Charm Of Turkey

On you arrival at the airport, a member of our team will be there to meet you and will take you to your overnight accommodation, the rest of this first day is a free day and yours to recover from getting here and prepare yourself for your journey tomorrow. 

Overnight in Istanbul

After breakfast, meet your professional local guide at the hotel and begin your walking tour through Istanbul’s historic Old City.
 
Visit the Hippodrome of Constantinople, the magnificent Blue Mosque, and the iconic Hagia Sophia. Continue to the colourful Grand Bazaar and explore the aromatic Spice Bazaar, filled with spices, Turkish delights, teas, dried fruits, and local products.
 
An optional visit to the Basilica Cistern can also be arranged. The entrance fee is not included.
 
Highlights
Hippodrome of Constantinople
Blue Mosque
Hagia Sophia
Grand Bazaar
Spice Bazaar
Optional Basilica Cistern
 
Overnight in Istanbul.
 
Important Notes:
Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays
Blue Mosque is closed on Fridays due to prayers; we are unable to enter

OPTIONAL TOUR: BOSPHORUS DINNER CRUISE
In the evening, we will drive you to the water's edge for an evening that will show you some amazing places. You will enjoy great food and also some fantastic traditional Turkish entertainment.
The mighty waterway of the Bosphorus Strait, which cuts the city into two sides, Europe and Asia, and as you sail along the city's banks, you will pass under the iconic Bosphorus Bridge and also sail by incredible ancient buildings such as Kucuksu Palace and Rumeli Fortress. The night's entertainment will take you on a journey across Turkey with Belly Dancing, Folk Dancers, and some stirring music played on traditional instruments. Your meal will be a great introduction to the food of this country, with classics such as Baklava, mezzes, and Turkish coffee; all you have to do is relax and enjoy the ride.

After breakfast, meet your professional guide at the hotel and visit the magnificent Topkapi Palace, the former residence of the Ottoman sultans for nearly four centuries.
 
 Explore the palace courtyards, imperial chambers, historical collections, and panoramic views over the Bosphorus.
 
 After the palace visit, enjoy a scenic two-hour Bosphorus Cruise between Europe and Asia. Along the way, admire Istanbul’s waterfront palaces, mosques, fortresses, traditional Ottoman mansions, and spectacular skyline.
 
 Highlights
Topkapi Palace
Golden Horn
Galata Tower
Dolmabahce Palace
Cıragan Palace
Ortakoy Mosque
Bosphorus Bridge
Rumeli Fortress
European and Asian shores
 
 Important Notes:
 Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesdays
 
Overnight in Istanbul

This morning you will take a flight to the amazing city of Konya.

A city of over 2 million people and dating back well over 3000 years, Konya is a city worth visiting. In the 13^th century, it was home and birthplace of Mevlana Celaleddin-i Rumi, a mystic Sufi priest who started the order of the Mevlana, maybe better known to many as the Whirling Dervishes of Konya.
All across this beautiful city, you will visit mosques and madrasa, tombs, and museums dedicated to the life and works of this great man and his simple philosophy of life, with inspiring architecture and some amazingly beautiful buildings, whilst here you will also visit the cities grand bazaar and the felt house, Konya has an ancient tradition of felt making that goes back over 2 and a half thousand years. You will be able to see how it is made and learn about this skilled craft.

Not far from the city center is the small village of Sille, a village where Greeks and Turks have lived side by side for more than 800 years and up until 1922, the village used its own Cappadocian Greek language, a pretty village where one of the worlds first monasteries was ever built and the church of Hagia Eleni stands a charming place with so much history woven through its tapestry.

After the Konya Tour, you will be transferred to Goreme, Cappadocia.

This morning, the full-day South Cappadocia tour starts at approximately 9 am. Today’s tour is specifically designed to complement the north tour and you will spend time in the most unusual and fantastic places in the southern region, one of the most unbelievable places on earth is here the underground city, this incredible labyrinth has many levels with homes, churches, animal stalls, communal areas, schools, mortuaries and even a ventilation system, amazing considering that the carving out of this city began between the 8^th and 7^th centuries BCE and was extended and used by the early Christians escaping persecution.

Today's tour will also take you to Pigeon Valley, home to hundreds of thousands of birds, and they are everywhere you look, and on to many other valleys each with its distinctive rock formation making up a unique landscape. In Meskendir Valley, you will visit an ancient church carved out of the rocks where the frescoes and mosaics have survived since the early Christians first came.

- Evening -  
OPTIONAL TOUR: TURKISH NIGHT SHOW & DINNER.
Tonight's tour has been organized so that you can experience some of the Turkish Cultures and Traditions and also enjoy a great show. You will be picked up from your hotel in the evening and taken to an authentic cave restaurant in the heart of Cappadocia for a night you will always remember. This tour is additional to your itinerary and will cost extra.

Overnight in Cappadocia.

- Early Morning - 
OPTIONAL TOUR: CAPPADOCIA HOT AIR BALLOON FLIGHT 
Early in the morning, why not take advantage of a Magical Hot Air Balloon ride? This experience can be added to the tour. This activity is a must in Cappadocia; it's a perfect way to start the day seeing the beautiful and breathtaking views from high in the sky. This tour comes at an extra cost.

North Cappadocia Tour
This tour will take you to many of the best sites of the northern region of Cappadocia and with you at all times will be your expert guide, leading you through many of the villages and towns that make up this world heritage Unesco site, from amazing panoramic landscape views at Goreme Esentepe to and onto the open-air museum with chapels, homes and even monasteries carved out of the rockface here. Pasabag is known as Monks Valley, where a never-ending landscape of fairy chimneys lies before you.

The town of Avanos, with the red river running through the centre, is famed for its exquisite handmade ceramics; you will visit the workshops and watch these skilled craftsmen at work. You will also see the famous landmark sculpture of the three beauties located in the town of Urgup. This huge rock formation carved by the weather has a legendary tale attached to it, just ask your guide.

At the end of this tour, we will take you to the airport for your domestic flight to Izmir.
You will be met on landing and taken to your hotel in the Ephesus region.

 Overnight in Ephesus

This morning after breakfast we will pick you up at your hotel and take you to the ancient city of Ephesus, an amazing place full of history, amazing architecture, a real look into daily life over 3000 years ago, you will step on the marble stones along the main street that centuries ago the citizens of the great city previously trod, from the civic buildings, past the government buildings, prison, shops, courts of law, churches, latrines and on towards the brothel the great library of Celsus, past the agora and onto the huge amphitheatre of Ephesus where in its heyday over 25000 could be seated and watch the spectacle be it a play or a death.

Not far from the main city just outside the official limits you will journey to the home of the virgin Mary the mother of Christ. It is widely believed that it is here Mary lived out the latter part of her life in a humble home.
You will also stand on the site of the great temple of Artemis one of the ancient wonders of the world, the temple is long gone but the foundations remain and remind us of it colossal size at the end of the day the last place you will visit will be the Isabey mosque a beautiful building showcasing Seljukian architecture, built-in 1374 this mosque has stood the test of time and still delights us with the decorations preserved within.
 

Overnight in Ephesus

Pamukkale is a landscape that seems to be man-made its white brilliance against the green of the mountains and the blue of the sky never gets old, its simply beautiful this landscape has been forming over millions of years as the hot thermal waters come to the surface from deep within the earth's core highly enriched in calcium, creating natural pools that appear to cascade down the side of the mountain, bring your bathing suit as you will be able to dip your toes in these pools and also have a chance to swim in the huge thermal pool at the top in the city of Hierapolis, this city grew up around the famed healing properties of these waters and now the ancient stones lay scattered as a reminder of its grandeur.

Overnight in Ephesus

This morning we say goodbye we will take you to Izmir airport after breakfast to say farewell for your domestic return flight back to Istanbul, until the next time we meet.