Istanbul

We spent 2 days in the very large city of Istanbul. Did a 2 hour HAL tour on the first afternoon which amounted to a bus ride offering very little value.

We had booked a private all day tour the next day with a local driver who was highly recommend by someone on our Europe tour, and turned out to be fantastic. He picked us up in a nice Mercedes van from the cruise port and we hit up all the spots we could until he dropped us back to port at 5 pm.

We visited Nusretiye Mosque, Ortakoy Mosque, Galata Tower and square, Balat historic quarter, Chora Church, Topkapi Palace, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia Mosque and the Harasta Carsisi Bazaar. We only entered the free of charge Blue Mosque as the others were very expensive, or closed due to prayer time. Nevertheless, we had a great day and the private tour was the best $150 we ever spent!

This cruise has been fantastic...probably on par with the Viking Europe river cruise in 2019. The itinerary has been great, and the food, service, quality overall top notch. We will definately be booking Holland America cruises in the future.Read more