When I first started planning our trip to Greece, I looked at several different airlines to get us there. There are a few airlines that fly direct, but they are also the priciest. After tracking flights for a bit, Turkish Airlines seemed like the most affordable option – and if you have a 6+ hour layover, you’re eligible to participate in their Turkish Airlines Touristanbul program! 

So what is Touristanbul? It is available to all Turkish Airlines passengers connecting on an international flight through Istanbul with a layover between 6 and 24 hours. Passengers can choose from one of the eight tours offered by Touristanbul according to the time frame best suited to their flight arrival and departure schedule. If you have a longer layover, you can do their Full Day Tour. They also have tours for those who land later in the day. 

Passengers can sign up for Touristanbul at the Hotel Desk in the International Arrivals Terminal after Passport Control in İstanbul Airport or from the Touristanbul Desk Office in the Transfer desk area. You do not need to prebook, you just need to sign up at the desk at a minimum of 30 minutes prior to the tour departure time. 

Tip: Prior to arriving in Turkey, do check if you need an e-visa to enter the country of Turkey. 

Tip 2: If you’re taking a tour that visits any mosques, make sure you’re dressed appropriately. For men and women, that means no shorts. For women, you will need to cover your hair, so bring a scarf or you’ll have to buy a disposable scarf for 20 Lira.

Since we had a 13 hour layover, we were able to join their Half Day Tour that runs from 8:30am to 3:00pm. The Half Day Tour stops at popular tourist spots in Istanbul like the Blue Mosque, Topkapı Palace, the Hippodrome: German Fountain, the Serpentine Column, and the Obelisk of Theodosius. You also get breakfast as well as lunch before returning to the airport in a coach bus. 

During our tour, we visited several places, including:

The Blue Mosque, or the Sultanahmet Mosque, is nicknamed for the blue tiles used to decorate the walls of its interior. The Mosque is a mixture of traditional Islamic architecture and Byzantine elements, taken from the Hagia Sophia. 

Across from the Blue Mosque is the Hagia Sophia Mosque, one of the most famous historical sites in Istanbul. It was originally built by the Byzantine emperor Justinian I as the Christian cathedral of Constantinople for the Byzantine Empire. It was a mosque until 1935, where it was changed into a museum until 2020, where it became a mosque again. 

Close by is the Obelisk of Theodosius, which is the Ancient Egyptian obelisk of Pharaoh Thutmose III that was re-erected in the Hippodrome of Constantinople by the Roman emperor Theodosius I in the 4th century AD. 

Our tour guide walked us to all of the spots and gave us free time to explore the mosques. I quite like that he did that, so that we can peruse at our pace and then do some souvenir shopping as well. It felt a bit looser and I’m more for that. I’m sure your experience will vary a little bit depending on the tour guide and also the crowd levels at the sites. 

It was a great way to quickly see some important places in Istanbul, which only made us want to come back and do a deeper dive someday. If you’ve got a few hours to spare, I highly recommend participating in this completely free activity!