1. Wear comfortable walking shoes! The grounds are immense, and you will want something comfortable to walk in.

2. Be prepared to pay two admission fees; one for the general palace with the armory, treasury, etc; and a second for admittance to the harem. The harem is a guided-tour only, and tickets are sold for an hourly walk through the harem with a guide who explains what you’re seeing.

3. Be prepared to spend most of a day; there’s a lot to see!

There are headphone sets that you can rent that will act as a tourguide while you follow a numbered map of the grounds. We chose not to use them, but we saw a number of people who did. With a decent guidebook, I wouldn’t think you needed it.