About this trip

Treasures of Turkey & Greece Tour

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive Istanbul

Welcome to Turkey. Arrive in Istanbul Airport ( IST ) or to Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen Airport ( SAW ) , Our representative will meet you at the airport with your name sign and private transfer to the hotel for overnight stay in Istanbul.

Day 2: Full Day Istanbul Tour (B)

09.00 a.m. After breakfast pick up from hotel and our journey begins in Istanbul, the only city in the world situated on two continents. Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul - it's three names span more than 2600 years, nearly 1600 of them as the capital of two of the greatest empires the world has known, Byzantine and Ottoman. We visit the Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque and Hippodrome, where chariot races and the Byzantine riots took place. Visit the Grand Bazaar for shopping (Egyptian Spice Bazaar will be visited instead of Grand Bazaar on Sundays) . Overnight in Istanbul.

Update for St. Sophia interior visit: Live guiding is not allowed in St. Sophia after the 15th of January 2024. Guests must have their smartphones and headphones during their visit. If guests do not have headphones, they can buy them at the entrance at the cost of US$3.5. The system is similar to audio guide system. Guests who do not have smartphones will follow the signs and the given information on the signs. For more information, https://ar.demx.org.tr can be visited on your smartphone.

Day 3: Istanbul to Cappadocia by flight - Cappadocia Tour (B)

Early morning pick up from hotel and transfer to Istanbul airport for flight to Cappadocia . Arrival to Cappadocia. Our Tour guide will meet you at the airport and start for Cappadocia tour. First meeting with Cappadocia, visiting Three Sisters Fairy Chimneys in Urgup which are the most popular and seen on advertisements. That's why people carved some pigeon houses to keep them in certain places. You will see that the houses for the pigeons are like the houses for the people. Then we descend into the center of the earth in the Ozkonak Underground City. After the tour program transfer to your hotel

Day 4: Full Day Cappadocia Tour (B)

Optional Hot Air Balloon Experience. In the morning, first meeting with the lunar landscape of Cappadocia: rock formations beyond belief in Devrent valley; a journey in the past with its troglodyte houses, visit to Pasabag "fairy chimneys" where the voice of wind mixes with the "songs of fairies" near Zelve. Lunch break in Avanos, center of terra cotta work of art since 3000 BC and a demonstration in a traditional pottery workshop. Afternoon, visit the famous Goreme Open Air Museum and see the best examples of Byzantine art in Cappadocia in rock-cut churches with frescoes and paintings (10th to 13th century). Continue to Uchisar Rock-Castle to have a panoramic view of the valleys of Cappadocia. After the tour program transfer to your hotel. Stay overnight in Cappadocia.

Day 5 : Cappadocia - Konya - Pamukkale (B, D)

Early departure for Pamukkale. Arrive in Konya and visit the Mausoleum of Mevlana, the world-wide famous mystic. Drive to Pamukkale and overnight in a Thermal Hotel in Pamukkale. Swim in thermal pools till 22.30

Day 6 : Pamukkale - Kusadasi (B, D)

In the morning visit the famous white travertine cascades and the ancient Hierapolis with the Theatre, Apollo Temple and magnificent Necropolis, the graveyard. Then drive to Kusadasi and overnight.

Day 7 : Ephesus Tour (B, D)

After breakfast drive to Ephesus. First visit Artemis Temple where is one of the seven wonders of the Ancient World. Continue to Ephesus, walk through history along marble streets lined with wonderful public buildings, among them The State Agora, Odeon, Memnius Monument, the Temple of Domitian, , Polio Fountain, Curetes Street, The Trajan Fountain, The Baths of Scholastica, Hadrian Temple, Latrina, Celcus Library, the gate of Mihridates and Mazues, Commercial Agora and The Grand Theater are two of the most impressive buildings in Ephesus. Grand theatre was built in 3rd century B.C and it was later expanded to 24.000 spectators by the Romans in the 1st century A.D. After Lunch break visit House of Virgin Mary. This house is located on the Aladag Mountains 5 miles from Ephesus. At the third Ecumenical Council of 431 in Ephesus, it was claimed that Mary came to Ephesus with St. John in 37 A.D. and lived there until her death in 48 A.D. After the discovery of the house, the Archbishop of Izmir declared it a place of pilgrimage in 1892. On July 26, 1967, Pope Paul VI visited this place and prayed here. After the tour, return to hotel for overnight.

Day 8 : Kusadasi (B, D)

Day at leisure. Overnight: Kusadasi

Day 9 : Kusadasi - Greek Islands Cruise - Patmos (B, Cruise Full Board + Classic Drinks)

You will be transferred to the pier to embark on a 3 day Greek Island cruise. First stop is Patmos. This island is known as the site of the apocalyptic revelations of St. John the Divine, written here during his exile from the Roman Empire.

Day 10 : Cruise – Heraklion (Crete) - Santorini( Cruise Full Board + Classic Drinks )

This morning’s port of call is Heraklion, Crete. Excursion to the Minoan Palace of Knossos is included with the cruise group. Your next port of call is Santorini, where you are free to explore the land of the fabled Atlantis.

Day 11: Cruise - Santorini - Athens (Breakfast)

After disembarking from the cruise, you will be transferred to your Athens hotel. The rest of the day is free. Overnight: Athens

Day 12: Athens City Tour (B)

After breakfast transfer to terminal to join your group. This tour gives you an opportunity to observe the striking contrasts that make Athens such a fascinating city. Our expert guides will take you to see the Panathenaic Stadium where the first Olympic Games of modern times were held in 1896 (short stop). Continue and pass by the Prime Minister's residence (ex Royal Palace) guarded by the Euzones in their colorful uniform, the Temple of Olympian Zeus, the Hadrian's Arch, the Parliament and the memorial to the Unknown Soldier, the Academy, the University, the National Library, the Constitution Square (Syntagma). On the Acropolis visit the Architectural Masterpieces of the Golden Age of Athens: The Propylaea, the Temple of Athena Nike, the Erechtheion and finally "the harmony between material and spirit", the monument that "puts order in the mind", the Parthenon. Continue and visit the place where at last the statues found their home and admire the wonders of the classical era: The new Acropolis museum. Afternoon at leisure. Overnight: Athens

Note: Some hotels in Athens are situated on a narrow street where tour buses can't enter. You might have to walk 3-4 minutes to reach the meeting point.

Day 13: Athens - Departure (B)

Breakfast and transfer to airport.

End of Services

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