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Mosque · Derviş Ali Mahallesi (Edirnekapı), Kariye Cami Sokak No:18, Fatih, İstanbul

Kariye Mosque (Chora Church)

Kariye Camii · Chora Church · Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora · Kariye Müzesi

Kariye Camii, the former Church of the Holy Saviour in Chora, in Edirnekapı, Fatih: a Byzantine church famous for its 14th-century mosaics and frescoes, back in use as a mosque since 2020 and open to paying foreign visitors outside prayer times.

Where it is

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41.0312, 28.9390

Why go

The building stands just inside the Theodosian land walls in the Edirnekapı area of Fatih. The name Chora comes from a Greek word meaning "in the fields", because the original church and monastery lay outside the walls of Constantinople. The present church took its plan in the 11th century and was decorated in the 14th century, under the patronage of the statesman Theodore Metochites, with the cycles of mosaics and frescoes that make it one of the best-known works of late Byzantine art. It became a mosque in 1511, a museum from the 1940s to 2020, and was returned to use as a mosque by a presidential decree published in the Official Gazette on 21 August 2020. After a restoration, it reopened for worship and visits on 6 May 2024, according to the Istanbul museums portal run by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism's provincial directorate. Because it is a working mosque, the mosaics in the prayer hall are covered with curtains, and three mosaics above the door and beside the pulpit are concealed; the mosaics in the two narthexes, which hold the cycles of the life of Christ and of the Virgin, are the part most visitors come for. UNESCO's description of the World Heritage property "Historic Areas of Istanbul" (inscribed 1985) singles out the church and its 14th- and 15th-century mosaics and paintings; the church is named in that description rather than inscribed as a separate site.

Getting there

According to the Istanbul museums portal, visitors enter the grounds from Kariye Türbesi Sokak on the north side and walk through to the entrance on the south side of the building, next to the tomb of Ebu Said el-Hudri; everyone passes a security check at the cabin in the garden. The portal does not give a walking distance from the street or the nearest transport stop.

Best time to visit

Any day except Friday, well before the ticket office closes at 17:55 and outside the pauses around the prayer times; the operator does not publish a best season or month.

Through the year

The Istanbul museums portal gives the same 09:00–18:00 hours for its summer (1 April–1 October) and winter periods, so opening does not change with the season. It does not say whether hours or admission change during Ramadan or religious holidays, and the prayer pauses move through the day as prayer times shift through the year; check the portal for the date you plan to visit.

Accessibility

Strollers are not allowed inside the visiting area, and luggage of any size, umbrellas and outside food and drink are also prohibited (Istanbul museums portal, read 22 September 2026); use a baby carrier for an infant. Neither the portal nor the visitor guidelines describe steps, ramps, a step-free or wheelchair route, toilets, baby-changing or seating, so ask before you go if you need any of these. The portal says service dogs and guide dogs are the only animals admitted.

Base yourself nearby

City

Istanbul

Istanbul is the city the Bosphorus divides between Europe and Asia, with the Golden Horn cutting into its European shore. Its Historic Areas (the Sultanahmet archaeological park, the Süleymaniye quarter, Zeyrek and the Land Walls) are a UNESCO World Heritage property inscribed in 1985, and a visit sorts naturally into the old city, the European Bosphorus shore around Beyoğlu, and Üsküdar and Kadıköy across the water.

Near Kariye Mosque (Chora Church)

Related guides

  • Chora (Kariye Mosque), Istanbul: the mosaics and how to see them

    Chora, today Kariye Mosque, holds one of Istanbul's most important cycles of late Byzantine mosaics and frescoes, made between about 1316 and 1321 for the statesman Theodore Metochites. This guide explains what is in each part of the building, what its status as a working mosque means for a visit, and which visiting rules could not be confirmed for 2026.

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