Tours in Istanbul

Eyup was a great source of information as he showed us round the main tourist attractions. Friendly and engaging we had a fanatic day exploring and left as good friends.

The settings of the ceremony are quite modest, but don't be fooled - the performance is a must-see for anyone who wants a better taste of Istanbul.

This is the real deal, you take oart in a ceremony and not a show for tourists. A very unique experience

I am a long-time fan of the poet, Rumi, so this authentic experience of seeing a whirling dervish ceremony was one of the top highlights of my trip to Istanbul. The educational session beforehand was excellent and our guide was well organized and thoughtful. I booked this excursion two weeks in advance from the states, and the guide answered all of my emails/questions promptly beforehand. I highly recommend this event for anyone who is interested in learning more about the true history of the whirling dervish community.

Unique experience on EBRU. Many thanks to teach me and provide maximum time to my own design. Betul is a real master, many thanks for your knowledge and so pretty converstaion about Turkey and whole world.
Unexpected skill to me but I highly recommend to anybody especially if you want to know Turkey arts bette and have a meditation because it's really like a meditation.

We had Gökhan show us around Istanbul on our first day in town and are really glad we did.

Prior to the tour he asked what we were interested in seeing and doing. We were interested in getting a feel for the city, seeing some of the things locals do on the weekend and finding some good places to eat. I said we didn't want to visit a heap of Mosques and museums as we're not big history buffs. He came up with a plan and also said he'd bring his wife along which worked out well.

On the day they were at our hotel on time and we set off for our walking tour. Things my wife and I liked about the tour:
- as we walked he told us about the things were passing
- he'd clearly thought about a plan for the day based on what we wanted to do
- showed us how to use public transport and we used it to quickly move between areas
- tasted a few local specialities
- showed us things they like to do on the weekend in Istanbul
- explained some of the major areas

After the tour he was more than happy to message us to answer questions and give more advice.

Gökhan is relatively new as a tour guide but we really enjoyed our experience with him. We felt like we could enjoy the city without having to check google maps every 2 minutes. He offers the tours because he is proud of Istanbul and likes to meet new people and it really shows through. I'd strongly recommend booking a tour with him

Tiur operator was great. Very knowledgeable of all the sites and genuinely able to provide good insights into history, life in Istanbul and Turkey today, and how to make the most out of my trip.
Would highly recommend.

The wife And I did a full day tour and it was great! We got to see a lot of the main attractions and the guide did a great job telling us about the past of each area and building. He lead us to several key areas of the city and then took us to areas we might had no idea had such history. The tour was well worth it and a great time.

We planned a visit to Turkey and Greece with another couple. We did a lot of online research to come up with a short list of well regarded private guides who are knowledgeable about the biblical sites in each country. Ertunga Ecir responded to our inquiries with detailed recommendations, based on his extensive experience leading tours to Istanbul and the "seven churches of Revelation". No choosing from Tour 1, Tour 2 or Tour 3.

Ertunga put together an outstanding 10-day itinerary. We were constantly impressed by his knowledge and by his love of the country. He was also quite flexible and creative as our interests were piqued, or our energy was flagging...

I highly recommend Ertunga for tour planning and as a private tour guide.

I have always wanted to visit Turkey, and feel so blessed that a friend of a friend gave me Ertunga’s name. I am not a large-group-tour-bus person, so was thrilled to find someone who could be my private guide for an affordable price. Ertunga was great to work with from the beginning. He responded to my emails within 24 hours, came up with a wonderful itinerary which I was able to tweak, was flexible with my dates, and willing to answer any and all questions.

The big question everyone wants to know: is Turkey safe? For the 2 and 1/2 weeks that I was there, I never felt in the slightest danger. (I feel in some ways our country is much more dangerous as 96 Americans die from gun violence every day. And we think Turkey may be unsafe?) The people were warm, friendly, hospitable, and always willing to help.

We visited biblical ruins, Roman ruins, Greek ruins, Hittite ruins, Lycian ruins, Byzantine, and Ottman buildings, bascillicas, and mosques. We viewed a sunken city on the Mediterranean through the glass bottom of a boat. We saw whirling dervishes. I had a Turkish bath. I’ve always wanted to take a hot air balloon ride – Ertunga arranged one for me in Cappadocia over volcanic “fairy chimneys”. Istanbul lives up to it’s fabulous reputation. We traveled 2,500 miles together, which allowed me to ask all kinds of questions about his amazing country — about it’s history, culture, and people. Turkish guides are extremely well qualified, and Ertunga was able to answer everything. It was the trip of a lifetime, and I am so grateful that I found him and his travel company.

I was skeptical of going to see the Whirling Dervishes in Istanbul because it sounded very touristy, but this experience was very authentic. Before the "performance" we got to see a real Sufi ceremony and the experience was so interesting. Highly recommend for those interested in a more authentic cultural experience.

The room is beautiful and confortable. Tea was served before the show. Musicians were good.
But there were only 3 "dancers". One of them was really good, the other one was only "ok" and the last one was VERY young and was not able to do all de movements.

Duygu Ozay, my guide, went the extra mile in researching exactly what I wanted to see, and instead of the regulation tour took me to the Grand Bazaar to look at textiles, embroiders, and traditional clothing. She researched the best places, asking friends who worked in this area for advice, and took me to shops inside the Bazaar which I would never have found for myself. Not only that, she is personable, has great English, and has a good eye for Turkish antiques and folk art. She also taught me how to use the tram!

the tour captured all the aspects that one was expecting although i added hagia sophia to the itinerary it did not deter from it.

our guide was very fluent in his understanding of the history and way of life of istanbul and offered incredible insight to this beautiful city full of history.

thinking back to our day spent with him brings back wonderful memories. he offered us local's insider which we greatly valued and needed as we were planning a shopping trip the day after.

my one major critisism with like a local is that i still havent received money that i booked another tour prior to booking this one on the 14th May 2018; that tour was full at the time and i was sent an email notifying me that the funds will be returned to my bank account, this has not yet happened and today is the 30th May 2018.
other than that, the like a local is a brilliant idea

kudos

I loved learning (the first baby steps) of such a long lasting and beautiful tradition with Ebru. She’s a fantastic teacher and a super warm host. She brings out the most creative you with ease. And the technique is very easy to grasp for a beginner. The place is lovely as well, including a nice terrace where we had coffee and tea overlooking old Istanbul.

I really recommend this class to everyone. The hosts were very knowledgeable, helpful and friendly. We enjoyed the art so much we stayed overtime. Delightful experience!

We had the guided tour which was great. Necla showed us the hidden Istanbul. Would definitely recommend this!

i had the most fun learning Ebru with bettul and her husband. theyre both really lovely people and very good teachers.

Necla was a very intuitive guide on our day out and about in Istanbul. She communicated with us prior to the day to ask of our interests,preferences, diet specifications etc and planned the day accordingly. Her insights were fascinating and it was a real pleasure to experience life here through her eyes. She provided further tips on things of interest to do and see and we could highly recommend this day that was well considered and enjoyed.