Istanbul in €130s-€140s rtn

Ughh if only I'd visited Istanbul in the winter...

For a start, I wouldn't have had to queue for almost 2 hours among the summer crowds to catch a glimpse of the Hagia Sophia.

I could have taken my time to wander the streets, admiring snow-dusted minarets, without catching a souvenir sunburn.

And sipping a hot cup of çay overlooking the fog-blanketed Bosphorus would've hit so much different.

Ohh, and just imagine how relaxing a steaming hammam would have felt on a brisk December evening. 

Take my word for it, winter is how to do Istanbul right!