Topkapi Palace, Harem and Hagia Irene Guided Tour with Priority Entry

Sultanahmet Square and the walk to the palace

The tour begins in Sultanahmet Square, the garden between the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia where the fountain and the flower beds make an easy meeting point two minutes from the tram stop. Your guide gathers the group at 10:00 or 14:00 and, as you walk, sketches the two empires that shaped this hill: the Byzantine city whose cathedral stands beside you, and the Ottoman one whose palace lies ahead.

The route passes along the side of Hagia Sophia and through the Imperial Gate, the monumental entrance to Topkapi Palace with its gilded calligraphy, into the first courtyard. This outer court was open to the public in Ottoman times and still has its plane trees and the old mint buildings. Here everyone passes the airport-style security check, which cannot be skipped, before the priority tickets take you straight on.

Hagia Irene

Hagia Irene is the oldest church in Istanbul still standing in its original form, first built in the fourth century and rebuilt after the earthquake of 740, so it predates even the present Hagia Sophia. It stands inside the first courtyard of Topkapi Palace and was never turned into a mosque; the Ottomans used it as an armoury and later as the first museum in the empire, which is why its plain brick interior survived so completely.

Inside, your guide points out the great apse with its simple black cross in the golden half-dome, a rare survivor of the period when images were banned, and the stepped stone benches of the synthronon where the clergy sat. The acoustics are superb and the building is still used for concerts. Few Topkapi tickets include Hagia Irene, and it adds real depth to the visit; about 20 minutes here.

Topkapi Palace: the second and third courtyards

Through the twin-towered Gate of Salutation you enter the second courtyard, where the business of the empire was done. Your guide shows you the Imperial Council chamber, where the viziers met beneath a grille from which the sultan could listen unseen, the Tower of Justice above it and the long range of palace kitchens whose chimneys you saw from the Bosphorus. Topkapi Palace was built soon after the conquest of 1453 and remained the residence of the sultans for almost four centuries.

The Gate of Felicity leads to the third courtyard and the sultan's private world: the Audience Hall where ambassadors were received, the library, and the pavilions that now house the Imperial Treasury, with its jewelled daggers and thrones, and the Chamber of the Sacred Relics, where objects associated with the Prophet and the early caliphs are kept while a recitation of the Quran plays continuously. Allow around an hour for this part with your guide.

The Harem

The Harem was the residence of the sultan's mother, wives, children and the servants who ran the household, a palace within the palace of some three hundred rooms linked by narrow corridors and courtyards. It needs a separate ticket, included here, and most guided Topkapi Palace tours skip it; your guide takes you through the Courtyard of the Eunuchs, the apartments of the Queen Mother, the sultan's domed Imperial Hall and the twin pavilions of the princes.

The decoration is the finest in the palace: walls of blue and turquoise İznik tiles, gilded ceilings, marble fountains and stained glass. Your guide explains how the Harem really worked, its hierarchy and its daily routine, separating fact from the many myths. Strollers are not practical in the Harem because of steps and narrow doorways, so carry small children.

The fourth courtyard and free time

The guided part ends in the fourth courtyard, the garden terraces at the tip of the promontory with the Baghdad and Revan pavilions, the gilded İftar Pavilion overlooking the Golden Horn and views across the Bosphorus to the Asian shore and the Maiden's Tower. It is the best photo spot in the palace, and on a clear day you can see from the Galata Tower to the Princes' Islands.

After about two and a half hours your guide says goodbye and your priority tickets remain valid, so you can stay as long as you like: go back to the Treasury, visit the palace kitchens with their Chinese porcelain or rest at the terrace café. Topkapi Palace opening hours run through the afternoon until early evening in summer and shorter in winter; the palace is closed on Tuesdays.