» Day 10 - Istanbul (B,L,D)

After breakfast, we will enjoy a full day of sightseeing in Istanbul.  Our tour will start off with a visit to the 17th century Egyptian Bazaar,a charming marketplace that ranks as the second largest covered bazaar in Istanbul. This is the Egyptian Spice Bazaar, where the pungent and savory aroma of exotic oils, herbs and spices have perfumed the arched stone corridors for nearly 350 years. Even today this is the main address for those who want to purchase nuts, honey, dried fruits, traditional sweets and herbal remedies. From here we relax with a cruise by private boat of the  Bosphorus Strait,  the waterway that is the natural demarcation line between Asia and Europe. Along the way we will see the old Ottoman wooden mansions, marble palaces, foreign embassies estates and small fishing villages that line both shores of the Strait.  We will be entranced by the “front-door” views of the  Dolmabahce Palace,  the Rumeli Fortress and the Beylerbeyi Summer Palace. After lunch we will continue our tour with a visit to the Asian side of the city, with a visit to Camlica Hill, the high point of the city that gives visitors a panoramic view of Istanbul and the Bosphorus Strait. Today's tour will end with a visit to Beylerbeyi Palace, the 19th century summer palace of the last of the sultans that nestles in a small village by the Bosphorus called Beylerbeyi.