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EMRE OZKARA

Private tour guide in Istanbul

Guide profile:

My name is Emre. I am a fully licensed English speaking tour guide with 15 years of experience in tourism. I live in İstanbul for 8 years with my lovely wife and colleague NESRİN. Tour guiding is our full-time job and we both have had tourism education at tourism departments of different universities. We usually take private excursions with small groups of Americans and Canadians in İstanbul. We also have round trips in the west and eastern TURKEY. We run different tours of big companies as OCEANIA CRUISES, ROYAL CARIBBEAN CRUISES, HOLLAND AMERICANA LINE, OAT groups of GRAND CIRCLE. We are both experienced tour guides giving you not only the history but also the real culture of İstanbul and TURKEY. We know that there is nothing like a local touch on touristic visits. No matter you are interested in Roman, Ottoman or Turkish culture and history, you can live the real past and present of this beautiful country with us. LET US SHARE OUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE WITH YOU!

Recent reviews of this tour guide:

Yvonne B.

Emre was our guide yesterday,5th November and I can only highly recommend him! His knowledge about the history and culture of Turkey and especially Istanbul is incredible! We had a lot of fun and learned a lot :-). His English is impeccable and he took us around to the places we wanted to see, never rushing us, but going with the flow. We hope to come to Istanbul soon again for a longer time - not just a day, and will book Emre again. Our best regards to you lovely wife as well from Yvonne & Co

All ratings/reviews »

Tour guide services/sample itinerary:

*Walking tours in İstanbul and visits the highlights of the old town as Hagia Sophia, Topkapı Palace, Blue Mosque, huge cisterns, enormous mosques and the large museums of the town.

*I can pick you up from the port with our car and after the tour drop back to the harbuor.

*We can visit the old Jewish synagogues of Askenazis and Sepharads in İstanbul.

*Guiding around TURKEY from west to eastern TURKEY for individuals and private groups.

*Tailor-made round trips with hotel reservations.

*Running your tours as a driver-guide for individuals and small groups or families (2-4 pax) on city tours and round trips, as well.

*Arrival & Departure transfers between the airports and hotels with a private car.

*Private air-conditioned family car or private vans are available for your tours and transfers.

Transportation by tour guide:

*Operate your tours and transfers with a private air-conditioned Station Wagon car for max. 4 people. (You can see our family car in pictures of the sightseeing tours below.)

*If you are more than 4 people, also a private van with a driver is available for your tours and transfers.

Private sightseeing & group tours offered by this guide:

JEWISH HERITAGE TOUR BY CAR	Price Per Group 350.00 USD
ASIA SIDE OF İSTANBUL	Price Per Group 350.00 USD
BOSPHORUS CRUISE	Price Per Person 150.00 USD
TOP BYZANTINE HIGHLIGHTS	Price Per Person 125.00 USD
WALKING THROUGH OTTOMAN HIGHLIGHTS	Price Per Person 150.00 USD

Tour guide interests:

Archeology, history,climbing and hiking, travelling, driving, music (I play classical guitar and piano), all sports, self-defence, karate.

Reviews of this tour – by clients who booked!

Yvonne B. 05 Nov 2011

Marta J. 10 Sep 2011

It was our pleasure to spend Day two of our trip in Istanbul with Emre. He planned several stops for the day that were just spectacular places. He entered the spice market with me to find the spices that I would need to go home and prepare Turkish dishes. Emre does an excellent job explaining the nuances of Istanbul and if you weren't already in love with Istanbul you were after spending the day touring with him in the city. Emre was a pleasure to have as a guide and we would call him again.

Christopher T. 13 May 2011

Emre was an excellent guide with perfect command of English. He had a great depth of knowledge about Istanbul and was able to convey this with great humour and a real liveliness that made the sites come alive. The party of visitors I was with really felt we could not have had a better guide and we all very much benefited from our time with him. I can really recommend him as a guide for any English speaking tourists.

Tour Guide Comment: Thank you for yur grear comment Chris. I'll be waiting for a longer trip together in Turkey.Say hello to all your party.Stay in touch.

michael N. 25 Dec 2010

He did a very good job.

Joanne B. 30 Oct 2010

Emre was fabulous!We only had one day in Turkey before we boarded a cruise ship in October. He met us at our Hotel and gave us a customized tour. We felt like we really got to know Istanbul in the little time that we had. He was very knowledgable, friendly, and we had lots of laughs too! My husband and i would highly reccomend Emre! He made our day!

John R. 13 Oct 2010

Emre was fantastic. We spent three days with him in Istanbul and were amazed by his depth of knowledge which he conveyed in a simple and understandable way. We did not at any time feel rushed but at the end of each day were surprised at just how much we had seen and learnt. He sent us a detailed schedule, which more than covered our requirements, before we left U.K. Nothing was too much trouble and his recommendations for lunch were perfect. Very highly recommended and we would use ag

Tour Guide Comment: Hello John. I think this review is the fastest one I ever had so far. Thank you so much for these nice comments about me and our tour. Hope to see you again in Turkey. Don't forget, next time we will have a round trip in the country together. But now just enjoy your sunbathe and swimming in the beautiful Mediterranean. Have a nice flight.

Tom S. 24 Sep 2010

During our recent visit to Istanbul, Emre was a friendly and informative tour guide. He was especially flexible regarding our schedule and interests, and, like all licensed guides, he helped us bypass ticket lines so we could focus on sightseeing. We'd definitely recommend Emre.

David K. 23 Sep 2010

Our time spent with Emre was the best part of our trip to Istanbul. It was our first visit to this exciting city and Emre introduced us to a modern city while making it's rich history relevant and exciting. The opportunity to see a place through the eyes of someone who lives there and knows it well is priceless. We highly recommend Emre for his expertise and charming, friendly manner.

Tour Guide Comment: Thank you so much for the great review and dinner at the terrace restaurant,David.

Judy L. 21 Sep 2010

Emre customized the tour so we were able to make the best use of the time we had in Istanbul. He was considerate and patient as we explored the city. He answered all of our questions. It was a great, fun, educational experience. Thank you.

Lewis W. 05 Jul 2010

We had the pleasure of meeting and spending time with Emre. Emre is an excellent driver in challenging Istanbul traffic. He is personable and interesting to talk to, a super guy!

Tour Guide Comment: Thank you for your great comment Lewis. See you next year in İstanbul again.

Norman S. 19 Jun 2010

Hi Emre: it was a pleasure to have such a great guide and driver taking us around in Istanbul. You took us to places that we had not seen on our previous visits to Istanbul. Lunches with you were wonderful and great locations. We will recommend you to all our friends. Thank you again and hope to see you in the near future. " Regards Rosslyn and Norman (Calgary Canada)

Tour Guide Comment: Thank you for your great review. Now I'm waiting for your friends to İstanbul in October. Maybe you'll visit us again as your 4th trip to İstanbul.

John K. 31 May 2010

I booked Emre for 3 days while in Istanbul. Realizing 3 days was barely enough time I gave him an extensive list of all I would like to see and told him to throw in anything he felt would be of interest. The experience was more than I expected. Emre's knowledge of history, culture, religion and current politics really helped to make the tour. He kept up with my fast pace and brought me to out of the way places. I would highly recommend him.

Tour Guide Comment: I hope you had good time and relaxed in Santorini after our tours in İstanbul. Now we're waiting for your mothers' trip to Türkiye. Take care

Simon B. 06 Oct 2011

Emre was excellent. We gave him free range and he came up with a interesting tour spread over two days. His knowledge was clearly extensive and he was an enthusiastic and considerate quide. His English also was excellent.