If one had but a single glance to give the world, one should gaze on Istanbul. Alphonse de Lamartine
8 DAYS WESTERN WONDERS OF TURKEY with CAPPADOCIA (small Group Tour max. 8 p.)
Duration
:
8 DAYS
Starts From
:
Istanbul Airports or hotels
Visited Places
:
Topkapı palace, Hagia Irene, Bosphorus cruise, Hierapolis, Ephesus, Virgin Mary's House, Artemis Temple, Underground City, Pasabag, Goreme Open Air Museum
Language
:
English
Price
:
From 1099 USD (4 and 5 star hotels)
WHAT’S INCLUDED:
Domestic flights
2 nights hotel in Istanbul on BB basis
1 night hotel in Pamukkale on HB basis
2 nights hotel in Kusadasi on HB basis
2 nights hotel in Cappadocia on HB basis
7 breakfasts, 5local lunches, 5 local dinners
Guided mentioned City Tours on SIC basis
All entrance fees mentioned in the itinerary
Transportation in a fully air-conditioned, non-smoking coach
Professional English-speaking tour guides
Return airport transfers in everywhere
Per person 50 cl drinking water in the vehicle
WHAT’S EXCLUDED:
International flights
Insurance: All types
Turkey entry visa
Items of a personal nature such as alcoholic drinks, cold drinks, laundry
Any others expenses which are not mentioned at the included section
INFO :
Day 1 - Istanbul - Arrival Day
Meeting with our staff at Istanbul airport and transfer to the hotel for your first night in Istanbul. Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 2 - Istanbul City Tour (breakfast and local lunch are included)
Hippodromme Square It was a public arena mainly for chariot races and also home to gladiatorial games, official ceremonies, celebrations, protests, torture to the convicts and so on. The German Fountain of Wilhelm II, the Obelisk of Theodosius, the bronze Serpentine Column and the Column of Constantine are other monuments at the square.
Sultanahmet Mosque built in the 17th century and known as the Blue Mosque because of its magnificent interior decoration of blue Iznik tiles.
St. Sophia This ancient basilica, built by Constantine the Great, in 4th century and reconstructed by Justinian in the 6th century, is one of the architectural marvels of all time.
Hagia Irene is the first building converted to a church from a pagan temple in the 4th c. AD. With remainings from sixth, eight and fifteenth centuries it has an authentic architecture. It was used as the patriarchate of the city too . A short but impressive visit will take us to the Byzantine era.
Lunch (Drinks on your own)
Topkapı palace The great palace of the Ottoman sultans from 15th to 19th centuries, housing an exquisite collection of precious gems, jewelry thrones of sultans, robes worn by the sultans and their families; miniatures, the Holy Mantle; CHAMBER OF SACRED RELICS.
[Harem (women's quarters) is not included in visit program and extra entrance fee is required.]
Grand Bazaar (Covered Market) More than 4000 shops in this labyrinth of streets and passages trade having its own area; the goldsmiths’ street, the carpet sellers, Turkish arts and crafts, such as hand painted ceramic plates, hand-honed copperware, brassware and trays, water ewers, onyx ware and meerschaum pipes.
Order of the visits can be changed by the guide due to daily conditions.
After old city tour, transfer back to the hotel. Free evening or optional Istanbul night shows or Bosporus dinner cruise including traditional Turkish entertainment and dinner. Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 3 - Istanbul City Tour (breakfast and local lunch are included)
Pick up from the hotel for a full day tour of Istanbul city is at 08:30am
Suleymaniye Mosque (Scholarship Of Sinan) One of the most important and must-see place that is a sample of Ottoman architectural work and the masterpiece of Sinan in 1550. The impressive mosque, also the burial chamber of Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent and his wife Roxelana
Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Bazaar) The Spice Bazaar dates back to the 17th Century. It is one of Istanbul’s oldest covered markets, where the exotic, oriental aspect of the city still survives. It is the best place to find spices, herbal teas, and traditional Turkish foods such as Turkish delight (lokum).
Bosphorus cruise An amazing cruise between the two continents, Europe and Asia , along the Bosporus by the Dolmabahçe and Beylerbeyi Palaces, wooden villas and mansions up to the Rumeli Fortress. (The Rumeli Fortress From The Sea (No Interior Visit))
Lunch (Drinks on your own)
Order of the visits can be changed by the guide due to daily conditions.
After the lunch depart for Istanbul or Sabiha Gokcen Airport for domestic flight to Pamukkale. Transfer from airport and check in to our hotel in Pamukkale. Dinner and overnight in Pamukkale.
Day 4 – Pamukkale Tour (Breakfast, local lunch, local dinner are included)
Hierapolis (“Holy City”) was an ancient Greco-Roman city in Phrygia located on hot springs in South West Anatolia. Its ruins are adjacent to modern Pamukkale.
Hierapolis is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The hot springs there have been used as a spa since the 2nd Century B.C.E. and people came to soothe their ailments with many of them retiring here.
Some of the highlights; the large necropolis is filled with sarcophagi, the main street with the gates and latrines, cathedral, the theatre and St. Philips tomb. The hot springs causing cascades which are called the Cotton Castle. After the tour, drive to Kusadasi
Order of the visits can be changed by the guide due to daily conditions.
Dinner and overnight in Kusadasi.
Day 5 - Ephesus Tour (Breakfast, local lunch, local dinner are included)
Ephesus It was one of the most important harbor cities in antique world and also it is mentioned in the book of Revelations as one of the seven churches of the apocalypse. In Ephesus Celcus Library, Temple of Hadrian, the fountain of Trajan and the Theater will be the highlights.
Virgin Mary’s house This place is discovered by Lazarist priests after a German nun described the house and the mountain as the last residence of Virgin Mary after she had some visions about the place.
Lunch at a local restaurant.
Artemis temple We see the ruins of one of the seven wonders of the world.
Carpet Local weaving center of carpets and kilims in Selcuk.
Order of the visits can be changed by the guide due to daily conditions.
Drive back to your Hotel. Overnight in Kusadasi.
Day 6 – Izmir –Kayseri – Cappadocia (Breakfast, local dinner are included)
After breakfast, transfer to the airport to take a flight to Kayseri. Upon arrival, transfer to the hotel. Overnight in Cappadocia.
Day 7 – Cappadocia (Breakfast, local lunch, local dinner are included)
Optional Tour: Hot Air Balloon Riding Tour (Between Sunrise up to 8:30 am before breakfast)
After breakfast visit Dervent Valley to see the unique fairy-chimneys. Visit Underground city. Drive to Pasabag (Monk's Valley) to see the interesting mushroom-shaped pinnacles. Drive to the city of Avanos which is a famous town of pottery. You will have the opportunity of seeing the production of local terracotta and ceramic products. In the afternoon visit Goreme open air museum where the remains of rock-cut churches and Christian settlements date back to hundreds of years ago. Before returning to the hotel, stop over at the natural Uchisar Castle. Overnight at Hotel in Cappadocia.
Order of the visits can be changed by the guide due to daily conditions.
Day 8 – Cappadocia – Home via Istanbul (Breakfast is included)
After breakfast drive to Hunters valley at a spectecular point of view with hundreds of cave houses and fairy chimneys, stop over at Pigeons Valley and then local weaving center of carpets and kilims in Cappadocia. Depart to Kayseri airport for domestic flight to Istanbul and then back home.