Climbed Mount Ararat with Mustafa Arsin, an mazing experience. I've climbed many mountains with…read moremany guides and Mustafa is one of my favorites. Kind, caring, professional, great sense of humor, and very experienced. He pays attention to his clients and reads how everyone is doing and plans accordingly. I plan to call Mustafa again to climb in Iran and Russia.

The day cruise on Bosphorus River is almost a must do tour by many tour group. This cruise display…read moremany buildings and historic landmarks along river. The cruise is about 1 hour. The ship did a stop near Asia side Istanbul. Then head back to the original port. If you join the second tour to Asia side of Istanbul, you will get off here. I decided to head back to the Europe side Istanbul. The cruise allows you to see the long suspension bridge that cross under. You also can see some landmarks on the top of the hill. Palaces mostly on the riverside.

The Bosphorus cruise is a must do in Istanbul…read more The Bosphorus is where Europe and Asia flirt shamelessly across a narrow strip of water. This strait, slicing Istanbul in half, has been causing geographical identity crises since forever. Want to sip tea on one continent while judging the traffic on another? The Bosphorus says, Sure, hun. Historically, it's been the watery red carpet for empires including the Byzantines, Ottomans, and now Instagram influencers. Fun fact: the current flows two ways because one direction just wasn't dramatic enough. So yeah, even the water here is extra. In short: it's blue, it's historic, it's chaotic, just like your life.

We took a ferry from Kadikoy to Eminonu and it was just easy as pie. First of all, you need to…read morefind the terminal to go to, since there are many destinations across the Bosphorous. We found the one for Eminonu and using our IstanbulKart, we got into the area for the specific ferry we wanted...between the two towns there are ferries like every 5-10 minutes...so it's easy to get on at a convenient time. The ferries are huge and most have an upper deck and a lower deck. Some have a triple open deck. We sat on the second deck and admired the sights as we went from one side of Istanbul to the other. It took about 30 minutes and the cost was less than a $1. All these ferries have lavatories and a coffee shop. Once they arrive to port, it takes them like 2-3 min to empty the passengers and they are ready to load the next group to go back....Amazing...

The TurYol bosphorous "cruise" is 12 TL, and leaves every half hour. Be there a half hour…read morebeforehand for boarding, and if you can, snag a seat on the port (left side) of the boat for the best views. The announcer only discusses the sights you're passing in Turkish, and the PA is very difficult to decipher so if you're not Turkish-fluent, don't expect a lot of guidance. Tour guides can get on for free, though, so if you have a guide with you you're golden! Great opportunity for some nice photos of all the riverside palaces in Istanbul, and to get a sense of just how permeated this landscape is with history. You will be packed in, though, with tons and tons of families and plenty of rowdy children... So if crowds aren't your thing, spend the extra cash and go on a more private Bosphorous excursion.

A quaint hotel that's just a brief walk to the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and the Basilica…read moreCistern. You can see the Hagia Sophia from the top room. Staff were friendly and amazing. They arranged a shuttle for us to the airport for early morning. The breakfast was delicious with lots of variety. There is a club next door that plays music a bit loud, but it's only for a couple hours. We would definitely stay again.

My first visit to Istanbul was made wonderful by staying at Louis Appartements near Sishane…read more Erhan and his staff took care of every detail to make our experience enjoyable and perfect ! The night we arrived, we were greeted by Hülya and instead of just giving us a key, she asked us to have a seat and offered tea, water, coffee,etc.. Then she went over the entire check in process in a warm, friendly way. Map of the city, recommendations, etc.. All was perfect. Due to availability, we got upgraded to a higher level suite upon arrival. A few days later, it was my birthday and Erhan gave me some recommendations for a great scenic view restaurant. ....what a surprise when I got back to the hotel the night of my birthday and I was presented with a beautiful, full size birthday cake with lit candles... What a wonderful way to end the day! I have travelled around the world with over 1.5 Million airlines miles under my belt and this place in Istanbul is one of the best small hotels I have stayed....

It's on a teeny weeny little dead-end side street about a block below the…read moretourist-restaraunt-walk-of-lame; it's CLEAN, inexpensive, has a decent Turkish breakfast that's included in the price, it's fairly quiet at night (that's relative, but way more quiet than hotels I've had by Interstate Highway 5 in California!), and the owners are responsive, speak fairly decent English, help with problems, and are really sweet, especially Enis, the young lady that manages the place. Don't bother booking with hotels.com or anything like that. Just go to their website, email Enis, and book on your own. You'll get a better room for the same price, with lovely soft beds and fluffy down comforters. Which we really needed after 4 weeks of backpacking around Turkey......

We just returned from an INCREDIBLE time at the Tulip Guesthouse. We had a quick weekend trip to…read moreIstanbul, and we couldn't be happier to have chosen the Tulip Guesthouse. Location was incredible....we easily walked to Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Hippodrome, Hagia Sophia, Eminonu, Spice Market, Grand Bazaar, Sirceki district. With a little more time, we could have walked across the bridge to Taksim Square (25-30 minute walk?) too! Enis is an incredible manager--she emailed us right after the booking was done to see if we wanted her to arrange airport pick-up, she greeted us by name when we rang the doorbell for the first time, and she was transparent and open through all interactions, namely the money exchange. This is a TINY little establishment, and even when we were given a choice of the 2 double-person rooms and chose the larger one, it was very cramped quarters in the room. NOT A PROBLEM THOUGH--who goes to Istanbul to stay in the hotel room?! There was ample built-in storage with hangers, drawers, cabinets all over. The bathroom was about 18 square feet, so if you were at the sink you had to shut the door behind you so you had room to stand there. Definitely only 1 person in the bathroom at a time! Breakfast was through and wonderful...lots of local-made preserves, fresh bread, fresh fruit & veggies, and even Enis's mom's homemade tomato paste bread topping. Incredible! All of this is in a room that overlooks the Bosphorus/Mamara. Currently, they are building a few doors down, so weekdays during the daytime were filled with the sounds of jackhammering :( but since we were out and about all day it didn't bother us. Nighttimes were quiet in this neighborhood. I wish there could be a Tulip Guesthouse everywhere we travel!

A long line tonight for a good. A direct trip to Taksim Square from Sabiha Gökçen International…read moreAirport, which is currently the second largest airport in the capital after Atatürk International Airport. Although I heard another airport is being constructed a little north of the city. After you exit the arrivals main building cross the street and turn right. You should see HAVAŞ written on the side of the buses. Yhe most convenient and cost effective way to get to downtown Istanbul.

One night for two twin beds was 56E at the end of September. We were there for a night on a…read morelayover and it was well worth it. Taxi to and from the airport was about 15E. It is really close to the blue mosque, aya Sofia, cistern, grand bazaar and other sites. Would recommend this place to everyone. The terrace has the best view of the blue mosque and Sea of Marmara you can enjoy while you eat your free continental breakfast.