When I came to buy a ticket I was charged €39,00 euros rather than the €30,00 euros displayed at the ticket office. The price quoted by the ticket office person was 2960 Turkish Lira which I wasn’t quick enough to work out the exchange rate on, given the size of the queue behind me. After paying I was presented with a ticket and a pair of Bluetooth headphones . Apparently these were for the audio guide. However they were in sealed box, and subsequently turned out needed charging, So of no use on the Tower tour. Which is ok as there is no audio tour anyway. Having now charged the speakers they don’t work - one of the pair , plays the other is dead. I am not sure where I stand refund wise but wanted to warn fellow travellers hand them back and ask for the €30,00 euro price displayed. .

Built by the Genoese in the mid-14th century the tower is claimed to be substantially original. It certainly has a bit of a Romanesque feel to it. It's an easy walk up to the tower and then an elevator to the top. Great views obviously. Nothing really about the Genoese colony that existed in Istanbul for many years pre the Ottoman conquest which is a bit sad. But very entertainingly there's a cute audiovisual about Hezarfen Ahmed Celebi who, it is claimed, undertook the first intercontinental flight from the top across the water to Asia in a sort of hang-glider. Colour me sceptical... As in so many attractions in Istanbul figuring out how to access the tower is a little bit of a struggle. Don't go to the entrance stairs as you can't get a ticket there (the ticket office is closed)- instead you go to the 'red shed' round the back of the tower. Once there of course I chose the wrong window to queue in front of - in getting to the front I was told it was the information queue and I should be in one of the other two. I would argue that the Turkish tourist authorities really need to get some outside experts in re ticketing and some of the other aspects of their otherwise brilliant attractions.

Tower gives great panoramic views of the city. Audio guide cost 350 tl extra and required wifi to access. Not having a Turkish Sim or roaming package I thought this would be a no go but the ticket office lady went over and above connecting us to a WiFi hot-spot and checking to make sure we had the whole tour downloaded before we left the kiosk. As a bonus, the cost of the audio guide included a set of Bluetooth earbuds which you don't have to give back. Elevator almost to the top so you are walking down stairs most of the time rather than climbing up. Great views over the city from the top of the tower, brings home how large Istanbul is. May have just been me, but the indicators telling you when to play each of the sections of the audio guide weren't that prominent so we listened to a lot of it out of sync. A lot of the commentary is history of Istanbul that you get at every museum but there were some interesting things specific to the tower. On balance worth a visit, I imagine the views of the city would be spectacular after sunset

We would have missed something if we hadn’t gone up to Galata Tower this afternoon! We took advantage of the first ray of sunshine after a few days of rain to see the beautiful view of the Golden Horn, the Bosphorus and behind Saint Sophie, the Mediterranean Sea. Not only is it splendid, but the tower itself (built by the Romans in the 4th century, rebuilt by the Genoese in the 13th and finally conquered by the Ottomans in 1453) is very well restored and laid out inside, which makes the visit even more interesting. On each floor there is a model, photographs, an animation, a shop.... The staff is present and helpful. This makes it worth the wait (30 min in our case) and the price (30€ per person, free for children under 8 years). And the neighborhood around is worth the walk.

This attraction is very expensive but because it is covered if you have a museum pass my family chose to go. We arrived around 3:30 pm. There are a lot of eateries and businesses around the tower if you want to buy anything. Because we already had a ticket we just got in line to enter the tower. We waited about 15 minutes. When we got in we were directed to an elevator. The elevator took us to a level just below the tower outside access. When we stepped out of the elevator there were a couple displays about the Tower. You then walk up one flight of stairs to the top floor which is empty. You can now walk INSIDE in the tower and see a 360 degree view OR you can step outside the tower and walk around the outside rail and see your views. When you are finished you are asked to walk all the way down to the bottom and out the ground floor doors and as you do other displays are provided that contained more info about the tower. When we were there, there were others, but not so many we did not get the pictures we wanted. The price for admission is unusually high if you just want to buy a single ticket to this attraction compared to other attractions like this, but it is included in the museum pass if you bought one. If I did not have the museum pass I would probably have just gone to one of the roof top restaurants in the area that also have fairly decent views of the Istanbul.

Review of Galata Tower Our journey to Galata Tower began with a metro ride from our hotel to the nearest station. From there, we embarked on an uphill walk to the tower. This walk, though a bit challenging, was rewarding as it offered numerous photo opportunities of Galata from a distance. As expected, there was a long queue at the ticket counter. Fortunately, we had purchased the museum card on our first day in Turkey, allowing us to skip the queue and breeze through security. While this didn’t save us a significant amount of time—perhaps just five to ten minutes—it was still advantageous given the number of monuments we visited. Galata Tower is equipped with lifts that take you up to the last two floors. The penultimate floor offers stunning views and has benches where you can sit and soak in the atmosphere. We spent a leisurely time here, enjoying the panoramic views of Istanbul, especially as the sun set. The topmost floor features a circular balcony, which can get quite crowded. Taking clear photos requires patience and timing due to the throngs of visitors and the constant chatter in various languages. Despite this, the views from the top are absolutely worth the effort, and we spent a couple of hours here, taking in the sights. Descending the tower, we had to use the stairs as the lifts are only available for the ascent. Each floor on the way down features historical exhibits and museum displays, adding to the experience. The views from Galata Tower are truly breathtaking, especially at sunset when the sky is painted in hues of orange and pink, the call to azan fills the air, and the city lights gradually illuminate. Visiting Galata Tower in the evening was a magical experience, and it’s a must-visit when in Istanbul. You simply can’t visit this city without experiencing the grandeur and history of Galata Tower. Don’t miss out on the San Sebastián Cheesecake and Turkish Tea/Coffee.

As a demanding view of the surrounding area, including the harbor. There’s a lots of shops and tourist areas around it. You can climb up inside, obviously at cost to spend an hour or two some of the best views of Istanbul.

This is a lovely stone tower set in a very small square. It has a beautiful second tier right at the top along with a golden ornament to it's peak. There's also some small windows two thirds of the way down. You can go up to it's viewing deck if you wish to pay the disgraceful price of 30€. My top tip to see the exact same views for free is to visit the Anemon Restaurant right next to it as it has a rooftop bar where you can take photos and videos of the city and Bosphorus Sea. You can also get great photos of the tower itself.

We walked over the bridge from the old city here--you'll need some good calf muscles to get to the top. Then the line looks crazy long (the ticket guy said at least an hour) then 20 minutes later you're at the top of this ancient tower that shows you 360 degree views of old and new Istanbul. You can walk all the way around the top and the views are stunning. In the elevator going up, pay attention to the pictures on the walls, as it shows you what old Istanbul looked like from the tower.

There was a 45 minute queue to enter the Galata Tower: mainly local Turkish visitors (paying a nominal entry fee) and Russians (unwelcome almost anywhere else on the planet but actively encouraged to visit Turkey). Everyone else with any sense was giving it a wide berth as the entry fee is €30 plus add-ons. This is utter nonsense but is now par for the course for almost all the major Istanbul attractions (except the beautiful Blue Mosque which is free). Lovely atmosphere around the Galata area. And you might even find somewhere to have an overpriced beer. Or a fantastic fish sandwich. Last time I visited Istanbul was 5 years ago and I don't remember this institutionalised price gouging. Seems they've lost the plot.