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ISTANBUL TOUR:
Day 1 - Welcome to Istanbul!
We meet you at the airport and escort you to your hotel. The rest of the
day is yours to gather priceless first impressions of the imperial city
as you like.
Day 2 –
Departure from your hotel at 08:30 am
Hippodrome, Blue Mosque, Sancta Sophia, Topkapi Palace
Following breakfast, we drive to the 'Old City' where we visit the
Byzantine Hippodrome, the Blue Mosque, famous for its delicate blue
ceramic tiles, and Sancta Sophia. This church - turned mosque - turned
museum takes the breath away with the sheer architectural size of its
interior and magnificent dome and next we will visit the spectacular
Topkapi Palace. Built on one of the seven hills of Istanbul, this huge
complex commands views of the Sea of Marmara, the Bosphorus and the
Golden Horn. It was the seat of government for the Ottoman Empire for
many centuries (1453-1852) and we will see the extravagant Treasury, the
priceless Chinese porcelain.
Day 3 – departure from your hotel at 08:30 am
Spice Bazaar, Bosphorus Cruise, Mosque of Süleyman the
Magnificent, Grand Bazaar
Our morning starts with a visit to the aromatic Spice Bazaar, where the
smells of cinnamon, cloves and thyme, rise from hundreds of colorful
muslin bags at every store-front. We then board our ferryboat for a
relaxing cruise along the shores of the legendary Bosphorus, the natural
gateway that divides Asia and Europe. As you sit back and enjoy Turkish
coffee or well-brewed tea from traditional small cups, numerous summer
palaces and palatial homes will pass by on either side. Disembarking at
the northern end of the Strait, we proceed to a restaurant for a tasty
meal of local fish. Following lunch we will travel by coach to the
Suleymaniye Mosque, built by master architect Sinan during the reign of
Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent, the Lawgiver. The last stop will be Grand
Bazaar which is a most attractive shopping center and the biggest
"souk" in the world with nearly 4000 shops of antiques,
jewelry, gold, carpets and leather apparel.
Day 4 - Departure
We escort you to the airport for your onward or homeward flight.
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