Need advice and recommendations for 3.5 day itinerary Istanbul/Cappadocia

I haven't been to Cappadoccia.

Rick's top sightseeing suggestions for many major cities are on this vary website. Go here for Istanbul:

https://www.ricksteves.com/europe/turkey/istanbul and click At a Glance.

Unfortunately, those lists don't get updated as often as they should be. The Chora Church is supposedly being converted to a mosque and is closed at the moment. You don't have to take a guided tour at the Dolmabahce Palace.

You'll have extremely limited time, so I'd focus on the Old City sights that sound most interesting to you, skipping things in the New Town like Istiklal Street, Taksim Square, Galata Tower and Dolmabahce Palace. That will save a bit of time.

Topkapi Palace is very large, with different buildings showing different things. Check your guidebook and consider not trying to see everything. However, I think this is the most interesting sight in Istanbul, so if you have no interest in the Grand Bazaar and only care about seeing one mosque, you may want to devote enough time there to see Topkapi in full, which would take over half a day for a close look. Topkapi is closed on Tuesday.

The stallholders at the Grand Bazaar ignore the No Smoking signs, so the air can be quite unpleasant late in the day. If smoke bothers you, go early.

There always seemed to be a line at the Basilica Cistern in September, but perhaps at this time of year the line will be insignificant.

The mosques close five times a day for prayers, at times that vary a bit, so check once you get to Istanbul to see what those times are. There's a good block of time in the morning and another in the afternoon, the latter probably beginning between 1:45 and 2:30 PM. There's a strict dress code at mosques, and women need scarves. The tourist-oriented mosques may either sell them or loan them. Shoes must be removed before you step onto the carpet.

It's a slog to travel between the city and Istanbul Havalimani Airport because of the combination of distance and traffic. Allow lots of time to get out there for your flight to Kenya. I needed to be at the airport 4 hours before flight time; I don't know whether that's Turkish Airlines' recommendation only for US flights or it applies to other international destinations. It's a large airport. You won't have anything like a full day for sightseeing on Tuesday.

I'm sure this is not what you want to hear, but I've got to say, I'm not sure your plan is realistic. It will only work if everything aligns perfectly. And you have a lot of things working against you. Here are some things to keep in mind:

• The balloons fly very early in the morning. In high season (summer) there may also be afternoon flights but you are going in winter, the low season. In November, it's going to be pretty cold up in that balloon (assuming you get to fly in it see below). You better have warm clothes, gloves, hat, etc and bundle up (I was there in March and it was very cold). The balloons fly at dawn, which is when winds are most calm. If the wind is blowing, they cancel (and this happens often). Given your extremely tight schedule, you will only have one chance, the morning following your arrival in Cappadocia. In winter, it's often windy, there are not a lot of customers, and they are prone to canceling. IF you do get to fly, they will pick you up at your hotel before sunrise, and drop you off mid-morning - then you would head to the airport to fly back to Istanbul. You will need some luck to pull this off, so before you commit to doing this, you should know going in that there's a high probability that you won't be able to do the balloon flight no matter how much you want to, so accept that before you make your plans.
• Must-sees if you have, basically half a day to see Istanbul...try to get a glimpse at the two great mosques, Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque, pop into the Basilica Cistern, and hit the spice bazaar (I actually think the spice bazaar is more interesting than the grand bazaar; grand bazaar is closed on sundays, I believe, you should check open ours for anything you hope to see) - fortunately these sights are all fairly close together in the old city, but it's a very ambitious plan given your very limited time.

Alas, I think you will find that basic logistics (getting from the airport to the city, getting around, finding your hotel, eating, sleeping, etc.) is going to chew up most of your time. My advice would be to swallow hard and skip the side-trip to Cappadocia - it will just eat up most of your time in Turkey, and given the uncertainties, you may have little to show for it. I'd spend that time in Istanbul itself rather than trying to get to/from Cappadocia - I mean you really only have 2 full days, that's barely enough to scratch the surface of Istanbul alone. I know this isn't what you want to hear, but I think your plan is not going to give you the experiences you want. I'd spend all the time you have in Istanbul, and come back another time for the balloon flight.

Good luck.

Thanks for your replies. A few questions:

1. Any particular areas that you would recommend staying in Istanbul that would minimize travel time to airport, but is not far away from the sights? Hotels that you would recommend?

2. We will reconsider Cappadocia, but if we do go I am looking at the possibility of flying directly to Cappadocia via Athens to avoid unnecessary trips to the airport, but don't know how long it might take to make the transfer at IST airport (no check-in luggage for us).

3. Should we take guided tour(s) in Istanbul? How do most tourists get around if they don't take a tour - Uber or similar? In some countries, one can hire a driver for the day, don't know whether this would be too expensive or done at all in Turkey.

1. Trying to choose a location to stay that minimizes time to/from the airport is not a thing. The airport is distant from the city, period, (an hour or more, depending on how you go). All of Istanbul is far from the airport, and the traffic throughout the city can be terrible, so there's little to be gained (in terms of efficient airport access) by choosing one neighborhood over another. That said, there is a major advantage in choosing a place to stay that's close to the areas you will be focusing on, especially for a very, very short trip. Many of the city's most iconic and best sights are in the old city, aka the Sultanahmet. You would be wise to find a place to stay there. The Sultanahmet is quite touristy, and much of it is super-crowded (and somewhat chaotic, but that's a feature not a bug). Many streets are crowded, bustling, and packed. Yet there are some sections of the Sultanahmet that are quiet, peaceful, and not so overwhelming. Rick's Istanbul guide will have many hotel recommendations, and I'm sure people here have their favorites. I liked the "Hotel Historia-Special Category" (odd name, but a nice small place tucked into a quiet corner of the Sultanahmet; tiny rooms but otherwise perfect for us, great location). You may be challenged to find a great hotel on such short notice (Istanbul is popular and crowded, I was there 2 weeks ago) but November is not high season so you may get lucky; good places to stay in the Sultanahmet are in high demand.
2. There is no "Cappadocia" airport. There are two small airports that serve Cappadocia, Kayseri (ASR) and Nevsehir (NAV). Neither has any flights to/from Athens, and almost all flights are domestic. Kayseri has most of the flights, including a few to other cities outside Turkey, but those are mostly (all?) "seasonal" (summer only) due to tourist demand; Nevsehir only has flights to Istanbul. In short, I don't think your plan to fly directly to Cappadocia is going to work (it might, but I'm skeptical, you'll want to look carefully at your flight options before you firm up any more plans). The good news is that (even in the off season) domestic flights within Turkey are crazy cheap, so you will find inexpensive flight options to get there ("there" probably will be Kayseri). That said, I don't believe your plan to fly directly there, zoom through Cappadocia and knock out that balloon flight in a day is very realistic or practical; my advice is to save that for a return trip and utilize the short time you do have all in Istanbul.
3. I'm not a big fan of guided tours, so can't help you with that. See Rick's books for recommendations, others may chime in here. The top attractions in the Sultanahmet are generally within walking distance (though it may be a lot of walking). Traffic there is nightmarish (we tried to take a taxi one day and abandoned it half-way to our destination after it got stuck in gridlock). Istanbul has a great public transit system, with trams, funiculars, ferries, and more. If you stick to the Sultanahmet, you may not need it (payment machines for transit can be confusing and finicky, see other threads on that). Public transit can be crowded at times, but is still useful if you need it. There's no functional Uber that we could find (the Uber app just directed us to a taxi!). Given the traffic, I would think twice (then think again) before hopping in any car in Istanbul - almost always, in the city, just walk or take a tram (or a ferry).

It's an incredible city, but it does come with some challenges and inconveniences. Good luck.

edited to add: David cross posted similar info, we must have been typing at the same time!

Good advice so far, but I'm a little confused by your follow up question re: flying to Cappadocia from Athens. You will be in Athens already (e.g., not coming from the USA)? It's unclear if you'll be jetlagged on Saturday or already acclimated.

My two cents:

• Cappadocia is not really an option for this timeframe. As David pointed out, the balloons go in the very early morning (my hotel pick up was 5:20 a.m.) and your timeframe gives you exactly one day - if the weather or wind is bad, you're SOL. And you don't have enough time to see the other amazing sights there which are worth a solid 2 or 3 days. Flying there from Athens probably won't save you much time since there are no direct flights and you have to transit at IST, where you want to be anyway. I wouldn't gamble very limited time and expense just for the balloon ride - and it was one of the most amazing things I have ever done.
• Given your short time, I'd stay in the historic Sultanahmet area which is walking/tram distance to all the big sights. Or in Karakoy which is easy tram ride to most spots. No hotels are convenient to both historic sites and the airport (it's an hour away). There are many hotel suggestions in this forum. Given your short notice planning you might just see what you can find on booking.com. I stayed on my own at Agora Guesthouse which was relatively inexpensive and well located (but not fancy). Our RS tour stayed at Galata's Hotel (nice business hotel).
• You can get by without a guide for most of the centrally located sites. The RS book has several good self guided walks that cover things well (with the caveat below re: dated info). Given you don't have much time to plan, you could hire a guide based on your interests. Many posts in this forum about suggested folks. SRM Travel is the company RS uses for Turkey guides. I did an excellent street food tour with them before my RS tour. And getting around, I walked and used the tram on my own time, no taxis (which by some accounts can be sketchy).
• Arrange an airport shuttle to/from airport. I used Welcome Pickups with good success. As acraven noted give yourself a LOT of time for getting to/from airport - it is at least an hour each way, usually more because of traffic. IST is a freakishly large airport.
• Note the current version of the Istanbul guidebook is dated December 2020 and is very out of date, especially prices (inflation in Turkey is unbelievable). As acraven noted, the information about many venues is also dated, in particular the Hagia Sophia (now a mosque) and the Chora Church (closed). Check online for everything you want to do/see.
• CWSocial posted extensive information about her experience on RS Tours and also visiting Turkey generally (here and here). Check them out, they will likely cover a lot of your questions.
• And very important you must buy your e-Visas ahead of time. Use the official site. Pick a day or two before your scheduled arrival just in case you have to change plans last minute.

Good luck!

Airport transportation is a bit easier from the New Town (north of the Golden Horn) rather than the Old City (south of the Golden Horn). But the unmissable sights--even though each of us would have a different list--are in the Old City. For ease of airport access, I'd recommend staying in the New City and taking a taxi, but for ease of sightseeing I'd recommend the Old Town. On my recent very long trip I initially stayed in the Old City and knocked out just about all the sights in that area. Then after visiting Bursa I stayed in the New City and saw things on that side of the Golden Horn and took a couple of boat trips. On a short trip like yours, there is no single, right answer.

The atmosphere is very different in much of the Old City; it would be a severe culture shock to some people. Have you been to Naples or Palermo? Much of the Old City is more crowded (also more "foreign") than those places.

Some of the Rick Steves tours stay at the Hotel Acra, in the Old City east of the Blue Mosque. I don't know anything about the hotel itself (may not even have walked past it), but I found myself in that area one afternoon and remember thinking it was considerably less crazy-hectic that the area west of Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque. There are a bunch of hotels in that area as well as many restaurants. Yes, it seemed quite touristy in the sense that there weren't thousands of local residents out on the sidewalks, but I think many folks would be happier there than in the area west of the two most popular mosques. It is a longer walk to the bazaars and to the tram line (easiest way to get across to the New City), but it's a good location for the Basilica Cistern, Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace and the Archaeological Museum. For airport transportation, this doesn't look very convenient; the distance would be somewhat longer. However, the taxi route might be able to skirt the worst of the Old City traffic congestion; I just don't know.

Warning: A few blocks east of that hotel area is Kennedy Caddesi, the main drag along the coast (possibly useful for airport taxis). Do not start walking north along the landward side of that road. The next place to turn back inland will be way north, and the sidewalk is mostly narrow and occasionally broken up, so you won't cover the distance quickly. In a few places the sidewalk disappears completely and you have to step into the road to move forward. Traffic moves quite fast. If you want to walk or jog in that area, cross Kennedy Caddesi to the water side as soon as you reach that road. You cannot cross the road anywhere unless you want to vault over the median--not impossible for a young person, I'm sure, but watch the traffic!

Hiring a driver for a day would be useless in central Istanbul as it would in any major European city. Istanbul traffic is extremely congested, so it's easier to walk short distances unless there's a mobility issue. There are lots of taxis around, and I'm sure the official rates are low. A taxi shouldn't be expensive even if it does get hung up in traffic--if it charges you the official rate (i.e., if it uses the meter correctly). I cannot tell you the odds of that happening because I used public transportation.

Get the City Mapper app (or use Google Maps) so you can check on whether there's convenient public transportation that will get you from where you are to where you want to be. Unfortunately, that means either buying individual transit tickets or buying an IstanbulKart stored-value card. The vending machines can be tricky, though some work fine and some tourists have no problem with them. I had massive problems until I found a machine in better working order and fed it currency rather than trying to use my credit card. The machines do take US credit cards. Ask your hotel where you can buy an IstanbulKart. It will come with TL 30 loaded, enough for two rides (no free transfers).

The Topkapi Palace has an audioguide that worked fine for me, but I mostly just enjoyed the architecture, decorative arts, etc. A guide would probably be useful in getting you around and to the most important highlights. The museum part of the complex is the area where you might get hung up in a line. A guide would know when that tends to be busiest and would try to get you there at a time when the entry line is short.

I'm sure I'd have benefitted from some guided tours in the sense of receiving very helpful background/historical information, but I tend to like to poke along and take pictures, so I used the do-it-yourself method. Rick's guidebook has detailed information on all the sights you're likely to visit. He is nothing if not thorough.

Thanks all for your advice, very helpful. We arrive in Athens from the US Friday afternoon, and will spend the night in Athens just to have dinner and relax. Then leave on Saturday morning for IST.

I looked up flights from IST to both ASR and NAV airports, looks like more flights to ASR. What I was thinking of, assuming we go to Cappadocia (my wife really wants to take a chance) is arriving in IST from Athens around 11 am and then taking the next available flight to ASR. TBD

We will look for hotels in Sultanahmet, and will check out Agora Guesthouse, as well as the Acra Hotel. I know I'll have more questions, am trying to see how I can satisfy the family travel committee including my wife and adult son.

I looked up flights from IST to both ASR and NAV airports, looks like
more flights to ASR. What I was thinking of, assuming we go to
Cappadocia (my wife really wants to take a chance) is arriving in IST
from Athens around 11 am and then taking the next available flight to
ASR. TBD

My last two cents on this: Unless you can find an airline that offers a one airline/ticket connection you will very likely need separate tickets for Athens-IST and IST-ASR. I am pretty sure that means you will need to exit through passport control and check back in to the second airline. That's simply not going to be fast if you are going through IST. I have no idea about speed of connections at SAW, the other Istanbul airport, which is a hub for some of the cheaper airlines.

I guess I do have one more two cents: carefully read the terms and conditions for the balloon ride. You must reserve ahead and many companies require full payment at reservation. If the flight is canceled due to weather conditions (determined by an official entity, not the balloon company) there is usually a full refund. But if you don't make your scheduled time slot (e.g. flight drama) or you don't cancel within a stated advance notice (usually 24-48 hours) many companies offer zero refund. Rides run $250-350 per person. One of my tourmates was ill the morning of our scheduled ride and was out of luck (no refund, no rebooking). FWIW the company we used for our RS tour is Kapadokya Balloons, located in Nevsehir (where the balloons typically take off) which is about an hour drive from Kayseri.

I appreciate the need to balance the interests of your traveling party, very best of luck sorting that out.

And my last 2 cents on this...Good advice above from many, including carefully reading the T&Cs for balloon cancellations. You are really, really trying to "thread a needle" with your plans and there are lots of ways things could go sideways. I fully understand trying to balance the spouse-really-wants-that-balloon-flight thing, you will have to make some hard choices.

Consider this: You are not doing yourself any favors by plopping down in Athens to "relax and have dinner" as your first stop in Europe, and spending your first night there. You waste a day that way, and it's not like you have days to waste. Your actual destination is either Istanbul, or possibly Kayseri. Stopping in Athens is going to make everything harder and less likely to produce the kind of experience you want. If it were me, I'd change my flights. Fly directly to Istanbul - nonstop from California.

FYI Turkish Airlines has nonstop flights from LAX, SFO, SEA and a half-dozen other North American cities every day. Cut out all the churn on the way, arrive in Istanbul and either stay there (better), or push right on to a connecting flight to Kayseri if you must. You get there -- ALL THE WAY there - in 12-16 hours, rather than what, 2-3 days? Do the math.

Will that cost you some money? Maybe. You've already had a major wrench thrown into your trip plans (Egypt cancelled). A wise person on this forum once said (paraphrasing): When some part of your trip plans collapses, apply money liberally, and don't look back. This might be a time to apply that axiom. Maybe it wouldn't cost you a lot to switch flights (many airlines are waiving change/refund fees for plans disrupted by events in the Middle East). Think about how much it would simplify things - and save you time - if you could step on a plane in LAX or SFO, and then just step off that same plane in IST 12 hours later. That may not solve all your issues, but it could alleviate some of them, and most critically, it buys you some time - literally - and time is (I think) the commodity that is by far the most constrained given your plans. That stop in Athens is going to cost you dearly (maybe not in $$$ but in time) – at least a day, maybe more (depends on your existing flight routing), and you are counting hours and minutes. I'd look hard at that nonstop flight to IST.

Just a suggestion. Good luck.

I looked at flying directly to IST, instead of stopping in Athens. That change will cost us $500 extra per person, compared to the cost of the alternative, which is to arrive in Athens and without going through Immigration take the next flight that evening to Istanbul, which is what we are planning right now.

Hello, Scott,
I disagree with a lot of the "nay sayers" regarding Cappadocia. It was the highlight of our Turkey trip we just got back and although my husband is handicapped, it was a dream come true. We flew from Istanbul (Turkish air) midday and reserved in advance the hot air balloon for the next day. It was a perfect day to remember. Stay a the Divan Cave hotel (+90.384.271.2189, fly into Nevsehir airport (it's closer), manager Eliz will arrange everything for you. If you need a private guide, which is recommended because you must have a car and driver, our guide Esma Guter was the most professional and wonderful guide to be with. You will not regret her (tel: +90.539.406.9198). You can do it and it is a lifetime experience to be in Cappadocia and get on the hot air balloon.
Good luck and enjoy the trip.
Sara Y.

I just returned from Turkey. Here's my .02. Yes it is a pain getting from New Town to the Old Town. However, if you get up and out in the morning, traffic is not too bad. Trying to go in the afternoon is when it is a nightmare.
To and from the airport is a pain. We used both airports in istanbul, IST and SAW. Long lines and multiple security checks. Not easy. To and from the airport really takes a lot out of your day.
If you're intent on a hot air balloon ride why not do it in africa? That's supposed to be amazing too. In Turkey I heard from friends that had their Cappadocia balloon flight cancelled due to wind so if that happened it would be really unfortunate.
We hired a guide in Istanbul, Metin Koca, to make the most of our time. He got tickets so we were able to skip lines which are very long to the major sites. He got us into the Hagia Sophia when it opened and we were the first to enter. It was amazing! Good luck on your trip!