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Added by Jopie, at 12 September 2016
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29 Reviews
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26 March 2020
Apart from the entrance fee, if you want to borrow one of those self-guided recording machines, you have to pay an extra fee as rent. I did not rent one; and did not regret that much as the interior of the museum is not that big after all. There is a free video corner next to the hall and you can still get useful information from the video. Construction was taking place inside the hall.
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12 March 2020
Currently under renovation/reconstruction/restoration with heavy scaffolding in the middle and in some areas up stairs.
That said it is one fine piece of work.
Lower and upper levels amazing effort to make it such a respected place.response / report this review -
04 March 2020
A must see when you visit to Istanbul. It will be one of the highlights of your trip. Hagia Sophia is a breathtaking place and rich in history. It is massive, impressive and has a stunning architecture. It gives you a chance to walk through the history with lots of sightseeing. Mix of Christian and Muslim faiths inside. It will worth your money to hire a professional tour guide ; so that you can discover more. There are some souvenirs you can buy any gift for your friends. You are advised to go early in the morning. Coming by tram will be the most reasonable transportation option for you.
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18 February 2020
Recommended. Do a bit of research before you go. You'll appreciate it more.
It's more a conserved building than a 'museum', in that it lacks detail/that extra touch detailing the background and history of the building and it's contents. Which is shame, but you can still fully appreciate it.
There were a few info panels. But without a audio guide (which wasn't the greatest in itself), or a paid for tour guide, you'll miss out on the greater fascinating insights and history.
But it's a beautiful building, with a rich history. And quite unique.
We visited on a Sunday. Busy, but not crowded. You'll easily spend a couple of hours here. Though I suspect a lot of folks will be in and out for photos within an hour.response / report this review -
05 February 2020
Spectacular. The peaceful mix and preservation of so many religions and cultures in one building. We are lucky to have it.
The guided tours are expensive, but interesting.
For me the best part was seeing the viking graffiti, made about my family ancestors.
Worth a look is of course the tombs. You have to go out and around the building to enter. It is free.
The only reason not to give it full 5, 0 points is that the guards wouldn't let us go back to the toilets after we had literally just passed the exit point.response / report this review -
04 February 2020
In awe at the grandeur of the place. It hard to imagine how the ancient people managed to build such a magnificent piece of artwork. Every aspect of the place just makes you go speechless. Don’t forget to head up to the second floor (about 5 stairways up) to check out the beautiful retains murals of Christ and Virgin Mother Mary.
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03 February 2020
This place is breathtaking. I have been to many sights in many countries in the world, but this beautiful museum cannot be compared to anywhere else.
It is the meeting and visualization of cultures and religions from past to present time. Such a wonderful place with beautiful leftovers kept from history.
This place is - unequivocally- a must-see sight that you have to visit in your life!!!!response / report this review -
23 January 2020
This church is very unique. He has both Christianity and Islam. Here you can see the cross-shaped building representing Christianity. Here you can see the symbol of Allah representing Islam. High ceiling. There are very gorgeous decorations and murals ~ Both of these religions can be seen at the same time ~~ Although it is still invisible during maintenance ~ Very amazing ~
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17 January 2020
Such a beautiful monument/museum with an even more incredible history. You can clearly see both Islamic and Christian influences in the architecture and designs. According to our guide there were even influences from other religions in the designs!
The structure is huge and imposing. It is highly advisable to take a guided tour as there are a lot of snippets of information which will make the visit even more engaging.
You will surely get stunning photos of the dome/ceiling and the gold gilded room in the corner.
It is very accessible through the tram line.response / report this review -
22 April 2018
A must visit for first timers in Istanbul. I was in awe all the way from the outside to the inside of the building. Rich with textures and histories and you will just feel wow as you walk slowly and see the magnificent structure and the marble tiles everywhere. As a Muslim, it’s very important to learn the history behind it so that we can learn and appreciate about all religions. It might take a while to queue, so try to be early if you want to visit this place. It’s about 40 LT per person. There might be other people harassing you as you queue though, telling you that they can provide guided tour and you can cut the queue but that’s entirely up to you. They looked a bit shady to me and I just ignore them. But bottom line, have to visit this place at least once in your life. Try to go on weekdays. Weekends is a killer but if you have no other choice, then come by really super early. You won’t regret it. :)
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20 April 2018
A must see when in Istanbul. So must history and such an interesting building, mixing Christian and Islamic art under the same dome.
Take your time and really take in the extraordinary marble floors and doorways.
The queue to get in can take a while, but I recommend just waiting rather than paying extra for a "tour guide". You can easily see the whole thing at your own pace.response / report this review -
11 April 2018
Very beautiful place. The Ottoman Empire, now Republic of Turkey, has really taken a very good care of this place. Although after more than 1000 years of age, everything is intact and we can still feel like we live in that era. Worth every penny you pay for the entrance, although I think could be cheaper. I think the maintenance of such building at this age cost a lot of money.
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05 April 2018
This was originally a Church which was turned into a Mosque & is know a museum. You will find many amazing pieces of art & history. The entry fee is 40 TL & is absolutely worth it. The security inside are of no help & rude so don’t expect anything from them.
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01 April 2018
I bought the Museum Pass in particular because it included Fast track entry to this.
Got there at 9.20. Asked the guards for the fast track entrance and they pointed to the long line and said everyone already has tickets. Ended up waiting 50minutes to get in because so many people (including entire tour groups) were jumping the line and the security did nothing to stop them!
Once you get inside the premises on the line with people with tickets and passes, they put half the people who just bought tickets into the same security check as you! So the other half of the people who just bought the tickets actually got in faster than the rest of us!
Once you get in, the place is quite beautiful. Although crowded, it does have a special vibe to it. Also, there is a video playing at the entrance of the building which gives a long explanation. Audio guide was 30TL but I didn’t get one.
Was it worth the wait? Not for me. Maybe if I had jumped the queues too, I would have been in a better frame of mind. Part of the dome was also under renovation, blocking part of the view.response / report this review -
30 November 2017
Was a Greek Orthodox church that was turned into a Mosque and now its a museum! An iconic landmark that must be visited in Istanbul! Tickets prices are reasonable. Two religions under one roof. I had this place on my bucket list and I'm so happy I got to visit it.
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22 November 2017
Magnificent piece of architecture to visit if you are in Istanbul. Make no mistakes: despite not as tall as the nearby blue mosque, its dome is one of the largest in the world and bare in mind it was first used as Christian orthodox cathedral. That tells you the richness of the culture and diversity that went through the capital. Strongly recommend !
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21 November 2017
Great museum, was built as a Church, converted to mosque and then to a museum later. It reflects the religious harmony as you can witness symbols of Christianity and Islam here. Being one the most visiting attraction in town it pulls a lot of crowed so hire a professional guide to avoid long ques and enjoy the history in details. It would be great to do a little research n read a little its history of before visiting.Must go place in Istanbul. Highly recommended.
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14 November 2017
Hagia Sophia was Turkey's most visited tourist attraction. Hagia Sophia is one of the greatest surviving examples of Byzantine architecture. Its interior is decorated with mosaics and marble pillars and coverings of great artistic value. The greatest cathedral ever built up to that time, and it was to remain the largest cathedral for 1,000 years up until the completion of the cathedral in Seville in Spain.Wonder of the world.The church was richly decorated with mosaics throughout the centuries. They either depicted the Virgin Mother, Jesus, saints, or emperors and empresses. Other parts were decorated in a purely decorative style with geometric patterns.Because of its long history as both a church and a mosque, a particular challenge arises in the restoration process. A must see.
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14 October 2017
The museum is magnificent with a long and interesting history. However, it was under extensive renovation and covered with scaffolding and sheets when we visited. There wasn't much to see and it was almost impossible to take a good photograph. We finished our visit in 30 minutes and didn't feel it was worth the 40 lira entrance fee. It would have been fairer for the museum to offer discounted tickets if it was under renovations.
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22 September 2017
Incredible architecture, history, and place of worship for Christianity and Islam. Highly recommend visiting when you're in town, and get a tour guide so you can learn more of the details and background while you're there. Make sure to take a lap through the upstairs for amazing inside/outside views and closer views of the ceiling tiles and decorations. Undergoing some facelifts currently but the scaffolding only partly obscures views.
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17 September 2017
Beautiful Museum! Hagia Sophia was first constructed as a Church and was then converted into a Mosque. Great to see the different symbols of both religions come together in one place. The architecture is amazing as well as the Arabic calligraphy. Queues can get quite long so it does help to have the Museum pass when visiting this site. A part of the inside is also currently undergoing renovations but one can still experience the total effects of the building. Really does help to read up a little on the history of the place before visiting.
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10 September 2017
Beautiful and peaceful landmark location in Istanbul. There's a lovely park nearby and plenty of food options. I prefer coming here at night time, it's quite beautiful and humbling.
The infrastructure is amazing and it's a short 8 minute walk from the tram station.response / report this review -
23 August 2017
Hagia Sophia is a 7000 square meter building that houses history of over 1700 years ago. It shows how great buildings were made in times that technology was not as far as it is now, where buildings can be set up in no time. Breathtaking marble pillars that are way bigger than you can ever imagine. Candles as tall and big as street lighting. It is a place worth visiting if history makes you go wow.
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21 August 2017
Transports you back in time, magnificent architecture which fills you with awe as soon as you enter - and it just keeps going! Don't miss out the balcony view upstairs, it takes on a different level of brilliance and a closer look at the upper structure and design. Utterly fascinating to see how Islamic and Christian design influences stand side-by-side here in harmony, and it just works. An absolute must see.
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08 February 2017
Visited Hagia Sophia second time in my life already. This time with my 1 year old daughter. I was wise this time to hire a local guide from the entrance. He was very polite and made us undestand the HS story in short. I would recommend to use the guides. We paied 50 Turkish liras for 30 min. Also the place is accessable with stroller. The masterpiece itself is a puzzle consisting of so many different pieces. It's cold inside so dress warmly. During summer it is of course nice and chill as the weather is hot outside. Overall a great place to visit and understand the history.
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20 January 2017
This is a truly special place. You can actually touch history. Every wall in Hagia Sophia speak to you about a magnificent past. I loved this museum and also Istanbul. I will be going back asap.
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24 December 2016
One of the best attractive places I've saw in my trip! Amazing place with a lot of items and historical things though the ages, in the Christian til the Osman's time. I loved a lot the audio guidance for every spot you go, but unfortunately the audio guidance wasn't so accurate because sometimes we had to search in the spot about the things he mentions without successfully finding them out! Also the payment was so expensive in my opinion, me and my wife payed 80 TL for the entrance, and payed another 30 TL for the audio guidance! Whereas we entered the "Blue Mosque" and other huge places for free
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18 November 2016
Hagia Sophia is very magnificent, beautiful and wonderful
However, it is difficult to use normal taxi around
Istanbul taxi drivers are cheaters. Please be careful.
Car number 34 TEN 24 Taxi driver is a cheater
This taxi driver is the disgrace of Istanbul
I took a taxi from Hagia Sophia to the Park Inn by Radisson hotel.
I paid $ 100 for the fare, but the taxi driver magically switched to a $ 1.
And the taxi driver threatened me to pay more.
I had to pay an extra $ 50.
As a result, I had to pay $ 150 for a 20km taxi fare.
Are all Istanbul taxi drivers a magician or thief?
Car number 34 TEN 24 Taxi driver is a real robber
I will not go to Istanbul again
Istanbul is a really lucrative city.response / report this review -
19 September 2016
Massive, grand and spectacular. No other way to describe this place. Spectacular views, more so in the evening times when the whole place is lighted up. Place of worship. Must visit if in Istanbul. Well connected by trams. Located opposite to the Blue mosque. Entry fee applicable.
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