In this guide
💡 The Short Version: Start on the Hippodrome and finish at the Archaeology Museums in Gülhane Park: 1.9 km, about 40 minutes of walking, a full day with the tickets. Walk it any day but Tuesday, when Topkapı Palace is shut. On Fridays the Blue Mosque admits visitors from 14:30, so run the walk in reverse. The Blue Mosque and the Hippodrome are free, Hagia Sophia’s gallery is €25 at the entrance, and Topkapı is ₺2,750 with the Harem. Or book a tour: the Old City orientation walkad (from €15, 2.5 hours) covers the Hippodrome and the Blue Mosque with a guide but goes into nothing.
The route
Map of the walk numbered stops in walking order
Open the whole route in Google Maps - all the stops in walking order, set to walking directions, which is the version to put on your phone.
The T1 tram stops at Sultanahmet, 330 metres from the first stop, and at Gülhane beside the last. The route runs from the Hippodrome to the Blue Mosque and its bazaar, back to the Cistern and Hagia Sophia, then through Topkapı’s Imperial Gate to Gülhane. Prices are the foreign-visitor rate.
| Stop | Entry | Open |
|---|---|---|
| 1. The Hippodrome | Free | Always |
| 2. Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts | €17 | 09:00 to 18:30 daily, ticket office 17:30 |
| 3. The Blue Mosque | Free | 08:30 to 17:00 in winter; shut around prayers; Fridays from 14:30 |
| 4. The Arasta Bazaar | Free | Shops |
| 5. The Basilica Cistern | Price at checkout | 09:00 to 22:00 daily, break 18:30 to 19:30 |
| 6. Hagia Sophia | €25 for the gallery | At the entrance; the gallery pauses on Fridays |
| 7. Topkapı Palace | ₺2,750 with the Harem | Ticket office 09:00 to 17:00. Shut Tuesdays |
| 8. Gülhane Park and the Archaeology Museums | €15 | 09:00 to 18:30 daily, ticket office 17:30 |
Walk it with a guide
A guide gives the stories and the order, and the tickets are the question. Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices, per person.
- Istanbul: Old City Orientation Walking Tourad, by Real Istanbul Tours: from €15, 4.9 stars from 47 reviews, 2.5 hours. It starts near the German Fountain, covers the Hippodrome and the Blue Mosque and finishes in the Grand Bazaar. It goes into no ticketed site.
- Istanbul: Blue Mosque & Hagia Sophia Guided Tour w/ Ticketsad, by Walks In Europe: from €33, 4.8 stars from 3,724 reviews, 2.5 to 3 hours, with the Hagia Sophia ticket included. Istanbul Old City tours compares the other combinations.
1. The Hippodrome
Free · always
Sultanahmet Square was the Hippodrome, where horse and carriage races were held in Byzantine times. The Ministry of Culture names the German (Kaiser Wilhelm) Fountain, the Obelisk of Theodosius and the Serpent Column among the monuments in the square. The Hagia Sophia History and Experience Museum stands at the north end, at At Meydanı Sokak 10: €25, open daily 09:00 to 20:00, a different building from the mosque.
The German Fountain in Sultanahmet Square. Photo: Ninara, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
2. Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts
€17 · 09:00 to 18:30, ticket office 17:30 · open every day · Museum Pass
In İbrahim Pasha’s palace on the west side of the square, commissioned in 1520. It holds rugs, among them 13th-century Seljuk carpets, calligraphy and an ethnography hall. It has an audio guide. Istanbul museums has the detail.
3. The Blue Mosque
Free · 08:30 to 17:00 in winter, to 19:00 from 1 April · closed to visitors around prayers and until 14:30 on Fridays
Enter at the tourist gate, covered as for worship; loan clothing is lent at a booth and returned to the same booth. It closes to visitors from 30 minutes before the midday and afternoon calls to prayer until 15 minutes after the prayer. The Blue Mosque visit guide has the rules, and mosque visiting rules in Istanbul covers the dress.
The Blue Mosque from the park. Photo: Gryffindor, Wikimedia Commons.
4. The Arasta Bazaar
Free · shops
The Arasta Bazaar is in the mosque’s complex, behind the mosque. The Great Palace Mosaics Museum in it, which holds a Byzantine mosaic pavement, is closed.
A lane in the Arasta Bazaar. Photo: Sourabh.biswas003, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
5. The Basilica Cistern
Open 09:00 to 22:00 daily, break 18:30 to 19:30 · 50 steps down and up, no lift
A 6th-century underground chamber with 336 columns, entered a block from Hagia Sophia. Tickets are sold at the entrance and on Passo, and children under 7 with their family are free. Basilica Cistern tickets has the sessions.
6. Hagia Sophia
€25 for the gallery route · bought at the visitor entrance · the Museum Pass is not valid
The ground floor is a working mosque; the visit is the upper gallery. No guide may speak inside, and women cover their hair, shoulders and knees. The gallery route pauses around the midday prayer on Fridays. Hagia Sophia tickets explains the €50 online ticket and the dome restoration.
7. Topkapı Palace
₺2,750 for the palace and the Harem · ticket office 09:00 to 17:00 · shut Tuesdays
Walk through the Imperial Gate beside Hagia Sophia into the first court. The Harem alone is ₺1,050. From 1 January 2027 the palace joins the National Palaces ticket system. Allow 3 hours; most visitors give Topkapı its own morning. Topkapı Palace tickets has the courts in order.
The Imperial Gate of Topkapı Palace, with the Fountain of Ahmed III at right. Photo: Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
8. Gülhane Park and the Archaeology Museums
Park free · museums €15 · 09:00 to 18:30, ticket office 17:30 · open every day
Gülhane Park was part of Topkapı’s gardens and is now a public park. The Archaeology Museums, three museums in one, are inside its gate, with the Museum of the History of Science and Technology in Islam (€10) beside them. Finish at the T1 Gülhane tram stop.
The best day to go
| Day | What changes on the route |
|---|---|
| Monday | All open |
| Tuesday | Topkapı Palace is shut: swap stop 7 for a longer visit to stop 8 |
| Wednesday and Thursday | All open |
| Friday | The Blue Mosque admits visitors from 14:30 and the Hagia Sophia gallery pauses around midday prayer: run the route in reverse, with the museums and Topkapı in the morning, and stops 3 and 4 after 14:30 |
| Saturday and Sunday | All open |
Dated closures: Topkapı is shut on 1 January and on the first day of Ramazan Bayramı (9 March 2027). What does not close: the Hippodrome, the Arasta Bazaar’s lanes and Gülhane Park. The order for two days: Sultanahmet’s mosque, Cistern and Hagia Sophia on the first morning, then Topkapı and the museums on the second.
What to do with the rest of the day
- The Grand Bazaar is two stops up the T1: the Grand Bazaar guide has the gates and the closed Sunday.
- Across the Golden Horn: the Galata Tower and the best views in Istanbul.
- More free sights: free things to do in Istanbul.
- The Museum Pass: the Museum Pass Istanbul covers stops 2, 7 and 8.
- The whole trip: what to book before you go to Istanbul has the closed days for every sight. To sleep on the route, see hotels near the Blue Mosque, and for the plan across days, Istanbul in one or two days.
Common questions
How long is the Sultanahmet walk?
About 1.9 km on foot from the Hippodrome to the Archaeology Museums, measured along the streets, and 2.7 km counting the walk from the Sultanahmet tram stop to the Gülhane tram stop. It is about 40 minutes of walking and a full day with the tickets.
Where does the Sultanahmet walk start and finish?
It starts on the Hippodrome, a few minutes from the T1 Sultanahmet tram stop, and finishes at the Archaeology Museums in Gülhane Park, beside the T1 Gülhane stop.
Which day is best for the Sultanahmet walk?
Any day except Tuesday for the whole route, because Topkapı Palace is shut on Tuesdays. On Fridays the Blue Mosque admits visitors only from 14:30, so run the route in reverse.
What do I need to book on the Sultanahmet walk?
Nothing for the Blue Mosque, which is free. Hagia Sophia's gallery ticket is bought at the entrance, Topkapı's at its ticket office, and the Basilica Cistern's at its entrance or on Passo.
Is the Sultanahmet walk free?
The street route is, and so are the Hippodrome, the Blue Mosque, the Arasta Bazaar and Gülhane Park. Hagia Sophia is €25, the Archaeology Museums €15, the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts €17 and Topkapı ₺2,750.
How much time does the Sultanahmet walk need?
The walking is about 40 minutes. The guided Topkapı tours alone run 3 hours, so most visitors give Topkapı and the Archaeology Museums a second morning.
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