Mosques and museums — what to wear, when to go

Istanbul's great mosques are working places of worship that welcome visitors, and its museums are busy. Both reward a little planning.

Visiting a mosque

Dress. Shoulders and knees covered, for everyone. Women cover their hair with a scarf. Loose, non-transparent clothing is the idea; nobody expects anything elaborate.

Scarves and wraps at the door. The main visitor mosques — including the Blue Mosque (Sultanahmet Camii) and Hagia Sophia — keep scarves and long wraps at the entrance for anyone who needs them, free of charge. You do not need to buy anything from the men outside offering to sell you a scarf.

Shoes. Take them off at the carpet's edge. There are shelves, and plastic bags are usually provided. Carry your shoes with you rather than leaving them at the door.

Prayer times. Mosques close to visitors for around 30 minutes at each of the five daily prayers, and for longer around midday on Fridays, when the main weekly sermon takes place. The Blue Mosque is closed to tourists at these times. Plan to arrive well after a prayer ends rather than just before one starts, and check the day's times — they shift through the year with sunrise and sunset.

Inside. Speak quietly, walk behind people who are praying rather than in front of them, and do not photograph worshippers. Photography of the building itself is generally fine without flash. Entry to mosques is free; donation boxes are voluntary.

One exception. Since 2024, Hagia Sophia charges foreign visitors a separate fee for its upper gallery, which has its own entrance and is ticketed like a museum. The prayer areas of Hagia Sophia and of every other mosque in the city remain free to enter.

Museums and palaces

Closed days — check before you go. Several major sites keep a weekly closing day, and these do change:

• Topkapı Palace has traditionally closed on Tuesdays.
• Some other state museums close on Mondays.
• The Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays and public holidays. It is a market, not a museum, but the same trip is often planned around it.

Opening days and hours change with the season and with official decisions, so verify on the day. The app's ticket section shows the current availability for the sites we sell.

Queues. The old city fills up between roughly 10:00 and 15:00, and cruise-ship days are worse. Arrive at opening, or go in the last two hours before closing. Late afternoon light on Sultanahmet Square is also the best of the day.

Tickets. Buying online or in the app avoids the ticket-office line, which at Topkapı and Hagia Sophia can be the longest part of the visit. Keep the QR code available offline in case the square's mobile network is congested.

The museum pass sold for Istanbul can be worth it if you are visiting several state sites in a few days; do the arithmetic against your actual list rather than assuming.

A few habits that help

• Bring a scarf anyway if you plan several mosques; it saves queuing for the loaner ones.
• Water is allowed almost everywhere; food is not.
• Drones are not permitted at historic sites.
• Ramadan and religious holidays change everything: mosques are busier, some museums shorten hours, and the old city is full in the evenings. Beautiful, but plan for it.

If a stranger at the gate tells you a site is closed today and offers to take you somewhere better, walk to the entrance and check for yourself.