Why go
For almost a thousand years Hagia Sophia was the largest church in the Christian world, and for nearly five centuries after that it was the imperial mosque of the Ottoman sultans. Emperor Justinian had it built in just five years and opened it in 537. The great dome, 55 metres above the floor, still seems to float on a ring of windows, and the light that pours through them is the thing most visitors remember. Since 2020 it has been a working mosque again, the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, and since January 2024 sightseeing visitors have followed their own route through the upper galleries, leaving the ground floor to worshippers.
The arrangement is a good one for visitors. From the galleries you look down into the vast space beneath the dome, and you get closer to the mosaics than you ever could from the floor.
What to see
The visitor route climbs by ramp to the gallery level. Look out for the Deesis mosaic in the south gallery, showing Christ between the Virgin and John the Baptist, one of the finest pieces of Byzantine art anywhere. Nearby are the imperial portraits: Empress Zoe and Constantine IX, and John II Komnenos with Empress Irene. A runic inscription scratched into a marble parapet by a Viking mercenary, often read as “Halvdan was here”, is another favourite. The giant calligraphic roundels hanging below, 7.5 metres across, were added in the 19th century, and the marble Heaven and Hell door separates two of the galleries. Outside, the tombs of five Ottoman sultans stand in the grounds.
Plan your visit
The visitor route is open every day. In winter (1 October to 1 April) it runs from 9am to 7.30pm, and in summer from 8am, with the ticket booth closing at 7pm. On Fridays the visitor area closes from 12 noon to 2pm for the main weekly prayer. The official page prices the ticket in euros: €25 for foreign visitors, taken in lira at the booth’s exchange rate. Children under 8 enter free with a passport or ID card. Museum passes are not valid here.
The tourist entrance is not on the main square. It sits opposite the Sultan Ahmed III Fountain, close to the Imperial Gate of Topkapı Palace, and the ticket booth is next to it. Expect a security check. As in any mosque, cover shoulders and knees, and women should cover their hair; scarves and body covers are sold at the booth. The visitor ramps are not suitable for wheelchairs, so visitors with limited mobility are asked to use the Turkish citizens’ entrance with their ticket. Commentary in 23 languages runs on your own phone, so bring headphones. Allow an hour or a little more.
The queue is shortest at opening and in the late afternoon. Avoid Friday lunchtime altogether.
Nearby
The Blue Mosque faces Hagia Sophia across a garden square, and the Basilica Cistern is a short walk west. Topkapı Palace begins just behind the visitor entrance, and the Istanbul Archaeological Museums are a few minutes further on. The Sultanahmet tram stop is about five minutes away.
