Basilica Cistern Skip-the-Line Ticket with Guided Tour

211 Ratings

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Embark on a captivating journey through history and architecture with a skip-the-line tour of the Basilica Cistern. Discover the intriguing stories behind this ancient marvel and marvel at its unique features, including the medusa-head column bases. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience the essence of historical architecture and capture stunning photographs!

Duration: 30 minutes

Cancellation: 24 hours

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Highlights

Basilica Cistern - You will meet with our guide at the meeting point and continue to the museum. The guide will explain the history of the place and the tour will end at the museum.

What's Included

Admission to Basilica Cistern
Professional licensed guide

What's Not Included

Transportation
Meal

Additional Information

Discover the ancient cistern escorted by an expert guide with priority access to bypass long queue lines. Its unique history pulls adventurers from around the world to witness its majesty firsthand. Walking on elevated wooden walkways with water droplets falling from the vaulted ceilings adds to the captivating allure of this historical marvel. If…

Location

At Meydanı Cd No:3

At Meydanı Caddesi

At the Busforus (Red Double-decker Bus) Stop across the Hagia Sophia in Sultanahmet Square. D marked bus stop sign.

Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings

4.1

(211 Ratings)

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Amy_h

Dec 26, 2024

Engan was a brilliant... - Engan was a brilliant guide. Very knowledgeable and answered all our questions. Also with the guide we got to skip the large queues which was a bonus.

Review provided by Viator

Crystal_d

Dec 1, 2024

Highly recommend the... - Highly recommend the Basicilia tour. The lines do get long so skipping ahead is worth it. There is history information before you are free to roam the center

Review provided by Viator

Tiago223

Nov 22, 2024

Very nice place, quick walk. - The cistern of the basilica (Yerebatan Saray) is next to the Aya Sofia Mosque, the place is beautiful and the walk is quick, about 30 minutes, after you can meet the other mosques nearby there. I bought the ticket here on the TripAdvisor website. Buy tickets in advance so you don’t get in line.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Sheree_c

Nov 8, 2024

Wonderful place to visit - The meeting place was easy to find. Our guide gave us an overview/history and then let us enjoy it on our own. It was a lovely place and so glad that we didn't miss it.

Review provided by Viator

Wendy_w

Oct 22, 2024

Very interesting - It was great to “skip the line” to get into the cistern. The guide gave us information and history, then let us wander the place on our own. It was great to be able to go through at our own pace. Very interesting and amazing architecture.

Review provided by Viator

Melissa_m

Nov 9, 2024

Just okay - The cistern was enriching to see, however, our guide basically bought our tickets and dropped us off inside. We were left on our own to figure out the rest of the history,as we only received a short narrative about the area prior to going in.

Review provided by Viator

Global39332135077

Oct 25, 2024

Worthwhile visit Basilica Cistern - Very interesting place - amazing how inventive the Romans were. The audioguide was informative. It was a seamless entry with skip the line tickets.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Karen_r

Oct 23, 2024

Worth it! - It was very worth the price to be able to skip the ticket line and have a guide provide information on the Basilica Cistern. I liked that the presentation was fairly short and that we could then explore the Cistern at our leisure.

Review provided by Viator

Maif55

Jan 14, 2025

A stunning site marred by poor guiding. - The Basilica Cistern itself was stunning. BUT the tour itself was poor. Other than skipping the line, there is no value to this tour. We were 5 minutes late for our scheduled 11AM tour and they left without us. Istanbul E-Pass staff told us we could go on to the 12 noon tour. The guide was 30 minutes late and was unapologetic at first insisting the tour was at 12:30. Then he realised it was January 8 and indeed the tour was for 12 noon. And he expressed surprise that we all waited for him. Ah, duh??!! Apart from this, the information provided was shallow, basic, and nothing you cannot Google in 5 minutes. You are better off taking the audio guide which I am sure contained very interesting information on the Cistern.

Review provided by Tripadvisor

Grace_s

Oct 21, 2024

Terrible - Terrible tour guide. He lead us to the place, talked very quickly for 3-5 min. No one understood him because of his strong accent. He then left, said “ you are on your own from now”. This is not a guided tour!!!! This is only for the skip the line tickets. All of us were so disappointed. For the first time Viator user, this became their last time!

Review provided by Viator

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