Alp

The Foodie Musician

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  • I live in Istanbul
  • I speak English, Türkçe
  • Verified Local host
  • Response time less than 8 hours

Hi there! Nice to meet you

Alp

Hello and welcome to my profile 😊

I was born in Istanbul and have spent most of my life in this beautiful city. I’m a licensed tour guide, a professional industrial designer, a culinary arts graduate and a self-taught musician with a love for 60s rock and experimental music. These days, I’m especially obsessed with home cooking and exploring Istanbul’s thriving food & art scene.

As an urban explorer at heart, I love discovering the hidden corners and uncovering the lesser-known stories of my city.

I host a variety of tours on this platform including street art walks and food tours through Istanbul's backstreets as well as historical landmark tours tailored for first time visitors.

Feel free to let me know if you have any food allergies or dietary needs. I'll be happy to personalize my food tasting walks to suit your preferences.

I look forward to meeting curious travelers and sharing authentic experiences, local insights and some of Istanbul’s best-kept secrets with you.

Hope to see you soon 🙋🏻‍♂️

  • I live in Istanbul
  • I speak English, Türkçe
  • Verified Local host
  • Response time less than 8 hours

Book one of my offers in Istanbul

Let's explore Istanbul together! As your local guide, I'll show you the best of Istanbul on a private & personalized tour for you.

Did you know that I can personalize your experience?

All Withlocals tours are completely customisable to your needs. Just let me know your preferences for a private and personalized experience!

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Reviews

Tara
24 July 2025
My mom and I had the pleasure of spending the day with Alp while he guided us around Büyükada (the largest of the Prince's Islands). Alp was fantastic in every way. He was responsive and kept in close contact with us leading up to our tour, and on the day of our tour was prompt and enthusiastic. He was fun and knowledgeable and went out of his way to ensure we were having a good time. He was also flexible and adjusted the tour to accommodate our needs. At the end of the tour, he made extra efforts to ensure we got on the correct ferry back to our hotel. This tour was a highlight of our trip. Thank you for a wonderful day, Alp!Prince's Islands Exploration
Elizabeth
23 July 2025
We thoroughly enjoyed our 10 tastings of Istanbul tour with Alp. We tried a wide variety of local favorites, and everyone in our family enjoyed something different. Great food tour!
Jean
19 July 2025
Alp provided us with a great introduction to authentic, delicious food. Prior to meeting Alp, he was responsive to our questions and worked to plan a delightful evening, taking into consideration our likes and dislikes. During our tour he was fun to talk with and provided a lot of insight into the local culture. Thanks for a memorable evening of food and conversation. Alp is Wonderful
Dan
11 July 2025
Alp is excellent. This is an great way to experience the true Istanbul. Comfortably, safely, and casually. Alp to us to multiple locations, made us comfortable, asked us thoughtfully about our food leanings, brought out dishes, carefully explained what everything was and why it was part of the culture. He answered all our questions and we never felt rushed. Most importantly, really enjoyed the food. Sometimes with local guides, you feel that they are on a mission to "get it done". With Alp, we felt like we were in town visiting an old friend and he was spending the day with us to show his favorite foodie spots with the goal to make our experience unforgettable.
Andre
9 July 2025
Alp showed me the lesser touristy part of Istanbul: Kadiköy on the asian side of town. We went to several art works and murals and Alp knew very much to tell about every artpiece. He also responded to my questions on culture, language and history in a very interesting and facing way. I learned a lot new facts about Istanbul and e.g. the role of Germans in the development of the railways in Turkey. We had coffee and turkish cay and chatted about photography. Hope to come back to Istanbul and hopefully doing another tour with Alp.A different perspective
Sam
9 July 2025
We did a highlights tour with Alp, who shared his insights and knowledge with us. He hit all of the major landmarks we hoped to see, while keeping things interesting for my young kids. He was great, would highly recommend. Great Experience with Amazing Guide
Nadja
7 July 2025
We booked only two days before and were super happy about the tour and Alp being our guide! Super easy to meet, he personalized the tour (we had a baby and buggy with us) and was in general very thoughtful of the choices he made and what he wanted to show us. We loved all the choices and found it super interesting to learn about the more local relationship to the food and Cihangir area. Alp made it a point to show us also some hidden streets and street art and was also open to answer any questions we had about more tips. He also recommended us our day tours for the city. I would definitely recommend doing this at the beginning of an Istanbul stay and starting off with such a local experience. Thank you so much Alp! Great local food insights
Molly
2 July 2025
We had a nice time on our tour with Alp! He made the logistics super easy and brought us to a stunning luch vista. He's easy to get along with and knows a lot about IStanbul. Fun experience!We had a nice time!
Aeric
28 June 2025
Alp provided us with a thoughtful and excellent tour of more off-the-beaten-path destinations around Istanbul. As a perfect example of his hospitality, he even quietly arranged a stop at a famous baklava place that served the only gluten-free baklava we saw in our whole time in Turkiye for a member of our group with a gluten allergy. Fantastic!Multi-talented guide and great person!
Darrin
27 June 2025
Our guide, Alp, was fun to visit with and he carefully curated our tour stops and tastes. He chose spots where only locals dine. We learned much about Istanbul and Turkey. At the end my wife said, “Turkish is my new favorite cuisine.” The tour enhanced the enjoyment of the rest of our stay in Istanbul immensely. 10 Tastes Were Fantastic

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