E-Mail is how we run support. Selin, Mehmet, and Zeynep handle every message about Hagia Sophia bookings personally — two-hour reply during Istanbul daytime, seven days a week. If we don't know something, we tell you we don't know.
Wir verwenden email for anything that warrants a paper trail — rescheduling, refund requests, accessibility arrangements, group bookings, press inquiries, invoicing. It gives both sides time to think and a written record afterwards. WhatsApp exists for the rare urgent same-day matter.
If you're within 90 minutes of your slot and something's wrong — missing QR, wrong queue, can't find the entrance — WhatsApp is faster than email.
Selin answers on rotation, 08:00–21:00 Istanbul · reply typically within 10 minutes during working hours.
Open WhatsAppSmall enough that you'll usually get the same replier across a thread. Each of us knows the building, the security queue, the audio-guide app, and the mornings when the light is best.
Six years coordinating Istanbul Tourist Information's three museum micro-sites. Former Byzantine-history graduate at Koç Üniversitesi. Answers pre-booking, rescheduling, and complex cases. Signs her emails.
Handles the WhatsApp line and any urgent same-day problem — missing confirmations, queue confusion, ticket reissues. Based in Sultanahmet; can walk to Hagia Sophia's door if necessary.
Fluent English, Turkish, French, Italian. Covers weekends and evenings. Specialises in group bookings, school visits, and accessibility arrangements. Writes the longest and most helpful replies in our team.
Transparency about scope saves time. Some things we handle directly; some belong to the Ministry of Culture; some sit with your airline.
Three windows. Same policy every day of the year. No weather clauses, no "non-refundable under promotion" exceptions — we don't run those promotions.
Full refund, automatic upon email request. Processed to original payment method within 3 working days. Or reschedule free to any open slot, any date, any week.
Rescheduling free if availability exists. Refund 70% (we've held the slot and it can't be resold). Illness or documented travel disruption usually Ergebnisse in full refund at discretion.
Not refundable in most cases — the slot is counted in. Exceptions for genuine emergencies (documented). Rescheduling possible if a later same-day slot opens.
Istanbul Tourist Information Ltd is a TÜRSAB-licensed travel agency, registered in Sultanahmet, trading since 2016. We run five related micro-sites — this one, Topkapı, Basilica Cistern, Bosphorus, Whirling Dervish — because Istanbul's attractions each deserve a dedicated explanation. Support is smaller and better this way.
Payments are processed by Stripe — we never see your card number. Correspondence handled in five languages across the team. Ministry-approved, TÜRSAB-registered, member of ETOA (European Tour Operators Association).
For formal complaints or escalations we can't resolve, TÜRSAB maintains an independent complaint channel. Details on request.
Three documents rewritten in plain English. Booking terms, refund policy, privacy policy. Lawyers permitting, we keep them this way.
What you agree to when booking. Covers the timed entry scan, security queue, dress code expectations, and our obligations if we cancel.
Read termsThe three windows above, formalised. Nothing hidden. What's on this page is what the signed document says.
Read policyWhat personal data we keep, for how long, and your GDPR rights. Short version: email, booking slot, payment reference. Nothing else.
Read policyOur best bookings come from guests who emailed first with a specific question. "I have three hours on Thursday — is this the right move?" or "My mother is 75, will she manage the stairs?" We reply with two paragraphs of thought, not a sales pitch. No pressure either way.
The FAQ covers six categories and the most-asked twenty-four questions with detailed honest answers. Usually faster than waiting for an email reply.