8 Days - Best of Turkey Tour

8 Day - Best of Turkey Tour Itinerary

Small Group Tour / Daily departures

> Day 1: Arrival in Istanbul
Upon your arrival we will pick you up from the airport and transfer to the hotel. Overnight in Istanbul.

> Day 2: Byzantine and Ottoman Relics Tour
8:30am - Picked-up from hotel and met by your tour guide for a full day to discover the city of Istanbul. The tour will include visit to the Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Hippodrome, Grand Bazaar, Topkapi Palace and the Rustem Pasa Mosque. At the end of the tour, you will be dropped back to your hotel at approximately 5:00 pm. Overnight in Istanbul. (B, L)

> Day 3: Flight to Kayseri or Nevsehir / North Cappadocia Tour
You will be picked up from your hotel early morning and transfer to domestic airport for flight to Kayseri or Nevsehir.
Arrive Kayseri or Nevsehir Airport in the morning. Met on arrival. Transfer to Cappadocia to join full-day tour of North Cappadocia (tour as below). (1 hour drive from Kayseri to Cappadocia).

Full day tour of North Cappadocia. In this day you will be able to see:

Devrent Valley: Devrent is situated on the northern slopes of Aktepe, 1km from Pasabaglari (Monks’ Valley) and 5 km from Avanos. The ruins at Devrent are spread over three valleys, which also house several pointed fairy chimneys with large stems.

Monks Valley: The best place to see three-headed fairy chimneys. Pasabag, the Pasha's Vineyard, is surrounded by incredible natural rock formations; a spectacular scene.

Avanos: A center of terra cotta work of art since 3000 BC, it is a town where you will be invited to visit a traditional pottery workshop, which is possibly set deep into the hillsides. The clay, which comes from the Red River passing through the town, gives life both to the land and to the local economy.

Göreme Open Air Museum: Goreme was an important Christian centre in the early years of the Middle Ages, was a bishopric administered by Mokissos near Aksaray in the 11th and 13th centuries. Despite the vast numer of monasteries, churches and chapels in the vicinity of Goreme, there are not many inscriptions bearing dates. For this reason, these religious buildings are mainly dated according to the iconography or architectural features.

Uchisar: Uchisar is a troglodyte town situated right in the middle of Cappadocia. It is named after the enormous piece of rock in the center of the town, which was once used as a castle. This extraordinary rock is the highest peak of the area with the view of whole Cappadocia and Erciyes (Argeus) Mountain.

At the end of the tour, you will be dropped back to your hotel at approximately 5:00 pm. Overnight in Cappadocia. (L)

> Day 4: South Cappadocia Tour / Flight to Izmir
Breakfast & check out of the hotel in Cappadocia.
You will be picked up from your hotel to join full-day tour of South Cappadocia (tour as below).

Full day tour of South Cappadocia. In this day you will be able to see:

Kizilcukur: is an isolated valley behind Urgup. It has beautiful rock formation with some great hidden rock-carved churches. The most interesting part of this area is the countless tracks connecting the small villages and towns through vineyards and gardens like a spider net. It is always possible to see villagers working in the area and offering grapes, apples or apricots to you.

Cavusin: One of the oldest settlements in the area, Cavusin is situated 2km from Goreme, on the Goreme-Avanos road. The Church of St.John the Baptist offers a panoramic view of the village. This church and its paintigs date back to the 5th century, making the oldest church in the region. It had a large courtyard which is unusual for Cappadocia, this has been eroded away however.

Hospital Monastery: One of the oldest monastries in Cappadocia.

Kaymakli: Kaymakli and Derinkuyu underground cities are the two largest and deepest of the 40 others in Cappadocia. They both have eight floors, although not all are open to the public.

Pigeon House: Visit the pigeon houses and rock formations.

After the tour you are transferred to Kayseri airport for your flight to Izmir through Istanbul. When you arrive in Izmir, you will find our employee holding your name for transfer to Kusadasi for overnight stay in Kusadasi hotel.(B, L)

> Day 5: Pamukkale Tour
After breakfast we will depart from Kusadasi to Pamukkale, as soon as we arrive we will continue onto guided tour of Pamukkale and Hierapolis.
Pamukkale means cotton castle in Turkish. It is the result of limestone formations built over thousands of years. Warm calcium rich mineral water flowed over the cliffs and as it cooled it deposited the calcium into the formations that are seen today. Pamukkale is now a world heritage site.
Hierapolis was founded as a healing care center in 190 BC, taking advantage of the mineral
waters in the area. It was one of the most important intellectual, artistic, religious and commercial centers of the Roman Empire.

At the end of the tour, you will be dropped back to your hotel at approximately 7:00 pm. Overnight in Kusadasi. (B, L, D)

> Day 6: Ephesus Tour / Flight to Istanbul
Breakfast & check out of the hotel in Kusadasi.
You will be picked up from your hotel to join the Full day tour of Ephesus & The House of Virgin Mary.
On the Full day Ephesus and The House of Virgin Mary Tour, you will visit The Temple of Artemis, which once was one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. Then you will visit the world famous ancient Greco-Roman City of Ephesus, the most well preserved example in the world. After visiting this impressive site, you will have a lunch break. After lunch, you will visit The House of Virgin Mary, where it is believed she spent her last days. This is a holy place for both Christians and Muslims.

After the tour, you will be transferred from Ephesus to Izmir Airport for your flight to Istanbul. Arrive in Istanbul. Met on arrival & transferred to your hotel. Overnight in Istanbul. (B, L)

> Day 7: Istanbul
After breakfast, you have free day to explore Istanbul on your own. Overnight in Istanbul. (B)

> Day 8: Departure
After breakfast check out from hotel (before 12:00), transfer to Istanbul Ataturk Airport regarding your flight details. End of tour and services. (If you would like, you can extend your trip by adding extra nights in Istanbul, please advise.