Turkey Tour
Here is a sample tour programme that we can customise to your own ideas. Naturally we have many activities and extra sightseeing options that can be included at each of these stops.
DAY 1 - FLIGHTS
Assemble at the Melbourne Airport for your flights to Istanbul.
DAY 2 - ISTANBUL
Upon arrival in Istanbul Ataturk Airport, meet your coach and driver and transfer to your accommodation. Drop your luggage off at your hotel and enjoy a free time in the city.
DAY 3 - ISTANBUL
Enjoy a full day exploring Istanbul with your guide. Visit the magnificent Haghia Sophia, and then continue to the Topkapi Palace, residence of the Ottoman Sultans from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Visit the Treasury, which houses the jewellery, porcelain, textiles and costumes of the Sultans, as well as the Harem quarters. After a restaurant lunch, visit the beautiful Blue Mosque, the Byzantine Hippodrome and the Underground Cistern. Return to your accommodation.Tonight we will dine out at a local restaurant. This will be organised by the teachers when there.
DAY 4 - ISTANBUL
After breakfast, board a ferry for a cruise on the Bosphorus strait, passing half a dozen Ottoman imperial palaces, traditional Yalis (waterside villas) and villages. Disembark at Sariyer and continue by coach south along the banks of the river. Stop for a lunch of gozleme and kumpir (baked potatoes filled with mezze) in Ortakoy, a seaside area popular with Istanbulites. This afternoon, explore the Grand Bazaar, the world's oldest shopping centre, and the Egyptian Market, which sells spices with your guide.
DAY 5 - CAPPADOCIA
This morning, meet your coach and transfer to the airport for your flight to Kayseri. Upon arrival, transfer to your accommodation. Enjoy a free day exploring with your teachers leading the group.
DAY 6 - CAPPADOCIA
Enjoy a full-day tour of Cappadocia, known as the land of beautiful horses. Visit the Göreme Open-Air Museum, a UNESCO world heritage site, to see frescoed and rock carved churches. Visit the historic village of Cavusin and continue to Avanos for lunch. This afternoon, enjoy a walk in the Devrent Valley. Continue on to the Red and Rose Valleys for spectacular views over Göreme. Return to your hotel in the early evening.
DAY 7 - CAPPADOCIA
Enjoy a second full-day tour of Cappadocia. Stop at the multi-level underground city of Kaymakli. Continue to Soganli Valley, also known as the Valley of Dolls with its many Byzantine period rock tombs. Walk through the area and explore the Armenian style churches and monastery ruins. Pass through the remote villages of Guzeloz, Ortakoy, Baskoy and Sahinefendi. Visit Taskinpasa Caravanserai, before arriving at Cemil village, a typical Cappadocian village. Travel on to Mustafa pasha (Sinasos) for lunch. Visit the village, renowned for its excellent Ottoman and Greek architecture. This afternoon, continue to the Pancarlik Valley and enjoy a walk there before returning to your accommodation for dinner.
DAY 8 - KONYA - ANTALYA
After breakfast, depart Cappadocia for Antalya by bus. Along the way we will stop and view the crater lake of Meke, then continue to Konya. After short visit to city center and lunch continue to the Mediterranean Coast.
DAY 9 - ANTALYA
Enjoy a full day in Antalya and its area. Visit the ancient Roman city of Perge famous for its Hellenistic and Roman heritage: theatre, stadium, gates and a colonnaded street. Visit Aspendos, the best-preserved amphitheatre in Turkey. The rest of the day is free for you to participate in activities organised by your teachers.
DAY 10 - DALYAN EPHESUS
Depart Antalay taking the coastal route. On route it may be possible to take a side road to coast for lunch stop. There are roads that go to coast/small beach and there are quite often Byzantine ruins around. Arrive at the Dalyan River and take a cruise which allows you to view the Lycian Tombs carved into the cliff sides along this river. To Ephesus for night.
DAY 11 - EPHESUS
Enjoy a full day tour to Ephesus, the best-preserved and restored ancient city in Turkey. Ephesus was a commercial, religious and social hub in antiquity. Begin your day with a visit to the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. See the Great Theatre with a capacity of 24,000 spectators, as well as Celsus Library, the Fountains of Trajan, the Temple of Hadrian and Domitian, private homes, the Basilica of St. John and the nearby Archaeological Museum. Visit the House of the Virgin Mary, where she spent her final days. Return to your hotel for dinner.
DAY 12 - PERGAMON - ASSOS
After breakfast, depart Selcuk along the coast of the Aegean for the Hellenistic city of Pergamon, renowned as a centre of learning, medicine and the arts in ancient times. The city’s Asclepion (medical school) attracted students from across the ancient world and its library rivalled Alexandria’s. See the Acropolis and the Great Theatre as you enter one of The Seven Churches of Revelation. Arrive in Assos in the afternoon. The town is popular with the Turkish art community and has a lively, friendly and bohemian atmosphere. Enjoy the scene in the ancient harbour.
DAY 13 - ASSOS – CANAKKALE - GALLIPOLI
After breakfast, transfer to the Gallipoli area. Begin exploration of this significant area.
Overnight accommodation in Canakkale or on the Gallipoli peninsula
DAY 14 - GALLIPOLI PENINSULA, FLIGHTS
After breakfast, enjoy a full-day tour of the Gallipoli Peninsula, where 500,000 soldiers lost their lives in World War I. Visit memorials, battlefields and cemeteries, including Anzac Cove, Ariburnu cemetery, Lone Pine, The Nec, Plugges Plateau and Chanuk Bair. Continue on to Istanbul Airport and board your flights to Australia.
Feel free to contact us on 1800 337 031 for a free quote and itinerary.