Santa Sofía Reviews

Very nice historical place, but currently it is under maintenance

Good place to visit. Liked it though its under renovation

Hagia spohia and blue Mosque are next to each other.. standing in the middle of both is like being around too much beauty

It s truly a historic gem and surprisingly quite accessible for a manual wheelchair. The personnel was very helpful too, not that I m surprised because people in Turkey are kind.

Absolutely amazing place, really blows your mind when you see the scale! Incredible mix of muslin and Christian art, beautifully restored and revealed.

I come back to Istanbul just to visit Hagia Sophia, built around 500 a. C. It has the largest dome ever built and it has been there over 1700 years. I am Cristian and now the Turkish government has said it will be a mosque again.

The interior of this place is simply a work of art! Origibally built as a church then later turned into a mosque and now it's a museum. It reallyy shows you the transitions.

It's expensive to visit for some tourists, especially Iranians.

It's a very old historical place. Anyone who visits Istanbul must visit this place. Inside it you can find some things older about 2000 years.

This place is really special.it s a reminder of how peaceful the religions are you can see islamic and christian symbols at the time. The entry costs 40 lira

exceptionally beautiful, a place to go in Istanbul. The Hagia Sophia is the center of Istanbul and its million-stone is here.

However it is still in renovation and will be for a long time

It's a historical place, entry fees is 72 lira and you have to only cash. Except entry fees once can visit this place to have a life time peaceful ness

Omg what a church! There is still reconstruction going on but still you can see the majority of the place. Crowded. But I don't knits why I didn't bother going there all these years. What a history and gem.

So beautiful! No words do justice. Treasure trove of rich history and art. Hard to believe the finesse in architecture and design for such a historic preservation

The place is massive full of history. Worth visiting. Ticket costs 40 TL

I thing one of the most popular touristic place to visit in Istanbul

Exactly what I imagined, but wish the construction wasn t going on.

Worth visiting
The entrance ticket is 75 turkish liras
Everyone should see it at least once.
Interesting mixture of islamic and christian culture.

Beautiful place beautiful place loved it full of history

Thousand years of history under one roof. The place is colossal. It's definitely a must if you are visiting Istanbul.

One of the most historical and beautiful buildings in the world

There are no words for how deep the historical beauty is.

Been many times and it still takes my breath away. To build this building in a few years 1500 years ago is incredible.

The place where Christian and Moslem were merged into one big place

One of the most amazing buildings I've ever been in. We had a guide for this tour and while I dont normally bother with a guide, it was worth it. We learned a lot we would not have know about otherwise

One the most historic monuments around the world, full of history, evident by the party-visible (Christian) murals. Architecturally is stunning, showcasing the best of the Byzantine era.

The ticket line can get long so plan accordingly. Access with metro line and tram.

I first visited the Hagia Sophia 60 years ago as a child. It still impresses me with its shear size and beauty. If you are in Istanbul you must see this iconic symbol of the city. It began as a Christian Basilica, became a mosque and since the 1930's is has been a museum.
Get there early, the ticket lines are long. Also don't miss the upper gallery. The entrance is at the end of the entrance hall and you will have a wonderful view of the people,way down at ground level

Beautiful place. Amazing history, and shows the fusion of 2 religions. I recommend to hire a guide. A 1 hour guided tour will cost you 70tl, and they are all around the place.

Historical icon worth seeing, but struggled to spend more than half an hour there as there isn't much to see other than the interior.

The Hagia Sophia is an enormous architectural marvel in Istanbul, Turkey, that was originally built as a Christian basilica and then transformed as a mosque

It's an amazing story about Islam meeting Christianisme in such beauty & harmony

Do NOT miss this if you visit Istanbul. Such a marvelous combination of a mosque and a cathedral. The architecture is amazing and so are the features that have been added.

It was under extensive renovation, so many of the spots were unaccessible.

Really nice tourist place. But you might need a nice tour to really understand the beauty of this place

Amazing experience. Hagia Sophia is speaks a volume about Modern day Turkey and its founder Kemal Atartuk.

beautiful and meaningful museum. symbol the beauty of tolerance.

You know what i love about Istanbul?you can see cats everywhere.

Hagia Sophia Museum is a spectacular place to visit. I have had very good time visiting different places in Istanbul and Ankara. There were two unpleasant experiences with the Taxi service. When I hired a taxi form Hagia Sophia for the Ataturk Airport, the driver said the fare will be 125 TL, but his meter showed 165 TL at the airport. This was a minor issue. However, when I gave a 100 TL bill along with smaller bills, he played a trick and showed me a 20 TL bill as if I gave him 20 TL bill. Now I did not even have with me a 20 TL bill. So I had to give him more dollar bills. Similar thing happened in Ankara as the taxi driver cheated me of 200 TL. I think the solution to this may be taking a picture of the bills before handing them to the driver; or give them one bill at a time say loudly that this is 100 TL bill or 20 TL bill. I met another tourist in Prince's Island who told me similar experience. So it seems that like any other big cities, you find some dishonest taxi drivers in Turkey too.

Historical museum.. must visit !!! And feel the ancient art and architecture technology!

Fantastic place to visit. A combination of to cultures!

Beautiful place and history. Well kept. There was even a video being played explaining the history and development of Hagia Sophia

Another Muslims greatest victory , very unique and historical place Aya Sofia mosque.

The place is old showing multi culture mixed together. The price of the ticket is faire. Not that much attractive for me but still the place is one of the must to visit!

Amazing Museum. Can not imagine how they made it at that age..

Do read up on the history of Hagia Sophia Museum before you go, or get a good tour guide, it puts everything into perspective.

Now, the powers-that-be want to make it into a mosque again and I read that on July 1 2016 a muezzin's call to prayer reverberated inside the Hagia Sophia for the first time in 85 years, so don't put off visiting this monument of art ,it is a feast for the eyes and who knows for how long, given the unrest in Turkey at the moment.

Almost half of it is under restoration..however, it's beautiful..Take a quick tour of the guide if you're a not a history buff just outside the museum. Without a guide, it won't be fun.

No words. You can clearly feel the pass of history.

Definitely skippable if you've visited Topkapi palace

beautiful place but most of it was under repair so we could not see much of it.

Very very great architectural beauty always filled with flow of people until its closing time. A must-visit place if you are in Istanbul.

Magnificent. You can feel the richness of the history behind this Masjid and the struggles that it has been through.

One of the most beautiful building I've ever seen in my life! It's just outstanding and so impressive.

Lots of beautiful mosaics, take a peek out of the windows on the upper floor towards the blue mosque...

Beautiful, worth the visit. Getting a guide will also provide more interesting information

Very beautiful place, impressive!! If you go to Istanbul you must visit there

If you're new to Muslim culture, this is a nice places to learn a touch of it. When I went, there was a volunteer inside to give us information about the mosque.

Given it's reputation, it's a letdown. The scaffolding around the buildings doesn't help.

One of a kind museum that anyone visiting Istanbul ought to see.