Self-Guided Walking Tours in Istanbul

Istanbul Where Two Domes Face Each Other Across the Old Race Track

You are standing at the north end of a long paved square in Sultanahmet, a short walk from the Sultanahmet tram. Two great domes rise on either side of this open ground: the Sultan Ahmed Mosque to the south-east, with six minarets, and Hagia Sophia to the north-east, with its four. Between them, this square was the Hippodrome of Constantinople, the race track of the Eastern Roman capital, later called Atmeydanı, the Horse Square. This walk is about two kilometres and ten stops. It follows the line of the old race track, goes into the Blue Mosque when visitor access is open, crosses the garden to Hagia Sophia, then west to the Milion and the Basilica Cistern, and east around Hagia Sophia to the Fountain of Ahmed III, the Imperial Gate of Topkapı Palace, and the edge of Gülhane Park. Plan 90 to 120 minutes for the walk and the audio if you go into the Blue Mosque and stay outside Hagia Sophia; longer if you take the paid gallery or the cistern. The Blue Mosque is free, with hours and prayer-time closures posted at the gate. Cover shoulders, knees and hair, and take your shoes off before the prayer-hall carpet; loan wraps are at the entrance. On Fridays, visitor access starts at 14:30. Hagia Sophia is a working mosque; foreign visitors use a separate paid entrance to the upper gallery, beside the Fountain of Ahmed III, which we reach later on this walk. When you are ready, look at the octagonal pavilion with the copper-covered dome a few steps from the tram. That is the German Fountain, and the first stop.

Walking57 min10 stops2.8 km