Istanbul Complete 5 Day Itinerary for First Time Visitors, Istanbul, Turkey

Istanbul is a vibrant city where East meets West literally, with stunning architecture and where the sound of a call to prayer echoes the city's fascinating history and culture.

Istanbul is a city that completely surprised me. I wasn’t expecting to love it as much as I did. Initially I was intrigued by a city that spans two continents, both Asia and Europe. However, with 5 days to explore, we soon discovered there so much more to Istanbul than just its location.

This was our first visit to Türkiye, and we made the decision not to spread ourselves too thin and focus our stay to the old Capital, Istanbul, formally Constantinople. When planning our trip to Egypt, we wanted to explore another destination nearby before our Viking Pharaohs and Pyramids Tour of Egypt, aboard Viking Osiris. Istanbul was a great choice!

There was only one place I wanted to stay during our stay in Istanbul, The Pera Palace Hotel. I am a lover of history, and this place is full of it! I loved it so much I wrote a whole separate post on it. The Pera Palace Hotel is located in Beyoğlu, the historical Pera district on the European side of the Bosphorus river.

The hotel is not just a stunning hotel, it is a destination in itself, that should be on your Istanbul itinerary. To find out more details about this amazing hotel and why I loved it so much, read my post on where to stay in Istanbul. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).