Islamic Istanbul Tour: Sahaba Tombs, Eyüp Sultan and Holy Relics

The tombs of the Prophet's companions in Istanbul are real places that can be combined with the city's main Islamic sites in a single day: the tomb of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari in Eyüp on the Golden Horn, a small graveyard by the walls at Ayvansaray, and then the Holy Relics chamber in Topkapı Palace, home to the Prophet's mantle. We build this route as a private Istanbul tour for families and groups, and the easiest way to run it is our private Istanbul city tour by Mercedes Vito with driver, from $220 for a group of up to six, with hotel pick-up.

For historical and religious context at every stop, we add a licensed guide through our Best of Istanbul private guided tour, from $199 per group per day, and you can ask for an Arabic-speaking guide. We do not sell an "Islamic tour" on a fixed timetable; we arrange the stops around your arrival day and the prayer times.

At a glance

How do you visit Eyüp Sultan Mosque and the tomb of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari?

Eyüp Sultan Mosque stands at the northern end of the Golden Horn, 20 to 30 minutes by car from Sultanahmet. Here lies Khalid ibn Zayd, Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, who hosted the Prophet in his house when he reached Medina. Already an old man, he set out with the first Arab siege of Constantinople between 674 and 678, died and, according to the accounts, was buried near its walls.

After the Ottoman conquest of 1453 the site of the grave was identified, and Ottoman sources credit Akşemseddin, the teacher of Mehmed the Conqueror. The mosque and tomb were built around it, and the district took the companion's name. At Eyüp each new Ottoman sultan was girded with the sword on taking the throne, a ceremony that served as a coronation.

Entry is free and the tomb is open outside prayer times. Our guides recommend arriving in the morning before the noon prayer, because the square fills up afterwards, and on Fridays especially. Around the mosque are plain restaurants serving kebabs and soup, and the food is halal, as everywhere in Istanbul.

The courtyard of Eyüp Sultan Mosque on the Golden Horn. Istanbul private city tour by Mercedes Vito with driver, from $220 per group

Above the mosque rises Pierre Loti hill, reached in minutes by cable car or on foot through an old Ottoman cemetery. From the café at the top you see the whole Golden Horn down to the Old City, a good break for older relatives and children.

The Golden Horn from Pierre Loti hill. Best of Istanbul private guided tour, from $199 per group

Where are the other Sahaba graves in Istanbul?

In Ayvansaray, where the land walls meet the Golden Horn walls, there is a small graveyard that Muslim visitors seek out. Tradition attributes two graves here to companions of the Prophet: Abu Shayba al-Khudri and Hamdullah al-Ansari. Historians treat the attribution with caution, so we present it to our guests as exactly that: an old tradition that people respect.

The site is quiet and needs no more than a quarter of an hour. Its weight lies in the setting: the Theodosian walls that held out against the Arab sieges and were breached by the Conqueror's army in 1453. Here many visitors recall the well-known hadith about the conquest of Constantinople.

On the same road stands the Kariye Mosque, formerly the Chora Church, with its Byzantine mosaics. We have covered its tickets and hours in our Kariye Mosque Istanbul guide.

Istanbul's Byzantine city walls. Istanbul private city tour by Mercedes Vito with driver, from $220 per group

What can you see in the Holy Relics chamber at Topkapı Palace?

This is the stop you cannot skip. In rooms that were part of the sultans' private quarters are kept the Prophet's mantle, known in Turkish as the Hırka-i Saadet, swords attributed to the Prophet, a footprint and letters of the Prophet. Most of these relics reached Istanbul after Sultan Selim I took Egypt and the Hejaz in 1517.

The Quran is recited in the chamber, so you hear the reciter's voice as you move between the cases. Photography is not allowed inside the rooms, and the chamber gets crowded at peak hours.

The combined ticket costs about 2,750 TL according to muze.gov.tr when we checked on 31 October 2026, and the palace is closed on Tuesdays. Allow at least two hours. Our Classic Istanbul private tour covers Topkapı, Hagia Sophia and the Grand Bazaar, from $200 per person.

Topkapı Palace, home of the Holy Relics chamber. Classic Istanbul private tour, from $200 per person

Which Ottoman mosques and tombs fit into the same day?

Near Topkapı is the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, which became a mosque again in 2020, and facing it the Blue Mosque, built by Sultan Ahmed I between 1609 and 1616 and lined with Iznik tiles. Hagia Sophia has separate entry arrangements for foreign visitors that change from time to time, so check them before you go.

On a higher hill stands the Süleymaniye Mosque, the architect Sinan's masterpiece for Süleyman the Magnificent. In its garden are the tombs of Sultan Süleyman and his wife Hürrem Sultan, two names almost every Gulf household knows from Turkish television dramas.

Süleymaniye Mosque above the Golden Horn. Classic Istanbul private tour, from $200 per person

Then comes Fatih Mosque, with the tomb of Mehmed the Conqueror, who took the city at 21. Fatih is one of Istanbul's most conservative districts, with plenty of Arab and Turkish restaurants.

The Sultan Ahmed Mosque, known as the Blue Mosque. Best of Istanbul private guided tour, from $199 per group

Private car with a guide, public transport or a group tour?

A private car with a guide suits families best, because the stops are spread between the Golden Horn and the Old City. You move without waiting and stop to pray at any mosque. The Vito seats six and the price is per group.

Public transport is cheap: the T1 tram to Eminönü, then a bus along the Golden Horn shore or a Golden Horn ferry to Eyüp. But it is slow and tiring with children and older relatives.

Group tours usually focus on Sultanahmet and rarely go to Ayvansaray. To compare, our Istanbul tours page lists all our programmes, and families will find more ideas in our guide to places to visit in Istanbul with family for Gulf families.

What this means for your trip

Mosques close to tourists for about 30 to 60 minutes at each prayer, and for longer at Friday prayer. We visit the mosques between prayers and join the congregation when the time comes.

Dress: modest clothing covering shoulders and knees, a headscarf for women, and shoes off at the entrance. Entry to mosques is free.

Halal food is everywhere. If you are staying a week, add our Bosphorus lunch cruise with hotel pick-up, from $75 per person, and a hammam from our guide to the best Turkish baths in Istanbul.

The order we suggest: Eyüp and Pierre Loti in the morning, then Ayvansaray, then Fatih and lunch, then Süleymaniye and Topkapı in the afternoon. Do not make it the day you land from Riyadh, Dubai or Cairo, and not a Tuesday.

Fatih Mosque and the tomb of Mehmed the Conqueror. Classic Istanbul private tour, from $200 per person

Questions travellers are asking

Plan it with us

• Classic Istanbul private tour, from $200 per person.
• Istanbul private city tour by Mercedes Vito with driver, from $220 per group of up to six.
• Best of Istanbul private guided tour, from $199 per group per day.
• Bosphorus lunch cruise with hotel pick-up, from $75 per person.

Book online or message us on WhatsApp at +90 545 307 67 88 with your arrival date and the size of your family.

Sources: muze.gov.tr, Daily Sabah, istanbultarihi.ist, checked 31 October 2026.