Itinerary
Day 1 – Welcome to Turkey / Istanbul
You will be met on arrival at Istanbul or Sabiha Gokcen Airport and transferred to your hotel. The rest of the day is yours to explore İstanbul.
Overnight İstanbul
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Day 2 – Istanbul City Tour
You will be picked up for your Istanbul Old City Day Tour at approximately 08:30. Highlights of your tour will include Topkapi Palace, home of the Ottoman Sultans for hundreds of years, the Hippodrome, the Blue Mosque, the Hagia Sophia and the Grand Bazaar. Afterwards you will be dropped back to your hotel. The evening is yours, free to enjoy this magical city.
Important note:
- Topkapi Palace (closed on Tuesday and replaced with a visit to the Basilica Cistern)
- Hagia Sophia (closed on Mondays and replaced with Chora Museum)
- Covered Grand Bazaar (closed on Sundays).
Overnight Istanbul
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Day 3 – Bosphorus Cruise in Istanbul & Flight to İzmir
You will be picked up from your hotel at approximately 08:30 for your half day Bosphorus Cruise and Spice Bazaar Tour. Highlights of your day will include the Spice Bazaar, the Golden Horn and a 2 hour Bosphorus cruise which will include viewing Dolmabahce Palace and from the water and Istanbul’s famous Bosphorus Bridge.
After the tour you will be dropped back at your hotel where you will be transferred to the Istanbul Airport for your flight to Izmir. You will be met on arrival at Izmir Airport and transferred to your hotel in Kusadasi (Please note the drive from Izmir Airport to Kusadasi is approximately 1 hour 15 minutes).
Overnight in Kusadasi
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Day 4 – Ephesus Day Tour
Pick up from your hotel between 08:30-08:45 for your Ephesus Day Tour which will include visits tothe ancient City of Ephesus including the Temple of Hadrian and the Library of Celsus, the House of the Virgin Mary and the Temple of Artemis
After the tour you will be dropped back to your hotel. Free evening to enjoy the charming port town of Kusadasi.
Overnight in Kusadasi
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Day 5 – Flight from Ephesus to Cappadocia
Early morning transfer from your hotel in Kusadasi to Izmir Airport for your flight to Kayseri, one of Cappadocia’s two gateway airports. On arrival in Kayseri, you will be met by our driver who will be waiting for you outside the airport doors with your name on a sign.
Transfer to your hotel, and then transfer to your Cappadocia cave hotel. The rest of the day is yours, free to get acquainted with this charming area.
Optional activity – Turkish Night Show with Dinner and Drinks – 45 Euro Per Person
Overnight Cappadocia.
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Day 6 – Cappadocia Highlights Tour
Optional Activity: Hot Air Balloon Flight in Cappadocia available for €190
You will be picked up from your hotel between 09:10 and 09:30 for your first Cappadocia day tour. Our first stop of the day will be Esentepe, a popular spot for enjoying a panoramic view of Göreme and its fairy chimneys and unique rock formations.
We will then drive to Derinkuyu Underground City, one of the deepest of Cappadocia’s many underground cities, and built by early Christians fleeing from persecution. Including rooms such as stables, cellars, chapels and wineries, you’ll be impressed as you wander through this underground city. We then drive to Ihlara Valley where we will hike a section of the valley, checking out the tiny churches cut into the rocks, along the way. We will then have some chill time and lunch at Belisirma Village. We will also visit Selime Monastery, the biggest rock-cut cathedral in Cappadocia. Our last stop is at Pigeon Valley where you will have a great photo opportunity. At the conclusion of the tour we will drop you back at your hotel.
Overnight Cappadocia
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Day 7 – Cappadocia Highlights Tour 2
You will meet your guide at your hotel at approximately 09:10 for your Cappadocia Red Tour.
Our first stop of the day will be at the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Göreme Open Air Museum which was once a Byzantine monastic settlement comprised of more than 10 churches, rectories, accommodation and a theological school. You’ll be amazed at the tiny churches carved into the rocks and decorated with frescoes, many of which are in good condition.
Our second stop will be Paşabağ Valley, also called the Monk’s Valley, home to some of the best examples of mushroom-shaped fairy chimneys. This valley was previously home to a settlement of monks, and today you can climb up into one of the fairy chimneys and see part of their former quarters. We then drive to Devrent Valley, also known as “Imagination Valley”, where some of the most surreal rock formations can be found, many of them shaped like animals. See if you can spot the camel, snake, seal and dolphin-shaped rocks.
We will have lunch at a local cave restaurant in the town of Avanos, which is famous for its pottery. After a tasty lunch of traditional Turkish cuisine, we will visit a local family-run pottery workshop for a kick-wheel pottery demonstration.Our last stop will be Uçhisar Castle, the highest point of the Cappadocia. This is a great opportunity to get some great panorama shots of Cappadocia and the fairy chimneys.
After the tour, you will be transferred to either Nevsehir or Kayseri airports (depending on flight availability) for your return flight to Istanbul. Arrive in Istanbul approximately 21:00, depending on flight schedules. You will be met on arrival by our transfer representative and then transferred to your hotel.
Overnight Istanbul
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Day 8 – Istanbul
After breakfast check out from your hotel, and transfer to the airport for your departure flight. We hope you enjoyed your tour with us and that we see you again in future. Have a nice trip back home and thanks for travelling with Tours4Turkey Travel.
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