We showed up to the meeting location on time but we could not locate our tour guide. After spending 10-15 minutes trying to locate our tour guide and speaking with several other tour guides I called the phone number listed and was told by the gentleman on the line that the tour was at 11:00, not 10:00. I told him we had tickets showing 10:00 but he insisted the tour was not at 10:00. We could not have taken the 11:00 tour since we were boarding a cruise ship at noon. We never got to tour the palace and the tour operator refused a refund, very disappointing. Wait until you get to Istanbul and book a tour thru your hotel if you want a guided tour.
Guide moved too fast from meeting place to palace entry, lost in crowd, separated from group. Could not enter on first attempt. We were turned away at entry turnstiles.
Hi! I’m writing about our experience. Let’s start: is the card usful? NO. Why? Here there is motivation by point: 1. guided tour: the service offered is not a guided tour, is meeting in a point of a city (see point 2) with a “guide” that carries you by foot into a monument and explains two information that you can read on a travel book, no more (a part some exeptions, very few). Then the guide abandons you and let you visit by yourself. It doesn’t make sense. I can read a travel book, and I can walk my self. You could think, maybe you will skip the line, no of course, even that is no. 2. Meeting point: it is necessary an internet connession to find them. So if you don’t want to buy a sim card, is impossibile to find some of that. That’s not fair, you oblige me to do a sim card, that’s not funny. Maybe instead of meeting point in the middle of the street you can meet the clients in front of the ticket office… 3. Monument: seriuosly? I can’t go and visit on my own a monument because it’s not in the hour of the guided tour timetable? For example: galata tower is open from 8 to 22, if you want to see the sunset from there YOU HAVE TO BUY A TICKEY, beacuse the pass, of course, is a NO PASS. So, i have to respect their nonsense timetable to visit principal monuments but if I do a “guided tour”, you carry me by walk, you tell me notions that i can read and then I have to visit by myself. It doesn’t make any sense. 4. Whatsapp support: I try to reach you, to explain my disappointment, you didn’t answer. 5. Transportation: it isn’t even included. I can’t say anymore. This is a freud. Don’t do the card with them. Use the muzeumpass that is not sponsored very well, but has all attractions (only a few are excluded, like basilica cistern 10€, and harem in topkapi 10€ that is also exluded in instanbul card pass of course)
It was a great tour. Guide was knowledgeable. We were able to see the prophet Muhammad (peace be up on him) used sandal, foot print, used sord , prophet Musses stick and automan emperor palace. Nice view of Istanbul.
My husband and I were looking forward to this guided tour to help explain the features and areas of the Topkapi Palace. First, we were never given the exact meeting spot, so we needed to hunt that down. Once within the tour, our guide was very friendly, but unfortunately, her English was hard to understand because she talked very quickly and without pauses. The main complaint however, was that the tour neglected to cover some key areas, and only led us through some basic parts which we could have figured out for ourselves (such as the clock and weapon rooms). I think the tour description should be more specific to alert participants of what is covered and what is not. Lastly, this site included a 'free' audio guide (one of the only site that includes an audio guide) which may have been just as good, or perhaps even better...so paying more to have a guided tour may not be worth it.