I searched this forum and didn't find any mention of several "city Passes" I am seeing online. I have looked at the Museum Pass, but it isn't cost effective for me on this trip. I planned to buy an IstanbulKart for transportation. But I came across other cards that include transport rides combined with sight tickets and/or tours. I see cards called "Istanbul E-Pass" , "Istanbul Welcome Card" (comes in 4 flavors), and "Istanbul Tourist Pass". Anyone use these or hear of these? Are they legitimate? The Istanbul E-Pass seemed to package a tour guide (no info on the tour guide/company) with an entry ticket to popular sights and also discounts at other spots. I can't tell how I get info on the tour guide/company or if I can get the entry ticket without the tour guide, as I'm not one to book tours with a tour guide I haven't researched. Anyone have any info on these tourist passes? Or do you just buy individual tickets and tours for your plans? Thanks for your help.
Posted by
Brooklyn, NY
4836 posts
We just returned from Istanbul last Thursday. We also couldn’t figure out the passes cause some cover some sites and other cards cover different sights.
We just paid as we went along. We checked the cruise shop schedule and visited the Topkapi Palace on a day without no cruise ships. We did take a small group tour of the Palace with Walks of Europe. (I am going to double check the tour group name in my notes so give me some time). The palace grounds are so vast you could spend an entire day here, seriously.
We did get the transit card. It is a little confusing at first, don’t let anyone help you, but you can tap with your CC too. Price difference is 35 TLira vs 50TLira. A difference of about 50 cents.
I will be posting my trip report on Monday if you want more insight.
Posted by
Salem, Oregon, USA
3531 posts
As with all passes you have to price out what you want to do and compare it to the cost of the pass to see if it offers value to your situation. I think some of the passes say "skip the line" but no one can skip the security line which is often the longer one. And as far as I know, none of the passes cover the Hagia Sophia (which is NOT the Hagia Sophia "Experience" which is a separate thing) and the Blue Mosque doesn't need a ticket. There are a lot of posts in the forum about various recommended tour guides, if you're wanting a deeper dive you might want to go that route instead of gambling on who you might get with one of the passes.
The Istanbulkart makes transit easier but you can now also tap and pay with a credit card or virtual card on your phone/watch. It looks like some of those passes have a few transit rides on them but it might not pencil out.