Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion

Home » Turkey » Istanbul Destinations » Istanbul Accessible Tours » Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion

Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram

Cheapest full-day tour for 3 people or more

Like all of our accessible tours by tram, this Istanbul accessible cruise excursionwill begin when you are met at the cruise dock by your local guide. Your guide will bring you to the tram station where you’ll take a short accessible tram ride into the old city.

Once in the old city, you’ll visit all the main attractions and have lunch in an accessible restaurant before heading back to your cruise ship at the end of the day. The cost of tram tickets is included in this tour.

Important note:
– This tour can only be done on the weekends due to the extremely crowded trams during the week from 8:00 to 9:30 and 16:00 to 19:00. If your ship is arriving during the week, you will need to book a full-day driving tour or one of the half-day tours by tram.

Other tours that you may be interested in include the Sultanahmet Istanbul Accessible Private Tourif you’d like transportation by accessible van.Half day accessible tram tours include the Highlights of Istanbul Accessible Shore Excursion by Tramand the Turkish Istanbul Accessible Walking Tour by Tram.

Tour Highlights

– Topkapi Palace
– Hagia Sophia
– Blue Mosque
– Hippodrome
– Basilica Cistern
– Grand Bazaar

Accessibility Details

The Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram has a 4 Star Sage Accessibility Rating because it uses a pubic tram with a wheelchair ramp that is suitable for heavy electric wheelchairs and mobility scooters. It also involves step-free routes between the tourist attractions, and the tour guide can push manual wheelchair users. It did not receive a higher accessibility rating because there are cobblestones and hills on the tour route (they are found almost everywhere in Istanbul).

After you depart your cruise ship, you’ll pass through the red buildings shown in the photo on the left. The Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram starts with your professionally-licensed tour guide greeting you at the Istanbul cruise terminal exit (shown in the photo on the right).

Your guide will escort you to the Istanbul tram line where there is a ramp leading to flat access onto the tram. Your tram ticket is included in the price of your tour. Please note that this full-day tram tour can not be done during the week due to rush hour. You can book a full-day driving tour or a half-day tram tour instead.

Topkapi Palace

The Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram visits the Topkapi Palace where you’ll be amazed at how much there is to see! Serving as the residence of the Ottoman Sultans (and their harem) for 400 years, the Topkapi Palace is one of the most impressive attractions in Istanbul.

It also houses several museums of Islamic artifacts (including the Topkapi Dagger), Christian artifacts (including the hand of John the Baptist), the armory, and the Treasury (containing an 86 carat diamond).

Your accessible visit to the Topkapi Palace will use wheelchair ramps to get over the marble door frames at the courtyard entrances (shown in the photo on the left). In rooms where there are no ramps, the tour guide can assist wheelchair users.

There is ramp to get over the door frame between the first and second courtyard. There is one step in the harem that doesn't have a ramp.

Wheelchair users at the Topkapi Palace will encounter some minor cobblestones. These are much less severe than those found in other parts of the city.

The second courtyard has some 3 star smooth cobblestones at the edge of the courtyard. The harem is accessed from the left side of the second courtyard and has some 3 star smooth cobblestones.

The Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram will avoid steep hills at Topkapi Palace like the one shown in the photo below.

There is a 3 star steep slope down to the fourth courtyard. The fourth courtyard is not worth going down to.

Hagia Sophia

This Istanbul accessible cruise excursion includes a visit to the Hagia Sophia which was a church from 360 AD to 1453 AD, a mosque from 1453 AD to 1931 AD, and a museum since then. It contains numerous mosaics and was the world’s largest cathedral for nearly a thousand years.

Your Hagia Sophia accessible tour will use the step-free ticket entrance located on the west side of the building (shown in the photo on the left). Your tour guide will escort you to the building entrance with the wheelchair ramp (shown in the photo on the right).

The entrance to the Hagia Sophia ia on the left side of this picture. There is level access. This ramp leads down into the building.

The tour route inside will use the wheelchair ramp up to the former location of the altar (shown in the photo on the left). The Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram will avoid the steep, cobblestone covered ramp shown in the photo on the right.

This ramp leads up to the area where the altar formerly was located. This rough path and some steps lead to the upper level.

Blue Mosque

The Blue Mosque Istanbul Accessible Cruise Excursion by Tram includes a visit to one of the most famous mosques in the world, the 400 year old Blue Mosque. Your tour guide will explain to you the significance of the six minarets and bring you to the Istanbul Blue Mosque wheelchair accessible entrance and allow you to skip the line.

Image of the Blue Mosque

There is one small marble doorway (shown in the photo on the left) that disabled visitors will need to navigate. No outside wheelchairs are allowed onto the 100+ year carpet inside. Wheelchair users who want to go inside will need to transfer into the wheelchair provided by the Blue Mosque (shown in the photo on the right).

Everyone walking will have to take off their shoes to enter. Wheelchair users will have to transfer to this wheelchair.

Hippodrome

This Istanbul accessible cruise excursion will visit the Hippodrome (aka Sultanahmet Square) located just in front of the Blue Mosque. Your professionally-licensed tour guide will tell you about the chariot races held here, the 3500 year old Egyptian obelisk, the “walled obelisk”, and the Serpent Column brought here from Delphi by Constantine I in 324 AD.

Basilica Cistern

The Basilica Cistern (also known as the Underground Cistern) is one of the most unique attractions you’ll see on this accessible Istanbul cruise excursion. This 6th century water storage cistern was fed by a 19 km long aqueduct, and it can hold 80,000 cubic meters of water. The ceiling is supported by 336 nine meter tall columns. Your accessible Basilica Cistern tour avoids the 52 steps at the entrance and includes permission to use the wheelchair lift at the exit (shown in the photos below).

Grand Bazaar

Your Istanbul accessible cruise excursion includes a visit to the Grand Bazaar, one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world. It consists of 61 covered streets and over 3000 shops. You will have time to shop in this 500+ year old market before heading to the next accessible tourist attraction

The Istanbul Grand Bazaar accessible tour will use one of the wheelchair accessible gates to enter the market (shown in the photo on the left). It will avoid entrances that have one or multiple steps (shown in the photo on the right).

Tour Details

Tour duration: 8 hours
Cost: €450 for 1 peson, €475 for 2 people, €525 for 3-4 people, and €575 for 5-6 people.

* 50 euro off if booked as part of an accessible cruise & excursions package.
* 20 euro off if booked as part of an accessible Istanbul travel package.
Days of the week the tour is offered: Only Saturday and Sunday (although the Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays)
Meet-up time: 8:30 am
Meet-up place: Cruise dock or accessible hotel lobby
Dress code: In mosques you will need to cover your knees and shoulders. Mosques can typically supply you with a piece of fabric to cover yourself. In the Blue Mosque, ladies do not need to cover their heads.
Maximum number of people on tour: Up to 10 people can travel comfortably on the tram. Larger groups may have difficulty staying together.
Entrance tickets: Not included. Topkapi Palace and TL. Hagia Sophia is 40 TL per person. Basilica Cistern is 20 TL per person.
To review our cancellation policy, please click: HERE. Tours run rain or shine.
Not included: Entrance tickets, snacks/meals, and gratuities. Tram tickets are included.

Not now, but send me Accessible Travel Tips

Get our 100% Free Accessible Travel Advice Newsletter

Learn the secrets of how to travel in Europe with a disability
Receive a €50 Accessible Travel Coupon for signing up!

"We could go on and on but this was the best trip that we could ask for. Our next trip will definitely be through you..."Read More...

"The Paris Accessibility Guide is the most valuable travel document I have ever encountered…"Read More...

"We had a splendid time in Europe, thanks to all your planning. We remarked again and again how difficult it would have been without your planning! Thanks again for the wonderful trip!"Read More...

"I wanted to let you and Mr. Sage know that we loved our accessible private tour of the Vatican…"Read More...

"Let me thank all you guys at Sage Traveling. I got my scooter in Berlin. It was a brand new Orion…"Read More...

"I am a wheelchair user and have just returned with my husband from a cruise which started in Istanbul and ended in Venice. The information you provided on both these cities was absolutely invaluable…"Read More...

"The hotel you recommended was very centrally located and within convenient walking distance to the Louvre and Notre Dame. We even walked to the Latin quarter and to the boat tour! Thank you again for making our trip a wonderful and manageable experience…"Read More...

"I just wanted to thank you for an excellent experience in Paris. The wheelchair was delivered exactly on time and we’ve been everywhere with it over the last two days…"Read More...

"We will certainly recommend your services to others and use you again in the future…"Read More...

Privacy | Security | Terms

Website design and development by Telezent