Hagia Sophia visitors to pay entrance fee

ISTANBUL

Foreign tourists will be required to pay an entrance fee of 25 euros to visit the Hagia Sophia Mosque as of Jan. 15.

The Culture and Tourism Ministry has completed its efforts to separate the entrances of worshippers and cultural visitors to the Hagia Sophia Mosque. Tourists will now be able to visit the mosque without disturbing the environment of worship.

The visitor management plan is expected to prevent long queues at the entrance of the historic mosque.

According to the statement made by the ministry, the ticket office, which is located opposite the Fountain Sultan Ahmed III on the gallery floor, will be put into service on Jan. 15.

The visitors will enter the mosque through a ramp on the south side of the mosque that takes them to the gallery level and exit through a northeast ramp. Visitors’ access to the tunnel and the entrance ramp of the historic mosque will be controlled.

At the gallery section, tourists will be able to observe the Harim floor of the mosque and the Ottoman period additions, pass through the Heaven and Hell Gate and examine the Byzantine mosaics.

Furthermore, visitors will be able to get information about the Hagia Sophia in 23 languages through a headset system that may be accessed through a QR code application from their mobile phones. In this way, tourists can learn about the mosque quietly, without disturbing the worshippers.

Within the scope of restoration and protection works, security cameras, fire detection and emergency announcement systems have been installed along the tour route at the mosque.

Additionally, cleaning and conservation work on the marble coverings and wooden railings on the gallery floor of the mosque was carried out with the approval and consultancy of a scientific committee.