Contrasts of Turkey
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Highlights:
Turkey is a country of contrasts. Its capital offers buildings dating to Roman times along with modern shopping malls. It is one of the largest Muslim countries and yet enjoys a lively bar and nightclub scene.
Part of the country is in Europe, the rest in Asia and the people reflect that. The geography differs immensely from one area to the next, from the dry plateaus of Cappadocia to the crystal shores of the Aegean. This suggested program exposes you to the main areas of Turkey and all its wonderful contrasts.
Turkey is a country of contrasts. Its capital offers buildings dating to Roman times along with modern shopping malls. It is one of the largest Muslim countries and yet enjoys a lively bar and nightclub scene.
Part of the country is in Europe, the rest in Asia and the people reflect that. The geography differs immensely from one area to the next, from the dry plateaus of Cappadocia to the crystal shores of the Aegean. This suggested program exposes you to the main areas of Turkey and all its wonderful contrasts.
SKU:
Explore: the contrasts of Turekey
Customizable Itinerary - 12 Days (from $4,257 / person)
Day 1: Depart USA
This evening you head to the airport to check in for your flight to the exotic city of Istanbul and the beginning of your Custom Turkey Vacation.
Day 2: Arrival in Istanbul
On most flights from the USA you will arrive in mid-afternoon. One of our drivers will be at the airport to meet you and take you to the hotel. The rest of the day is left open to allow you to adjust.
Day 3: Introduction to Istanbul
After breakfast and a good night’s sleep you will be ready to meet your guide who is also a lecturer on the history of the city. You will spend most of the morning at Seraglio Point with your first stop being the Hippodrome. Here you will see the obelisk of Theodosius with its 4th Century reliefs. You then walk to The Blue Mosque which was built in the 17th Century and so named because the interior is covered in blue tiles. This will be followed by Aya Sophia the great church built by Emperor Justinian. Your next visit will take you underground to the Yerebatan Sarayi, a giant Cistern created by the Romans to provide water to the city and used well into the Ottoman era. James Bond fans will remember that it was used by bod to spy on the Russian Embassy in “From Russia with Love”. The underground chamber is supported by rows and rows of columns and has been totally restored to its original splendor. Finish your tour at Topkapi Sarayi. Begun by Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453, it was the palace of the Ottoman Sultans for over 300 years and is a supreme example of Ottoman architecture.
Breakfast
Day 4: Crossing the Bosphorus
Once again you meet your expert guide and start the day with a visit to the Theodosian Walls followed by a visit to the Kariye Museum, once a mosque and now famous for its mosaics. Continue on to the Suleymaniye Mosque for a tour and then make your way to the Grand Bazaar with over 4,000 shops. Your guide will prevent you from getting lost. You then cross the Bosphorus and travel from Europe to Asia. You will have the chance to have lunch before visiting the Beylerbeyi Palace built in the late 19th Century as a summer residence of the sultan. This elegant structure boasts graceful bathing pavilions and a spectacular reception hall with fountain. After a drive along the Anatolian side of the Bosphorus you return to your hotel.
Breakfast
Day 5: “The Land of Beautiful Horses”
In the morning you will be transferred to the airport for a morning flight to Kayseri, the gateway to Cappadocia whose name means “land of beautiful horses”. You will not see horses, nut you will see something unique with multicolored pinnacles known as fairy chimneys, hollowed out to create Byzantine churches, monasteries and entire subterranean “cave towns” You will stop in the Dervent Valley where you get the chance to walk among the fairy chimneys. You then visit Monk’s Valley for more fairy chimneys followed by a drive to Avanos whose red clay creates pottery dating back to the Hittites. After stopping for a lunch break you visit the Goreme Open air Museum to visit the churches, chapels and monasteries carved into the fairy chimneys from the 10th through the 13th centuries. You then are taken to your cave hotel. In the evening enjoy a Whirling Dervish Performance.
Breakfast
Day 6: Ballooning and Exploring
You get an early wake-up this morning as you join some other early birds for a hot air balloon ride as the sun comes up over this unique geographic landscape. After an hour or so you descend and enjoy a champagne breakfast before returning to the hotel for a full breakfast. You meet your guide and head to the Rose Valley for some scenic trekking. After stopping for lunch you then proceed to Ortahiser Castle and then Kaymakli underground city where early Christians lived in fear and faith. You last stop will be pigeon valley where pigeons are maintained in coops carved into the rocks and their manure is used to fertilize the vines. Cappadocia is well known for its wine and you will visit a local vineyard to sample some.
Breakfast
Day 7: Izmir and Kusadasi
After breakfast you are transferred to the airport for a flight to Izmir. Upon arrival you will be met and driven to the coastal resort of Kusadasi Once you have checked you may want to relax and spend time at the pool of at the one of the nearby beaches. In the evening enjoy the setting sun as you dine alfresco at the hotel.
Breakfast and Dinner
Day 8: Ephesus … 3,000 years of History
Today you will have a private transfer to the Greco-Roman city of Ephesus which has been populated since the 11th Century B.C. although its prime time was 600 B.C. to 500 A.D. when it served as a major port for both Greece and Rome. The most striking sight is the Library of Celsius which sits on the Arcadian Way. You will also visit the Ephesus Theater where St. Paul once preached to the Ephesians. After your tour of Ephesus your driver will take you to the Coastal town of Bodrum which was known as Halicarnassus in ancient times. It was also the birthplace of Herodotus the “Father of History." Enjoy the harbor view as you dine at the hotel.
Breakfast and Dinner
Day 9: Bodrum at Leisure
Today is left open to allow you to relax by the pool or on the beach, just steps from the hotel. In the evening, find an attractive outdoor café to enjoy the sunset and then choose from a variety of restaurants lining the harbor and the seashore.
Breakfast
Day 10: Cruising the Aegean on a private Gulet
In the morning you will be picked up at your hotel and driven to the marina where a Gulet (private wooden yacht) is waiting to take you on a cruise along the Turquoise Coast. Your crew will find secluded islands for you to swim or sunbathe and you will have lunch on board. In the early evening you are returned to your hotel.
Breakfast and Lunch
Day 11: Bodrum to Panukkale
After breakfast your driver will take you to an area known as Panukkale which means “cotton castle” in Turkish. The mineral laden water comes out f the ground at temperatures ranging from 85 degrees to over 200 degrees and leaves mineral deposits that look like ice. This natural phenomenon is close to the ancient city of Hierapolis. Upon arrival you can explore the travertine terraces before enjoying a bath in the hotel’s luxury spa. Finish your day with dinner at the hotel.
Breakfast and Dinner
Day 12: Return to USA
You will be transferred to Denizili Airport for the flight to Istanbul and your return flight to the USA where you arrive back the same afternoon.
Breakfast
This evening you head to the airport to check in for your flight to the exotic city of Istanbul and the beginning of your Custom Turkey Vacation.
Day 2: Arrival in Istanbul
On most flights from the USA you will arrive in mid-afternoon. One of our drivers will be at the airport to meet you and take you to the hotel. The rest of the day is left open to allow you to adjust.
Day 3: Introduction to Istanbul
After breakfast and a good night’s sleep you will be ready to meet your guide who is also a lecturer on the history of the city. You will spend most of the morning at Seraglio Point with your first stop being the Hippodrome. Here you will see the obelisk of Theodosius with its 4th Century reliefs. You then walk to The Blue Mosque which was built in the 17th Century and so named because the interior is covered in blue tiles. This will be followed by Aya Sophia the great church built by Emperor Justinian. Your next visit will take you underground to the Yerebatan Sarayi, a giant Cistern created by the Romans to provide water to the city and used well into the Ottoman era. James Bond fans will remember that it was used by bod to spy on the Russian Embassy in “From Russia with Love”. The underground chamber is supported by rows and rows of columns and has been totally restored to its original splendor. Finish your tour at Topkapi Sarayi. Begun by Mehmet the Conqueror in 1453, it was the palace of the Ottoman Sultans for over 300 years and is a supreme example of Ottoman architecture.
Breakfast
Day 4: Crossing the Bosphorus
Once again you meet your expert guide and start the day with a visit to the Theodosian Walls followed by a visit to the Kariye Museum, once a mosque and now famous for its mosaics. Continue on to the Suleymaniye Mosque for a tour and then make your way to the Grand Bazaar with over 4,000 shops. Your guide will prevent you from getting lost. You then cross the Bosphorus and travel from Europe to Asia. You will have the chance to have lunch before visiting the Beylerbeyi Palace built in the late 19th Century as a summer residence of the sultan. This elegant structure boasts graceful bathing pavilions and a spectacular reception hall with fountain. After a drive along the Anatolian side of the Bosphorus you return to your hotel.
Breakfast
Day 5: “The Land of Beautiful Horses”
In the morning you will be transferred to the airport for a morning flight to Kayseri, the gateway to Cappadocia whose name means “land of beautiful horses”. You will not see horses, nut you will see something unique with multicolored pinnacles known as fairy chimneys, hollowed out to create Byzantine churches, monasteries and entire subterranean “cave towns” You will stop in the Dervent Valley where you get the chance to walk among the fairy chimneys. You then visit Monk’s Valley for more fairy chimneys followed by a drive to Avanos whose red clay creates pottery dating back to the Hittites. After stopping for a lunch break you visit the Goreme Open air Museum to visit the churches, chapels and monasteries carved into the fairy chimneys from the 10th through the 13th centuries. You then are taken to your cave hotel. In the evening enjoy a Whirling Dervish Performance.
Breakfast
Day 6: Ballooning and Exploring
You get an early wake-up this morning as you join some other early birds for a hot air balloon ride as the sun comes up over this unique geographic landscape. After an hour or so you descend and enjoy a champagne breakfast before returning to the hotel for a full breakfast. You meet your guide and head to the Rose Valley for some scenic trekking. After stopping for lunch you then proceed to Ortahiser Castle and then Kaymakli underground city where early Christians lived in fear and faith. You last stop will be pigeon valley where pigeons are maintained in coops carved into the rocks and their manure is used to fertilize the vines. Cappadocia is well known for its wine and you will visit a local vineyard to sample some.
Breakfast
Day 7: Izmir and Kusadasi
After breakfast you are transferred to the airport for a flight to Izmir. Upon arrival you will be met and driven to the coastal resort of Kusadasi Once you have checked you may want to relax and spend time at the pool of at the one of the nearby beaches. In the evening enjoy the setting sun as you dine alfresco at the hotel.
Breakfast and Dinner
Day 8: Ephesus … 3,000 years of History
Today you will have a private transfer to the Greco-Roman city of Ephesus which has been populated since the 11th Century B.C. although its prime time was 600 B.C. to 500 A.D. when it served as a major port for both Greece and Rome. The most striking sight is the Library of Celsius which sits on the Arcadian Way. You will also visit the Ephesus Theater where St. Paul once preached to the Ephesians. After your tour of Ephesus your driver will take you to the Coastal town of Bodrum which was known as Halicarnassus in ancient times. It was also the birthplace of Herodotus the “Father of History." Enjoy the harbor view as you dine at the hotel.
Breakfast and Dinner
Day 9: Bodrum at Leisure
Today is left open to allow you to relax by the pool or on the beach, just steps from the hotel. In the evening, find an attractive outdoor café to enjoy the sunset and then choose from a variety of restaurants lining the harbor and the seashore.
Breakfast
Day 10: Cruising the Aegean on a private Gulet
In the morning you will be picked up at your hotel and driven to the marina where a Gulet (private wooden yacht) is waiting to take you on a cruise along the Turquoise Coast. Your crew will find secluded islands for you to swim or sunbathe and you will have lunch on board. In the early evening you are returned to your hotel.
Breakfast and Lunch
Day 11: Bodrum to Panukkale
After breakfast your driver will take you to an area known as Panukkale which means “cotton castle” in Turkish. The mineral laden water comes out f the ground at temperatures ranging from 85 degrees to over 200 degrees and leaves mineral deposits that look like ice. This natural phenomenon is close to the ancient city of Hierapolis. Upon arrival you can explore the travertine terraces before enjoying a bath in the hotel’s luxury spa. Finish your day with dinner at the hotel.
Breakfast and Dinner
Day 12: Return to USA
You will be transferred to Denizili Airport for the flight to Istanbul and your return flight to the USA where you arrive back the same afternoon.
Breakfast
