8-Day Turkey Highlight Tour

Day 1: Istanbul

1. Istanbul
   20m
   Meet the tour guide at Istanbul airport, then drive to the hotel to check in

Day 2: Istanbul

1. Istanbul
   8h
   Explore the top attractions in Sultanahmet (the old city) on a full-day tour with a knowledgeable guide. Take in UNESCO World Heritage sites and famous monuments in Istanbul including the stunning Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque and Hippodrome. Then follow your guide through the Grand Bazaar, browsing the shops of hundreds of vendors with an array of textiles, jewelry, perfumes, spices and more. Your guide shares the long history of Istanbul with you.
2. Blue Mosque
   1h
   Blue Mosque: Admission Ticket Free
3. Grand Bazaar
   1h
   Kapali Carsi: Admission Ticket Free
4. Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque
   1h
   Hagia Sophia Mosque: Admission Ticket Free
5. Hippodrome
   1h
   Hippodrome: Admission Ticket Free
6. TopkapI Palace
   1h · Admission ticket included
   Topkapi Palace: Admission Ticket Included

Day 3: Istanbul-Ephesus-Istanbul

1. Istanbul
   Pass by
   The driver will pick you up from your Istanbul Hotels around 04:00 - 04:30 am and then transfer you to Istanbul Airport. When you arrive to the airport, you make your self-check-in and take your flight to Izmir(Ephesus). Upon landing to Izmir Airport, our team will meet you at the exit gate of the domestic terminal. Then, after an hour's transfer to the Ephesus, will meet the rest of the group and start your Full-Day Tour.
2. Ephesus Museum
   6h · Admission ticket included
   During the day, you are going to visit places below;
   1,Ephesus Ruins (Approx. 2 hours)
   2,House of Virgin Mary (Approx. 1 hour)
   3,Temple of Artemis (Approx. 20 minutes)
   4,Isabey Mosque (Panoramic View in a distance)
   5,Basilica of St. John (Panoramic View in a distance)
   6,Selcuk Castle (Panoramic View in a distance)
   
   Midday, we will have our Lunch and during the tour, you will also have a chance to explore famous local handicrafts made by the villager ladies.
3. Istanbul
   Pass by
   At the end of the Tour, we will make our way back to Airport with an hour's drive and you will have your flight back to Istanbul. When you land to Istanbul Airport, the driver will meet you at the exit gate of the domestic terminal. Then transfer back to your Hotel in Istanbul.

Day 4: Istanbul-Troy-Istanbul

1. Istanbul
   5h
   Following an early pick up from your hotel in Taksim or Sultanahmet area leave the crowds of Istanbul and depart for the legendary city of Troy. Drive along the sea of Marmara enjoying the views of the countryside for about five hours giving a break on the half way for refreshments.
2. Troy (Truva)
   4h · Admission ticket included
   Without a doubt Troy is the most famous city of the ancient world, capital of a land of myths and legends of heroes and Gods and a land that this tour can take you to. After the lunch in Eceabat enjoy a lovely ferry ride across the Dardanelles to Canakkale. During the tour your guide will explain the mythology surrounding Troy, as well as the history and discoveries of the archaeological excavations from its discovery by Heinrich Schliemann in the 1870s to the presentday. Nine cities have been discovered built one on top of the other dating back to before 3500 BC, with the city made famous by Homer in his book the Iliad describing the ten year war being just one of the layered settlements.Not only will you see the still impressive defensive walls of the ancient city and learn the story of the Trojan War, but you will also be able to walk past the ruins of everyday houses dating back more than 3000 years. Having a look at the Hollywood horse from the movie ferry ride back to Eceabat.

Day 5: Istanbul-Cappadocia

1. Istanbul
   1h
   The driver will meet you at your hotel and then transfer to Istanbul airport for your flight to Cappadocia. The pick-up time is between 03.15am and 05.00am for this transfer. This timing depends the scheduled departure time of flight from Istanbul to Cappadocia on your travel date.
2. Goreme
   1h
   Upon your arrival Cappadocia airport, you will be met by your driver and driven to Goreme - approx 1 hour from airport.
3. Uchisar
   40m
   Uchisar Castle Region, which is the highest point of Cappadocia and the view from the top is just brilliant. In the first destination you will be informed about unique formations of Cappadocia.
4. Goreme Open Air Museum
   1h 30m · Admission ticket included
   Here is the monastery, including the rock cut churches, kitchens, wineries, storages and living rooms left from Anatolian Christians. Goreme Open Air Museum is listed as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
5. Avanos
   1h 30m
   Avanos is the town of traditional pottery art, thus. You will visit one of the family work-shops in Avanos to have some information about the pottery and have a kick-wheel-pottery demonstration. Also, you will take your lunch in one of the traditional restaurants in Avanos.
6. Devrent Valley
   1h
   Which is also known as Imagination Valley. Valley contains many animal shaped rocks which are mostly in red colour. Some of the most frequent shapes is like Camel.
7. Urgup
   15m
   Meet the most famous family of fairy chimneys: Three beauties. These are the official symbol of both Urgup and Cappadocia.
8. Fairy Chimneys
   Pass by
   On this tour, you will have seen many examples of the Fairy Chimneys of Cappadocia.
9. Cappadocia
   20m
   At the end of your tour, you will be transferred to your hotel in Cappadocia.

Day 6: Cappadocia-Istanbul

1. Goreme Panorama
   30m
   We will pick you up from your hotel on 09.30am (Approx) and depar for the Green Tour of Cappadocia. Goreme Panaroma ; A fascinating panoramic view point where you can see the Old Goreme Village with its surroundings. You will get general information about the Göreme and Cappadocia.
2. Derinkuyu YeraltI Sehri
   1h 30m · Admission ticket included
   Which is the biggest and deepest underground city of Cappadocia. It has 8 levels and connected with narrow tunnels. You will visit Stalls,Storages,Church,Vinery, Kitchen and the other sections which are open for visitors.
3. Selime Monastery
   45m · Admission ticket included
   Which is the biggest rock-cut Monastery of the region. And the landscape of the town which contains the Kathedral is keeping some similarities about Star Wars movies.
4. Ihlara Valley
   3h · Admission ticket included
   You will visit the Ihlara valley/canyon after your lunch (approx 1 hour for lunch time). Totaly Canyon is 14 km but you will have the best part of it which is around 4 km and it takes almost 1 hour. Ihlara Canyon contains more than 100 churches and approximately 10.000 caves which are carved by early christian Monks.
5. Pigeon Valley
   45m
   Which is located in Uchisar town to have one of the best panaromic viev of the region. That site also covers lots of pigeon houses which are builty bye the ancient inhabitants of the region. If you like, you can able to visit popular onxy stone factory of the region.
6. Cappadocia
   1h
   At the end of tour, you will be transferred to Cappadocia airport for your flight back to Istanbul.
7. Istanbul
   1h
   Upon your arrival Istanbul, we will drop you to your hotel in Istanbul. ** The departure time of return flight is between 08.00pm and 09.00pm. That's meaning, Your return flight will be landing Istanbul airport or Istanbul SAW airport between 09.30pm and 10.30pm. After you arrived Istanbul, there will be approx one hour duration for your transfer from airport to your hotel in Istanbul. ** The return flight could be to the Istanbul SAW airport if the flights are not available to Istanbul airport on your return date.

Day 7: Istanbul-Long Circle Bosphorus Cruise up to Black Sea

1. Bosphorus Strait
   5h · Admission ticket included
   Istanbul is a bridge between Europe and Asia, the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, a position that endows it with one of the most unique and beautiful settings in the world. For, between the hills on the European and Asiatic shores flows the Bosphorus, the brightest gem in the diadem of nature. "This beautiful strait, sometimes spelled Bosporus and sometimes Bosphorus, was so called from the earliest ages by the ancients; from the mythology of 10, the mistress of Jupiter, having passed over it in the shape of a cow. It resembles the Dardanelles, in length, breadth and current, and like it, is a narrow separation which divides Europe from Asia; but it has many features familiar to itself. Instead of being a solitary stream running between deserted shores, it is a body of water full of life and animation, winding its way through banks covered with palaces and villages, shaded with magnificent forest trees, presenting to the eye, at every mile, a new scene of crowded existence."
2. Dolmabahce Palace
   Pass by
   Dolmabahce Palace It stands on the European shore of the Bosphorus and the with its various dependencies forms almost a little town, its gardens extending for a mile or more along the water's edge. Though the exterior of the Dolmabahce Palace, built by Sultan Abdülmecit (1839-1861) exhibits a variety of architectural styles, mainly baroque, and is decorated with a profusion of ornament, the general effect is not unpleasing, and the site is remarkably well-chosen.

Day 8: Istanbul

1. Istanbul
   Pass by
   Meet the driver at the hotel, drive to the airport to take the flight back home.

• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
• Suitable for all physical fitness levels