the Sultan's dominions. Afterwards, walk to the historic Pera Palas Hotel, built to accommodate the pampered travellers arriving aboard the Orient Express including Agatha Christie. Next is Galata Mevlevihane, the monastery of Whirling Dervishes, founded by a descendant of Rumi in the 1490s.
Afterwards walk to the Galata district and see the Galata Tower, which has dominated Beyoglu's skyline since 1348 and still offers stunning panoramic views of the city. From the 1500s onward, Galata was mostly Jewish. As recently as the late 20th century, Galata rang with the songs and street-games of Jewish children speaking Ladino (Judeo-Spanish). Today most of Istanbul's Jews live in more desirable residential quarters, though Galata's synagogues are still in use. We then take the tram built in 1875, which is Europe's 2nd oldest and perhaps the world's shortest subway Tunel, 573 meters, the trip takes 1.5 minutes rather than a 20 minute walk down the steepest streets of Istanbul. From there we walk a few minutes to Galata Bridge to enjoy lunch under the bridge almost on the waters of Golden Horn. We highly recommend seafood here.
Before driving back to the hotel we stop shortly to see the last stop of the once most luxurious train from Europe "The Orient Express", Sirkeci Train Station is literally where the railway from Europe physically ends. You may ask your guide for the best Turkish Bath for a relaxing evening after a long but splendid day sightseeing the Oriental Istanbul.
Overnight in Istanbul.
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Day 3 |
Day at leisure in Istanbul
Free day ay leisure. Or you may ask our office for other options while enjoying perhaps a Turkish Coffee this time with us |
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Please take note of the
following : |
Tour Excludes:
-
International
flights from /
to Istanbul and
travel insurance
- Any other
expenses not
noted in the
above included
section or
expenses of a
personal nature
such as hotel
extras (minibar,
telephone/internet
usage, laundry,
etc)
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What's Included : |
- Required transport
- Hotel accomodation
based on bed and
breakfast basis
- Main entrance fees
to sights visited and
lunches on full day
tours
- VAT (18%)
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Tour Code: IST-P2-Panaromic Istanbul
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