Experience City tours in the best of
Istanbul with Withlocals

"I can't begin to write enough good things about Kadir! We do a lot of Jewish heritage tourism, and Kadir knows so much about the Jewish history of Istanbul and Turkey, but he knows just as much about everything and everybody in Istanbul. I think he knows all 20,000,000 residents of Istanbul, and if he doesn't, he sure acts like he does! His gregariousness provided us with many off-the-beaten-track experiences with a Muslim calligrapher, the "godfather" of Turkish coffee and lemonade and so much more. Istanbul is a difficult city to get around in because of its age and density. Trying to find some of the sites he took us to would be impossible for a tourist with only a smart phone. But with Kadir, around every corner was another wonderful site, an interesting story (have you ever heard of the Camondo family?) and of course, another place to get a great deal on souvenirs. (Don't deny it...you know that's important when you travel!) Just as important, Kadir loves to learn from his customers. My wife is a Jewish educator and did some translation of markers around the city, which Kadir appreciated in a true spirit of learning and adventure. If you pass up an opportunity to see Istanbul with Kadir, you are going to miss the real Istanbul."

"Esra was great with communication from booking. She was friendly and knowledgeable and taught us so much about Turkish culture. The tour felt personalized and it was great to have someone answer our questions along the way. Esra was generous with her time and we did not feel rushed. She gave us good recommendations for shopping, restaurants and activities. Thank you!!"

"We had an amazing time with Emre who was subbing for his wife, Gulce. Emre was an absolute wealth of knowledge regarding Istanbul and the nation of Turkey. He kept our attention the whole time and was quite witty as well. Thank you With Locals for having such qualified tour guides to make a city tour so meaningful. "

"Hakan is extremely knowledgeable about the city and took his time to explain and showed us the interesting things about Istanbul. We were very lucky to have him as our guide and we recommend him for anyone who is new to Istanbul. Especially the city could be a little tricky to navigate at the first time. "

"My wife and I toured Istanbul with Cengiz for our honeymoon and it was the best decision we made over the whole trip. Our guided tour was tailored to perfection. We picked what we wanted to see and even made some game-time changes along the way. Cengiz was more than flexible, he was accommodating, knowledgeable, and so much fun! I cant recommend this guide enough. From major sites to spots off the beaten path, Cengiz make sure your trip is special and unforgettable!"

"We did the full day tour of Hagia Sofia, Blue Mosque, Basilica Cistern, and Topkapi Palace with Aysha. She is extremely knowledgeable about the city of Istanbul, the local architecture, and the history of Turkey (from the Greek period all the way up to Erdogan), and was able to confidently answer all of our questions. The tour was over seven hours long (including two breaks for coffee and lunch), yet she was somehow able to keep our 17 year old son engaged the entire time. She even walked us back to our hotel and pointed out several points of interest in the area where we were staying and taught us how to navigate the rest of the city. We have travelled with our kids to five continents and done tours like this in each of them. Aysha was one of the best we have ever encountered. If you want to get a great overview of Istanbul’s major sites in a single day, definitely do this tour and definitely ask for Aysha."

"We had an amazing tour with Ayse! She was very knowledgeable and friendly. She showed us special spots and sights in Istanbul that we never would have known about had we not taken this tour. I highly recommend Ayse!"

"It’s hard to pick a guide when there are so many good profiles but I am so glad we picked Ayse. Super friendly and so knowledgeable. A great command of English ( and fluent in mandarin too!) My request to Ayse was to blast us with history and wow did she deliver. Istanbul is an incredible place to visit. If we’d had more time I would have booked Ayse for another tour ! 5 stars from us!"

"We learned a lot about the history and backgrounds of this wonderful city. Oguz is treasure of information and at the same time, easy-going and fun. We can highly recommend him."

"We had a great tour with Aysa which was fun and educational! She provided great historical and political context to the sites we visited and the kids loved listening to her! Highly recommend her 👍🏽"