# Istanbul Four Nights

> Four hours' flying, no visa for most, two continents in one afternoon and a Bosphorus dinner the team will still be talking about in the summer.

Package L-05 from Offsyte, corporate recreation in the UAE · [Regional & International](https://offsyte.ae/catalog/international-incentive-trips/) · Web page: https://offsyte.ae/packages/istanbul-four-nights/

- **Duration:** 5 days, 4 nights
- **Ideal start time:** Wednesday departure — two working days, one weekend
- **Departure window:** Wednesday or Thursday
- **Group size:** 20 min — 60 max
- **Emirate / venue:** Türkiye — Istanbul, both the historic peninsula and the Bosphorus
- **Season:** Year-round. Apr–Jun and Sep–Nov are best; Jul–Aug is hot and crowded
- **Booking lead time:** 60 days — group airfare, room block and the deposit schedule

## Price per person, excluding 5% VAT

| Group size | Per person |
| --- | ---: |
| 20–29 people | AED 5,800 |
| 30–49 people | AED 5,400 |
| 50+ people | AED 5,000 |

Where a larger band costs less in total, it is quoted instead: groups of 28–29 are billed as 30 people at the rate for 30–49 people; groups of 47–49 are billed as 50 people at the rate for 50+ people.

Payment: 50% advance on signature. 100% cleared 3 working days before the event. Numbers lock 7 days prior.

## Why this is not the retail version

A retail Istanbul package from Dubai runs **AED 2,200–3,500** for flights, a hotel and a couple of shared tours. Those are real prices for a real product, and for two people travelling they are the right thing to buy.

**They do not scale to thirty.** A shared tour of Sultanahmet with a group of thirty inside it is thirty people at the back of somebody else's tour. What is bought here is a private coach for five days, a guide whose group is only this company, **skip-the-line entries at four monuments that queue for over an hour each**, and a Bosphorus boat that is the group's own rather than a hundred-seat dinner cruise.

**The working morning is what makes it approvable**, exactly as in L-03. A four-night trip with no working content is a hard budget line; with a facilitated half-day and a written output it becomes an offsite. Never let a client remove it to save AED 3,500 — they are removing the justification, not the cost.

**Against L-03 Tbilisi at AED 6,200:** Georgia is mountains, wine and a smaller, quieter country — better for a team that wants to be somewhere they have not heard of. **Istanbul is a city, and it is the more familiar, more legible sell** for a client nervous about taking thirty staff abroad for the first time. It is also AED 800 cheaper and an hour closer.

**Sell Istanbul first and Georgia second.** It is the easier yes.

## Timeline

- **Day 1 — arrival** — Morning flight, hotel check-in, walk through Karaköy and Galata, welcome dinner with a view of the water
- **Day 2 — the peninsula** — Historic day. Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapı, the Basilica Cistern. Lunch in Sultanahmet. Evening free
- **Day 3 — the working morning** — Facilitated half-day session, 09:00–13:00, hotel meeting room. Afternoon free — the Grand Bazaar, the hammam, or nothing. Dinner in small groups by choice
- **Day 4 — the Bosphorus** — Morning in Beşiktaş and Ortaköy. Private Bosphorus cruise with dinner — Europe on one side, Asia on the other, the bridges lit
- **Day 5 — departure** — Late checkout, final morning free, afternoon flight, evening arrival Dubai

## Included

- Return group airfare DXB–IST, quoted at procurement cost with a named management fee
- Travel insurance
- 4★ central Istanbul hotel, four nights, twin share, bed and breakfast
- All ground transport — private coach for five days
- Licensed English-speaking guide throughout
- All meals — three dinners including the Bosphorus cruise, three lunches, all breakfasts
- Historic peninsula day with all entries
- Private Bosphorus cruise with dinner
- Facilitated half-day session with a local practitioner, agenda set by the client
- Full custom branding — welcome pack, room drop, cruise setting
- Our own tour leader travelling with the group for all five days
- Hybrid photo/video operator across the trip
- Edited 90-second highlight reel within 5 working days
- 24-hour ground support

## Not included

- Single-occupancy supplement (see add-ons)
- Alcohol outside the cruise dinner
- Personal spending and bazaar shopping
- Visa where required — checked by us at booking, obtained by the traveller
- 5% VAT

## Weather and backup plan

- **Trigger:** The Bosphorus cruise does not sail in high wind or heavy rain, and Istanbul weather between November and March is genuinely unreliable.
- **Fallback:** A contracted waterfront restaurant with a private room at Ortaköy, held for the same evening at the same cost — the dinner and the view survive, the sailing does not. The peninsula day is largely covered and runs in rain with an adjusted order.
- **You are told by:** By the tour leader to the sponsor travelling with the group, by 15:00 on the day, with the alternative already confirmed rather than proposed.

## Customisation options

- Single-occupancy supplement: AED 690/person
- Upgrade to a 5★ Bosphorus-view property: AED 460/person/night
- Extra night: AED 820/person
- Cappadocia extension, 2 nights with a balloon flight: AED 2,900/person
- Full-day facilitation instead of the half-day: AED 4,200/event
- Awards dinner format on the cruise — AV, MC, trophies: AED 12,000/event
- Traditional hammam experience: AED 320/person
- Business-class upgrade: Priced on request
- Full 8-minute video edit of the trip: AED 3,200

## Questions about Istanbul Four Nights

### How much does Istanbul Four Nights cost per person?

AED 5,800 per person for 20–29 people; AED 5,400 per person for 30–49 people; AED 5,000 per person for 50+ people. All figures exclude 5% VAT. Where a larger band costs less in total, it is quoted instead: groups of 28–29 are billed as 30 people at the rate for 30–49 people; groups of 47–49 are billed as 50 people at the rate for 50+ people.

### How long does Istanbul Four Nights take, and when does it start?

5 days, 4 nights. Ideal start: Wednesday departure — two working days, one weekend. Departure window: Wednesday or Thursday.

### What is not included in Istanbul Four Nights?

Single-occupancy supplement (see add-ons); Alcohol outside the cruise dinner; Personal spending and bazaar shopping; Visa where required — checked by us at booking, obtained by the traveller; 5% VAT. These are stated before enquiry rather than raised at invoice time.

### What happens to Istanbul Four Nights if the weather turns?

Trigger: The Bosphorus cruise does not sail in high wind or heavy rain, and Istanbul weather between November and March is genuinely unreliable. Fallback: A contracted waterfront restaurant with a private room at Ortaköy, held for the same evening at the same cost — the dinner and the view survive, the sailing does not. The peninsula day is largely covered and runs in rain with an adjusted order. You are told: By the tour leader to the sponsor travelling with the group, by 15:00 on the day, with the alternative already confirmed rather than proposed.

### How far in advance do we need to book Istanbul Four Nights?

The booking lead time is 60 days — group airfare, room block and the deposit schedule. Ramadan and December dates book out first.

## Read before you book

- [Best time for a Europe trip from the UAE, by month](https://offsyte.ae/blog/best-time-europe-trip-from-uae/): When to take a team or a reward trip to Europe from the UAE, month by month: weather, prices, Schengen queues, Ramadan, Eid and the school calendar.
- [Corporate retreat locations in Europe for a UAE team](https://offsyte.ae/blog/corporate-retreat-locations-europe/): Eight places in and around Europe that work for a UAE company retreat, with flying time from Dubai, the visa picture for a mixed group, best months and prices.
- [Employee reward trip ideas: team trip or trip for two](https://offsyte.ae/blog/employee-reward-trip-ideas/): Reward trip ideas for UAE staff, from a two-night Muscat group trip at AED 3,100 to a guided week in Europe, and when to pick a team trip or a trip for two.
- [How much a Europe trip from Dubai costs per person](https://offsyte.ae/blog/europe-trip-cost-from-dubai/): What a Europe trip from Dubai costs per person in 2026: guided tours from AED 4,389, visas, insurance and flights, and company group trips from AED 5,000.

Request a proposal: https://offsyte.ae/enquire/?package=L-05 · proposals@offsyte.ae