Private & Guided Fener – Balat Walking Tour

Suleymaniye Mosque The first stop is Suleymaniye Mosque was built on the order of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and constructed by the great Ottoman architect Sinan. The construction work began in 1550 and the mosque was finished in 1557. The mosque is modeled in part on the style of a Byzantine basilica, particularly the Hagia Sophia, which was perhaps a conscious move on the part of the sultan to create a continuity and a symbolic connection with the city's past. 1 hour • Admission Ticket Free. Valens Aqueduct (Bozdogan Kemeri) After the mosque, we will have a tea-coffee break at Kadinlar Pazari under the shadow of the aqueduct of Valens. A really authentic square, filled with "buryan kebab" restaurants. 1 hour • Admission Ticket Free. Zeyrek Mosque Walking along the aqueduct will end at one of the oldest and most important churches now a mosque in the city Zeyrek Mosque or Monastery of the Pantocrator, A unique combination of two former Eastern Orthodox churches and a chapel. The Zeyrek Mosque is the second largest religious edifice after the Hagia Sophia to be built by the Byzantines remaining in Istanbul. 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free. Gul Camii Next stop will be the Gul Mosque, Gul Mosque started life as the 11th-century Church of St Theodosia and converted into a mosque by the Ottomans. 45 minutes • Admission Ticket Free. Hagios Nikolaos Greek Orthodox Church We will then continue to the beautiful districts of Fener and Balat to discover the Aya Nikola Greek Orthodox Church. 45 minutes • Admission Ticket Included. Fener Rum Ortodoks Patrikhanesi Kutuphanesi We will then continue to the beautiful districts of Fener and Balat to discover the Aya Nikola Greek Orthodox Church before visiting the Fener Orthodox Patriarchate The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is one of the fifteen autocephalous churches that together compose the Eastern Orthodox Church. Since 1586 the Ecumenical Patriarchate has had its headquarters in the relatively modest Church of St George in the Fener district of Istanbul. 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free. Balat Afterward, enjoy a break from sightseeing to have a drink and we will then wander around the labyrinth cobblestone streets of Balat to see Phanar Greek Orthodox College, this Fener landmark, known locally as Kirmizi Mektep for its castellated red-brick facade, still functions as a Greek school. Then we will visit Saint Mary of the Mongols, is an Eastern Orthodox church in Istanbul. It is the only Byzantine church of Constantinople that has never been converted to a mosque, always remaining open to the Greek Orthodox Church. 1 hour • Admission Ticket Free.