Entrada sin hacer cola a Santa Sofía y audioguía

We had a lovely tour with the very enthousiastic guide Augusto. He told is everything about the history of the Hagia Sophia and we were able to ask questions if we wanted to. He told us very interesting facts about the inside of the biggest mosquee/church of Istanbul. We would highly recommend a tour with Augusto! Reminder: you dont bit a ticket to skip the line, you need to queue because of the security safety check. Ladies: bring a scarf, hat or jacket with hat to cover your hair, its respectful to bring your own.

The mosque itself is gorgeous and quite impressive from the outside. It is costly to get in but you do get to see some historical Byzantine era artwork alongside Islamic calligraphy. There are even seraphim’s that decorate the mosque. However, it is unfortunate that only Turkish nationals are allowed to visit the lower part of the mosque where foreigners are relegated to the visitor areas. Nevertheless it is an iconic landmark and there are some interesting historical pieces that are worth looking at.

Ekim, ,our guide, was absolutely amazing. She shared many fascinating stories and facts over the course of more than an hour and a half… There was also some background provided on history and Islam. You can visit on your own for free… But this is just one of many magnificent buildings. With a guide, however, you’ll appreciate it so much more.

Very streamlined experience and saved a ton of time as the lines for ticket at the counter are crazy long. Only hiccup happened when the QR codes didn't work at the booth, but a quick phone call to the representative helped as she sent in a new set of QR codes via WhatsApp in a matter of couple minutes. Overall, very easy and breeze to use.