Istanbul for Russian-speaking Muslim families: entry, money, language and spiritual sites

What are the entry rules for Russian-speaking families?

• Russian citizens: on tourist visits can stay up to 60 days in total within 180 days without a visa. An international passport is required; you cannot enter Türkiye with an internal passport.
• Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Tajikistan and other countries: visa and length-of-stay rules differ by country. Check the current information from the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs before you travel.
• Children: every child needs their own passport. If a child travels with one parent, also check your own country’s exit rules.

For passport validity and travelling with one parent, see our guide to passports, visas and documents.

Money: do cards work, or should you bring cash?

Visa and Mastercard cards issued by banks in Russia usually do not work abroad, and major Turkish banks have stopped accepting Mir cards. For families from Russia the safest approach is therefore to bring cash in dollars or euros and change it into Turkish lira at exchange offices in the city.

• Carry money safely and split it between several places; use the safe in your hotel room.
• Change only enough for the first day at the airport; rates in the city are usually better.
• Cards issued by banks in other countries can be used normally.

For exchange, ATMs and tipping see our guide to money, currency and tipping in Istanbul.

Can you get by in Russian in Istanbul?

Laleli and Aksaray have for years been the shopping hub for buyers from Russia and Central Asia, and many shops there have Russian-speaking staff. You will also meet Russian-speaking traders in the Grand Bazaar and tourist shops. In Sultanahmet’s museums and hotels, English is more common.

• Download an offline translation app and the Turkish language pack to your phone.
• Write your hotel’s name and address in Turkish on a piece of paper or take a screenshot; it makes things easy with taxi drivers.
• Turkish is related to Tatar, Kazakh, Uzbek and Azerbaijani; many families are surprised how much they can understand with simple words.

Spiritual sites for Muslim families

• Eyüp Sultan: the tomb of Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, the Companion who hosted the Prophet (peace be upon him) in his home in Medina. See our route to the Companions’ tombs and Eyüp Sultan.
• Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque: a few minutes’ walk from Sultanahmet; you can pray the daily prayers in congregation. For times see our prayer-time sightseeing plan.
• Halal food: almost every restaurant in Sultanahmet uses halal meat. For alcohol-free places see our guide to alcohol-free family restaurants.

Flights and getting from the airport

There are direct flights to Istanbul from Moscow, Kazan, Ufa and the main cities of Central Asia, taking about 3–5 hours. Flights land at Istanbul Airport (IST) or Sabiha Gökçen (SAW). From IST to Sultanahmet takes about 45–75 minutes by car depending on traffic. All options are in our guide from the airport to Sultanahmet.

For shopping, our guide to modest fashion shopping in Istanbul covers Laleli, Aksaray and Fatih in detail.