Heart of Asia Minor

Arrival to Istanbul. Meet and transfer to domestic lines for your flight to Kayseri. Meet at Kayseri airport and transfer to Cappadocia. Dinner and overnight in Cappadocia.

Meals & Drinks : Dinner

Full day touring in Cappadocia; visit Goreme Open Air Museum with its troglodyte chapels decorated with unique Biblical frescoes, and Kaymakli, the eight-story underground city, Zelve Valley, the natural citadel of Uchisar and the pottery town of Avanos. Shopping facilities of handcrafts, carpets and pottery. Dinner and overnight in Cappadocia.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Drive to Konya. En route visit Sultanhani, the best preserved Seljuk caravansary in Anatolia in the village of carpet restorers. In Konya, tour Mevlana’s Mausoleum, founder on the Whirling Dervishes, and the Karatay Koran School, displaying colorful Turkish tiles. Dinner and overnight in Konya.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Drive to Yalvac to visit ancient Psidian Antioch. Lunch en route. Continue driving to Antalya via Isparta. Dinner and overnight in Antalya.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Full day excursion to the ancient city of Perge. Then, drive to Aspendos, to visit the extraordinary remains of a Roman amphitheater. After lunch, return to Antalya for a visit to the Museum of Antalya, with its historical and archeological treasures. Dinner and overnight in Antalya.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Drive to Pamukkale, which means “Cotton Castle” in Turkish, describing the white lime cascades formed by mineral springs. Visit the ruins of the Roman health spa of Hierapolis. Enjoy a mineral spring at your hotel. Dinner and overnight in Pamukkale.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Leave for Ephesus in the morning. Visit the wonderfully preserved antique city which once had 300.000 inhabitants. Start with the Odeon and the State Agora. Walk on the Curetes Street to see the Varius Baths, the Temple of Hadrian, the Library of Celsus and the most impressive theater. Lunch and shopping time in Selcuk. In the afternoon visit the House of Virgin Mary where she spent her last days of her life and the Basilica of St.John where the Apostle is buried. Dinner and overnight in Kusadasi.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Morning at leisure. Transfer to Izmir Adnan Menderes airport for your flight to Istanbul. Visit the Byzantine Hippodrome where the chariot races were held and the Blue Mosque unique with its 6 minarets and irreplaceable blue Iznik tiles. Optional dinner with Turkish belly dancing. Overnight in Istanbul.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch

After breakfast start exploring the fascinating remains of the Byzantine and Ottoman eras in Istanbul; Topkapi Palace Museum which was the imperial residence of the Ottoman Sultans. You will admire one of the four largest Chinese porcelain collections of the world and the treasury of the Ottoman Royalty. Continue for Hagia Sophia; the Divine Wisdom Church of the 6th century which was an architectural wonder of its time. After visiting the Underground Cistern; a colonnaded water reservoir of the 6th century, spend the rest of the afternoon in the Grand Bazaar. Enjoy a farewell dinner.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Transfer to Istanbul Ataturk Airport for your departure flight.

Meals & Drinks : Breakfast