Istanbul Old City Food Tour
Old City Food Tour
Explore local food and hidden gems around the historical center
- All food and drinks included
- Total duration 4,5 hours
- Max 10 People
- 700+ reviews
Welcome to Istanbul's highest rated food & walking tour that covers unique delicacies, hidden streets and extraordinary locations in the old part of the city. Experience the true vibe of the city by joining us on an Istanbul food tour that explores the captivating historical sights around the old city while tasting traditional mouth-watering delicacies.
Tour Schedule
Taste of Istanbul's Old City Food tour starts at 10:00 AM every morning (except Sundays) and will end around 14:00 PM. The total duration is around 4 hours and 30 minutes.
What is included ?
- The tour price includes all the food and drinks through the tour. Bottled water is also provided when necessary. - The tour is instructed by one of our knowledgable, friendly and enthusiastic guides that aims to provide culinary, historical and cultural insights of the city including a local's personal suggestions.
Group Size
- All our tours consist of a maximum 10 people but we do our best to run the tours even with only a few people. - Private groups are also welcomed.
Price and Cancellation Policy
- The tour price is 2.200 Turkish Liras for adults. For children under 12 years old, please contact us. - The tour price is fully refundable if you cancel 24 hours before the tour starts.
Meeting & Finishing point
- Taste of Istanbul's Old City Food Tour starts just in front of the famous Spice Market and explores Istanbul's historical streets. - The tour ends just next to marvellous column of Constantine which is also neighbouring Cemberlitas Tram Station and just 200 meters away from very well known Hagia Sophia.
What to bring
- Your appetite for sure! - Comfortable walking shoes - Umbrella if necessary. - If winter season please wear warm clothes, a hat, scarf and gloves. We will spend some time at open air and might be cold.
Tour itinerary
700+ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Reviews on Airbnb Experiences, TripAdvisor and Google
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This tour was overall a great experience that covers a lot of ground being able to wander the old bazaar and Eqyptian bazaar with lots of good food sprinkled throughout.… read more A bit more history of the markets would have been even better but overall the guide, food, and pace was wonderful!
October 7, 2024Unser Guide an dem Tag war die Sudan und sie war so so toll! Neben dem leckeren Essen und den tollen Spots waren ihre Erzählungen noch das i-tüpfelchen. Wir haben… read more das Erlebnis sehr genossen und können es wärmstens empfehlen!
October 1, 2024Notre hôte, Didem était très gentille et informée sur la culture , ce qui agrémentait la visite par ses informations. Elle était très sympathique et à l’écoute de tous .… read more La nourriture découverte était bien et appréciée .
October 1, 2024 -
What an unforgettable experience! Our food tour in Istanbul was nothing short of amazing, and Ozkun, our guide, made it feel as though a friend was showing us around the… read more city. He was personable, attentive, and considerate of everyone’s needs in our smaller group, which created such a comfortable and intimate atmosphere.
The day started at the Egyptian Market, where we picked up some delicious local breakfast items. We then made our way to a hidden gem of a Pide restaurant tucked away in a quiet courtyard. We ordered a meat and cheese Pide, cooked in a wood-fired oven, and enjoyed it alongside cheese, bagel, and pastrami from the market. Of course, Turkish tea accompanied breakfast, completing the authentic experience.
Next, we enjoyed Turkish coffee in another peaceful courtyard, offering a moment to relax and soak in the local vibe. Then we made our way to a small doner spot, which was truly unique. It was literally just a corner where the meat was being cooked, and the seating was
September 4, 2024I’ve been on many guided foodie tours but a day with Ozcan is up there with the best! Not just a great guide, but a good friend by the time… read more we’d finished our last, delicious tasting.
August 5, 2024This tour was exceptional and was the perfect way to start our trip in Istanbul! Didem was such a wonderful guide and went above and beyond to provide the best… read more experience possible – she tailored the tour to fit our specific needs, and provided great recommendations for the rest of our stay in Istanbul. I highly recommend this tour to anyone interested in Turkish food and culture!
July 23, 2024 -
We had a great tour with Didem and she went to great lengths to customize it for us to cater to our many dietary restrictions. Highly recommend!
July 5, 2024Food tour was top, we really liked the opportunity of walking around the city and trying local food icons.
Ozcan is a great guide, very friendly, talkative and kept us interested… read more throughout the qhole experience. definitely recommended.
June 20, 2024It’s an amazing experience, much better than expected. We went to amazing places we would have not known without Ozcan! We ate delicious local food and walk in amazing places.… read more Ozcan was incredibly patient with us and he takes into consideration our wants and needs. I would 100% recommend this experience and 100% recommend Ozcan as a guide!
June 19, 2024 -
Ozkan was AMAZING! We ate the most delicious food and had a super personalized tour. Ozkan was very knowledgeable not only about food but about all of the history of… read more Istanbul. We had so much fun traveling from the European side to the Asian side as well. Highly highly recommend this tour!
June 13, 2024Didem and Rabia were fantastic hosts! We tried delicious foods, learned a lot about local Turkish culture and history, and explored some places we definitely wouldn’t have found on our… read more own. The tour was the perfect amount of time and the perfect pace — just enough walking, and lots of delicious bites. Come hungry, leave full!
June 7, 2024 -
sude was an amazing guide and took us to many special places! felt like a true local tour- highly recommend her and ozcan’s tour-
May 24, 2024Didem was a fantastic host – warm, thoughtful and knowledgeable. We learnt not only about turkish food but also facts on turkey’s history and culture.
May 23, 2024A GREAT EXPERIENCE! Went to both the spice and grand bazaar, had a huge breakfast (turkish pizza, cheese, olives, tea), had a turkish coffee tasting and coffee grinds reading, sampled… read more the best baklava, had the best chicken skewers. Great quality of food and great history by Didum, HIGHLY RECOMMEND THIS TOUR.
May 23, 2024 -
We had such a wonderful time with Ozcan on this tour. We ended up being the only two on it and Ozcan really personalized it based on what we were… read more looking for – unique locations, delicious food, and great spice market shopping. Ozcan was easily able to cater to our needs as vegetarians and we tried food we wouldn’t have found otherwise. By the end of the tour, we felt like old friends.
May 22, 2024This was such a great experience! Didem was a tremendously knowledgeable leader, took us to places off the beaten path, provided interesting historical food tidbits and each thing we ate… read more was absolutely delicious. Highly recommend for anyone visiting Istanbul!
May 20, 2024 -
This tour is an absolute must, if you want to see parts of Istanbul, eat in places and try food that most tourists would not get to see or… read more try.
It was a great experience and I met some really nice people in our group.
Didem was a charming and personable host and a great guide. Thank you so much
🙂
May 2, 2024Ozcan was a very friendly and enjoyable guide and the food experiences were very good, what we had hoped for. A little more time than we needed spent wandering… read more through touristy lanes with cheap merchandise and not a lot of talking between food stops – which some may like and others not so much – but overall a decent tour with a very nice host.
April 24, 2024Didem was such a great guide, very knowledgeable and easy to chat with. The tour felt personal and we learnt a lot of the history along the way while enjoying… read more amazing food. Would 100% recommend, this was a highlight for our trip to Istanbul!
February 17, 2024 -
Lovely tour guide and ended up being a private tour due to low tourist season. However, the food itself looked very different to the pictures and the food / tour… read more guiding was poor value for money vs the other tours we did in Istanbul.
I’m afraid the food we had felt low quality or the venues we went to didn’t look or feel good quality either. The only one we enjoyed was the coffee. The rest was dishes we could’ve gotten ourselves in London or venues that felt basic with little or no explanation of why it was special to bring us there.
What could have made it better is if the guide had better quality storytelling skills about the food – it’s background, why it’s popular in Turkish culture, how people eat it, how people prepare it, the history of the food. She was very approachable and friendly, but we mostly talked about our personal lives rather than the food. And towards the end of the trip, it felt like we were just walking around with very little explanation and more us pushing the guide for more info. She was very friendly and asked us lots of questions about ourselves, but our preference was to learn more about the food and enjoy the quality and variety of the food.
To compare, we went to a show and dinner experience and for cheaper price, we tried far better food with wider variety and much more explanation and story telling than this one – which was supposed to be a food tour.
Overall, we have been to many food tours around the world and the value of this experience needs to increase – either with better quality food stops, more unique variety of dishes or better guiding of the tour.
January 12, 2024Of all the small group tours we have done around the world, this one was indeed one of the best and most enjoyable. Absolutely fantastic tour for a group of… read more 11 with 5 children – guided by Didem. A great introduction to the fascinating city of Istanbul, it’s culture past and present, history and delicious food scene. Our tour guide Didem was an absolute pleasure – engaging, kind, so informative and passionate about tourism and the food scene. We all enjoyed ourselves immensely and would highly recommend this tour. We left with full bellies and great memories!
January 5, 2024Very good tour to enjoy Istanbul in a different way. Didem, our guide was very interesting and precise. She gave us so many details on Turkish culture and spirit. It… read more is the best to find hidden places and treasures.
Thank you very much.
January 2, 2024 -
Wunderbare Erfahrung! Ich entdecke eine Stadt am liebsten mit einer Kombination aus Geschichte und gutem Essen, das man nur als Local findet – beides wurde voll erfüllt. Klare Empfehlung!
December 30, 2023I was on the tour with Didem and she was a wonderful guide. We went to some amazing places and Didem did a magnificent job telling the stories about the… read more places we ate at and the people making the food. We went to some hidden spots in the Grand Bazaar that I would have never found on my own. This tour was truly one of the highlights of my trip to Istanbul.
December 30, 2023Ulku est une très bonne guide, qui parle très bien de son pays et de sa culture. Le tour est très agréable en partie grâce à elle. De notre point… read more de vue, il ne s’agit pas d’un tour culinaire à proprement parlé, mais d’un mix entre visite culturelle et nourriture. Je déconseillerais ce tour aux personnes qui ne mangent pas de viande ( la compagnie n’avait même pas transmis à la guide que je ne mangeais pas de viande !!). Nous avons trouvé que le prix de cette visite est excessif par rapport aux produits goûtés durant ce tour,même si les produits sont bons.
November 9, 2023 -
The tour was excellent. Didem was knowledgeable, kind and I greatly enjoyed the spots she took us to. They’re not spots I would have thought to visit on my own… read more so I appreciate the hidden gems included in the tour.
October 28, 2023Be prepared to eat well! We stopped at local hidden gems that you would never find on a map and it made it extra special.
October 28, 2023Maravillosa experiencia guiada por Didem que nos ha cuidado y tratado de forma exquisita. Una buenísima forma de conocer lugares de la ciudad a los que nunca irías… read more a no se que fuera acompañado por una persona local a través de la riquísima gastronomía turca.
Totalmente recomendable.
Gracias por todo!
October 21, 2023
See more reviews on our Airbnb Experiences, Trip Advisor and Google pages.
2.200 TRY
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