Home
About
Reviews
Justin J.
Semih was a fantastic guide. I highly recommend using him. Lots of people around us were listening in to hear what he
had to say and one even asked for his contact information so they could book him for another day. He is very knowledgeable and has a degree in archeology. He was able to help us skip the line at basilica cisterns and save us a lot of time waiting. He even took us all over the grand bazaar and showed us where to eat and helped us get back home when finished. Definitely worth the cost.
Abu K
Semih is a professional guide and doing this for more than a decade and he loves his job. Strongly recommend him
I booked a day trip of Istanbul with Viator while I was in the US. Semih Kajak was the tour guide from Viator who picked me up from the hotel as scheduled. From the very get go, he impressed me with his gentle overture and mild manner. He took me around and showed me all the attractions for several hours. A soft spoken gentlemen, He spoke fluent English and narrated the history that covered from third century to the present time with objectivity and honesty. He is a trained archeologist and demonstrated his immense knowledge on the history of this place. His narration of the time, people and the place was so informative and attractive that I felt like that he made them alive. I travelled many places in the world and have not met such a wonderful guide. His service was worth every penny. I felt like I was lucky to have him as my guide. He made my tour really worthwhile.
Andrea P
Excellent & enriching tour with Semih!
We booked this tour through Viator for our 1st day, it was absolutely wonderful & enriching! Our guide, Semih, was really fantastic! Very knowledgeable & kind, made sure we understood the history, art, culture, & significance of the places we visited & imagery. We learned so much & were able to continue our trip with a really good baseline of knowledge so that we knew what we were looking at & were able to put everything into context. This was supposed to be a small group tour but we ended up being the only ones, so it was just my husband & myself.
We visited the Islamic Arts museum, Hippodrome, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque & Topkapi palace museum. He made sure we stopped & got some Turkish coffee along the way. The Grand Bazaar was closed on our tour day (Sunday) so he took us to a couple of local places where we sipped tea & learned about the history of rug making, ceramics, & tiles in Turkey. It was fascinating! Semih also gave us fabulous recommendations for restaurants, Turkish baths/hamams, other key places to visit while in Istanbul. He even made sure were all set to continue our trip in Cappadocia & Ephesus once we left Istanbul.
I HIGHLY recommend this tour, whether in a small group or solo it was very enriching. I’m glad we chose to do this our 1st day so that we could have the context & get the lay of the land in a new city. There is so much to do & see in Istanbul that it can be overwhelming. I would absolutely do this again & recommend it to everyone who is looking to learn more about this really beautiful culture, country, & city.
Last note— I NEVER thought my husband would ever be interested in rugs. He was completely fascinated by the whole process & history lesson we received in the local rug shop. Who knew!!
Lara-Pomponio
My favourite day in Istanbul
What lovely day! I really enjoyed this tour. Semih is an amazing tour guide. I was fascinated about how he described Istanbul and its history. Semih was also a friend for me on a day that I was visit Istanbul alone. He helped me finding local shops that I needed and suggesting local food for lunch. Simply a perfect day. When I will look at my new carpet in my new house I will always remember this day. Thanks Semih
Travelislife
Amazing Knowledgeable Guide!!
This is my first ever review but I thought it was a must, as this was one of the most informative guides I have ever had in my over 10 years as a nomad! Semih was incredibly knowledgeable, informative, and yet flexible (being aware of information overload ;) His deep understanding of the history, archeology, and historical cultural mosaic of Istanbul and Turkish heritage are truly incredible and make the tour extra insightful!
Oscar C
Thanks, Semih
First off, Semih was 15 minutes earlier than we expected. Even though it rained for the beginning of our tour, Semih made sure we saw as much of Istanbul as we could. He was very knowledgeable and made it his business to make sure we enjoyed ourselves. He also provided us with options that were not part of the original tour. It was a great tour. Thanks, Semih.
Artemisia_T
The guide Semih was super nice and knowledgeable about the places we visited. It’s a good way to see touristic spots in Istanbul if you want to avoid getting lost and ask questions. The tour was a lot of fun. Also, there was only one other tourist besides myself in the group, which is always a plus.
Rosemary_C
There were only 2 of us on the tour so we had the chance to go into lots of detail with Semih and ask lots of questions to which he always had the answers! An excellent tour, lovely coffee break in a traditional Turkish confectioners and satisfying lunch. Definitely recommend Semih and this tour.
Randy M.
We had a wonderful introduction to Istanbul. Semih was very knowledgeable and helped us use the tram system to avoid
extra walking and used his contacts to help us skip the ticket line at the Hagia Sofia. The two Mosques were amazing and afterword he took us to the most amazing Turkish restaurant. I would definitely use Semih the next time we come to Istanbul.
James S.
Semih was fantastic. We had a great tour with him and he showed us all the highlights we wanted to see. He was very
infomative, knowlegeable and we enjoyed our tour with him immensely. He made Istanbul such a wonderful place!
Carolyn M.
Semih is a *fantastic* guide. We sent him a list of places we wanted to see in order of preference and the amount of
time we had available. He expertly put together a perfect schedule: Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, and Grand Bazaar. He had a wealth of knowledge about each place, and his English is very easy to understand. We wanted to eat some authentic Turkish food and he took us to a place that served us an incredibly delicious meal, very reasonably priced. We give Semih our highest recommendation.
Suzanne (Suzy) M.
Semih is an incredible tour guide, extremely knowledgable, able to answer any question about literally any Turkish
history topic. He covered all the highlights of Istanbul in one day and customized the tour. He even squeezed in lovely demonstrations by local artists and craftsman (his good friends) — porcelain pottery artists, weavers of beautiful carpets, AMAZING LOCAL food, and fantastic Spice Market stores with tastings! Book this (or literally any other) tour with Semih! You will be so glad you did!!
Chris V.
Semih was a very competent guide who showed us with a lot of passion and local knowledge his beautiful city. He speaks
fluent English and introduced us to the big 'bucketlist stops' but also to more unknown and lovely places. Highly recommended.
Julie M.
My husband and I enjoyed two full day tours with Semih who was knowledgeable and enthusiastic. We were met at our hotel
for the Seven Wonders of Istanbul tour and used public transport to travel around Istanbul. We were able to avoid the long queues at attractions which allowed considerably more time to enjoy them. We also had a delicious meal at a restaurant which we would never had found if we had been on our own. Semih escorted us back to the hotel at the end of the day.
Semih was a fantastic guide. I highly recommend using him. Lots of people around us were listening in to hear what he
had to say and one even asked for his contact information so they could book him for another day. He is very knowledgeable and has a degree in archeology. He was able to help us skip the line at basilica cisterns and save us a lot of time waiting. He even took us all over the grand bazaar and showed us where to eat and helped us get back home when finished. Definitely worth the cost.
Abu K
Semih is a professional guide and doing this for more than a decade and he loves his job. Strongly recommend him
I booked a day trip of Istanbul with Viator while I was in the US. Semih Kajak was the tour guide from Viator who picked me up from the hotel as scheduled. From the very get go, he impressed me with his gentle overture and mild manner. He took me around and showed me all the attractions for several hours. A soft spoken gentlemen, He spoke fluent English and narrated the history that covered from third century to the present time with objectivity and honesty. He is a trained archeologist and demonstrated his immense knowledge on the history of this place. His narration of the time, people and the place was so informative and attractive that I felt like that he made them alive. I travelled many places in the world and have not met such a wonderful guide. His service was worth every penny. I felt like I was lucky to have him as my guide. He made my tour really worthwhile.
Andrea P
Excellent & enriching tour with Semih!
We booked this tour through Viator for our 1st day, it was absolutely wonderful & enriching! Our guide, Semih, was really fantastic! Very knowledgeable & kind, made sure we understood the history, art, culture, & significance of the places we visited & imagery. We learned so much & were able to continue our trip with a really good baseline of knowledge so that we knew what we were looking at & were able to put everything into context. This was supposed to be a small group tour but we ended up being the only ones, so it was just my husband & myself.
We visited the Islamic Arts museum, Hippodrome, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque & Topkapi palace museum. He made sure we stopped & got some Turkish coffee along the way. The Grand Bazaar was closed on our tour day (Sunday) so he took us to a couple of local places where we sipped tea & learned about the history of rug making, ceramics, & tiles in Turkey. It was fascinating! Semih also gave us fabulous recommendations for restaurants, Turkish baths/hamams, other key places to visit while in Istanbul. He even made sure were all set to continue our trip in Cappadocia & Ephesus once we left Istanbul.
I HIGHLY recommend this tour, whether in a small group or solo it was very enriching. I’m glad we chose to do this our 1st day so that we could have the context & get the lay of the land in a new city. There is so much to do & see in Istanbul that it can be overwhelming. I would absolutely do this again & recommend it to everyone who is looking to learn more about this really beautiful culture, country, & city.
Last note— I NEVER thought my husband would ever be interested in rugs. He was completely fascinated by the whole process & history lesson we received in the local rug shop. Who knew!!
Lara-Pomponio
My favourite day in Istanbul
What lovely day! I really enjoyed this tour. Semih is an amazing tour guide. I was fascinated about how he described Istanbul and its history. Semih was also a friend for me on a day that I was visit Istanbul alone. He helped me finding local shops that I needed and suggesting local food for lunch. Simply a perfect day. When I will look at my new carpet in my new house I will always remember this day. Thanks Semih
Travelislife
Amazing Knowledgeable Guide!!
This is my first ever review but I thought it was a must, as this was one of the most informative guides I have ever had in my over 10 years as a nomad! Semih was incredibly knowledgeable, informative, and yet flexible (being aware of information overload ;) His deep understanding of the history, archeology, and historical cultural mosaic of Istanbul and Turkish heritage are truly incredible and make the tour extra insightful!
Oscar C
Thanks, Semih
First off, Semih was 15 minutes earlier than we expected. Even though it rained for the beginning of our tour, Semih made sure we saw as much of Istanbul as we could. He was very knowledgeable and made it his business to make sure we enjoyed ourselves. He also provided us with options that were not part of the original tour. It was a great tour. Thanks, Semih.
Artemisia_T
The guide Semih was super nice and knowledgeable about the places we visited. It’s a good way to see touristic spots in Istanbul if you want to avoid getting lost and ask questions. The tour was a lot of fun. Also, there was only one other tourist besides myself in the group, which is always a plus.
Rosemary_C
There were only 2 of us on the tour so we had the chance to go into lots of detail with Semih and ask lots of questions to which he always had the answers! An excellent tour, lovely coffee break in a traditional Turkish confectioners and satisfying lunch. Definitely recommend Semih and this tour.
Randy M.
We had a wonderful introduction to Istanbul. Semih was very knowledgeable and helped us use the tram system to avoid
extra walking and used his contacts to help us skip the ticket line at the Hagia Sofia. The two Mosques were amazing and afterword he took us to the most amazing Turkish restaurant. I would definitely use Semih the next time we come to Istanbul.
James S.
Semih was fantastic. We had a great tour with him and he showed us all the highlights we wanted to see. He was very
infomative, knowlegeable and we enjoyed our tour with him immensely. He made Istanbul such a wonderful place!
Carolyn M.
Semih is a *fantastic* guide. We sent him a list of places we wanted to see in order of preference and the amount of
time we had available. He expertly put together a perfect schedule: Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, and Grand Bazaar. He had a wealth of knowledge about each place, and his English is very easy to understand. We wanted to eat some authentic Turkish food and he took us to a place that served us an incredibly delicious meal, very reasonably priced. We give Semih our highest recommendation.
Suzanne (Suzy) M.
Semih is an incredible tour guide, extremely knowledgable, able to answer any question about literally any Turkish
history topic. He covered all the highlights of Istanbul in one day and customized the tour. He even squeezed in lovely demonstrations by local artists and craftsman (his good friends) — porcelain pottery artists, weavers of beautiful carpets, AMAZING LOCAL food, and fantastic Spice Market stores with tastings! Book this (or literally any other) tour with Semih! You will be so glad you did!!
Chris V.
Semih was a very competent guide who showed us with a lot of passion and local knowledge his beautiful city. He speaks
fluent English and introduced us to the big 'bucketlist stops' but also to more unknown and lovely places. Highly recommended.
Julie M.
My husband and I enjoyed two full day tours with Semih who was knowledgeable and enthusiastic. We were met at our hotel
for the Seven Wonders of Istanbul tour and used public transport to travel around Istanbul. We were able to avoid the long queues at attractions which allowed considerably more time to enjoy them. We also had a delicious meal at a restaurant which we would never had found if we had been on our own. Semih escorted us back to the hotel at the end of the day.
read more on
Photos
Onaguidedtour