11-Day Combination of Historical & Natural Highlights
This private journey takes you on a comfortable tour of Istanbul, Canakkale, Kusadasi, Antalya, and Cappadocia, letting you experience the best highlights, cultures, and stories of Turkey.
Days
11
Price
US$3,520 p/p
Best For
First-timers
Best Time
Apr. to Oct.
Tour Highlights
We have just returned from an amazing trip to Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. Our travel adviser Albee Ning prepared a wonderful itinerary taking us to great locations with creative activities highlighting local culture.
We traveled with Asia Highlights (Lissie was our agent) several years ago when we went to Saigon, and the experience was so positive, we automatically went to Asia Highlights again for an extensive trip to Southeast Asia.
Itinerary Details
The itinerary below is only a typical sample and you may alter any aspect of it. Tell us your needs and our travel advisors will tailor-make it to meet your requirements.
We are happy to meet you in Turkey. Your guide and driver will wait for you on time at the airport and drive you to your hotel. Your luggage and check-in procedure will be taken care of. Relax for the rest of the day.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Start your private tour with three of Turkey's iconic historic spots. The Hippodrome of Constantinople, where many races took place, is a popular meeting square now. The Blue Mosque is famous for its blue-white tiles and six minarets. Hagia Sophia, a masterpiece of Byzantine architecture, has switched its role from a church to a mosque and then a museum. Hold your breath and step quietly into history. Ask any questions that flash into your mind.
Enjoy your lunch filled with Turkish cuisine and then head to the Topkapi Palace. See the gorgeous treasures there and listen to colorful and interesting stories about the rich sultans in ancient times. Overlooking the Bosphorus is a must-do activity. Stop at the Grand Bazaar before heading back to your hotel. Practice your haggling skills with local traders there.
Special Notes
- Hagia Sophia is closed on Mondays.
- The Blue Mosque is closed on Fridays.
- The Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesdays.
- The Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays.
Optional Trip to Enrich Your Tour
Bosphorus night cruise with dinner: Enjoy sightseeing at night across both Asia and Europe from the Bosphorus Bay. Have Turkish cuisine for dinner on the cruise.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
You will be collected from your hotel in the morning and have a private transfer along the Dardanelles.
Upon arrival, pay a visit to the battlefield of Gallipoli, which was seen as the most important turning point in WWI for Australia, New Zealand, and Turkey. This touching journey will also contain other memorial sites, such as the Anzac Commemorative Site, Lone Pine Cemetery, Johnston's Jolly Cemetery, and the Chunuk Bair (New Zealand) Memorial. Your respect will increase as you follow the stories of these heroes.
Take a ride on a public ferry across the bay after lunch and stay overnight in a Canakkale hotel near the Mediterranean Sea.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Enjoy a tasty breakfast in a hotel near the Mediterranean Sea before exploring the ancient city of Troy. Walking around the ruins, your expert guide will tell you tales about the Trojan War. Delve into the symbolism of the wooden Trojan Horse and review the Greek mythological story.
Later, hit the road and travel to a small seaside town — Bergama. Despite being more than 2,000 years old, you can still see its former prosperity and grandeur when you pass the museum, theater, and the Asclepion. You will also look over the whole city and admire the horizon.
Walk back down and head to Kusadasi for your overnight stay.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
If you haven't explored Ephesus, your trip is not complete. The ancient city of Ephesus is the best-preserved classical city in the Eastern Mediterranean. It is full of mythological stories and spectacular ruins. You will spend a full day there finding the Temple of Artemis (one of the wonders of the ancient world), the Great Theater, the Library of Celsus, Marble Street, the Temple of Hadrian, and more. Feel free to let your guide know if you are interested in other sites there and he/she will show them to you.
Head back to your hotel after enjoying local food for lunch, stopping at the House of the Virgin Mary on the way. St. John took Mary, the mother of Jesus, there to enjoy the rest of her life in peace. Now, it has become a holy place for Christianity and Christians worship there every year. Light a candle, write down your wish, and paste your wish on the wishing wall if you want to.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Say farewell to Kusadasi and drive to Pamukkale. On the way, stop to visit Aphrodisias, a capital in the Eastern Roman Empire. It had all the municipal facilities of an ancient Roman city: a senate, a coliseum, baths, a market, a theater, an arena, and the Temple of Aphrodite, dedicated to the goddess of love who was known as Venus in Roman mythology. Step in the ancient city and discover some Roman history from your guide.
Next, you will visit another ancient Roman city, Hierapolis, which is located on solid limestone layers with theaters, tombs, and some natural hot spring pools. Your guide will give you detailed information at a comfortable pace.
Optional Trip to Enrich Your Tour
Swimming in an ancient spring pool in Hierapolis is an amazing experience. Floating in naturally warm water, you'll notice that broken ruins from the ancient city are clearly visible at the bottom of the water. Please take your swimsuit with you at the start of the tour.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Morning is a special time in Pamukkale, which is a unique spectacular natural wonder with dazzling white scenery. You will see the thermal spring water plunging down the mountainside, which has created a natural formation of stalactites and pools. This thermal water has been used to keep people healthy since the Roman period. Take off your shoes, put your feet into the warm water, and relax in a natural spa for hours.
Have some authentic Turkish cuisine for lunch, then transfer directly to Antalya.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Depart from your hotel after a refreshing breakfast and visit an important city of ancient Pamphylia, Perge, where the Hittites originally settled, with large theaters and sports grounds. Nowadays, most of the unearthed statues are on display in the Antalya Museum.
Continue to see Aspendos, which has one of the best-preserved Roman theaters in Anatolia. It is said that its acoustics were designed to hear the sound of a silver coin landing. How incredible in ancient times! Have lunch locally and join an old city walking tour for a leisurely afternoon.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Pack your luggage and meet your guide in the lobby for your transfer to Cappadocia. On the way, you will stop at Sultan Han caravanserai in Konya, which was a post for armies and vendors on the ancient Silk Road. Stories about the trade route are waiting for you and your guide will explain them clearly to you. Then, take a look at the Mevlana Museum, one of the most important pilgrimage sites for Turkish Muslims. Pilgrims walk in circles around the mausoleum and pray daily. You will see the Mevlana tombs, the whirling dervish hall, the kitchen, and possibly see the dervishes practicing their dancing there. The largest and smallest Korans in the world are also in this museum.
Get back on the road and have a special experience in a Cappadocia cave hotel.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
Morning Option
Pre-sunrise hot-air balloon ride: It is the most popular and unique experience in Cappadocia. Take a 1-hour flight and enjoy fantastic aerial views of a natural moon landscape. See the first rays of the sunrise and make a wish.
Enjoy a leisurely breakfast with the background full of soaring hot-air balloons. Then start your Devrent Valley and Monks Valley adventure. Devrent Valley is famous for its fabulous volcanic cones while Monks Valley is filled with mushroom-like rock formations called fairy chimneys. Explore the secrets of the rocks and pretend you are on the moon.
Proceed to a pottery center in Avanos, which is set on the banks of the Red River. You will have lunch in a local restaurant and admire pottery that has 4,000 years of history.
Meals provided: breakfast and lunch
When you have been collected from your hotel lobby, you will descend toward the center of the Earth and have an adventure in Kaymakli Underground City, one of the largest and deepest underground settlements in Cappadocia. It contains all the living rooms, such as stables, cellars, storage rooms, refectories, churches, and wineries on eight floors. It was used as a defense against enemies. You will arrive at each part as you walk through the tunnels.
On the way to the airport for your departure, stop at Pigeon Valley and enjoy a panoramic view of fairy chimneys, rock caves, and ancient houses. Say goodbye to your guide and driver at the airport. We hope you have a happy journey home and looking forward to meeting you again!
Trip Notes
Each part of the itinerary above can be customized. You are welcome to let us know your preferences and we will be happy to adjust the elements for you.
Extend the Tour
- Fethiye: add 2-3 days, Oludeniz, Butterfly Valley, islands tour, snorkeling.
- Ankara: Add 2 days for Ataturk Mausoleum and Lake Abant.
- More destinations: Bursa, Cesme, Alacati, Bodrum, and Safranbolu. Feel free to tell us the places you're interested in and we will provide you with more information.
Accommodation
Many types of accommodation are available including 5-star hotels, superior 4-star hotels, best value 3-star hotels, and popular boutique hotels in various Turkish styles. We will select the perfect one for you.
Transportation
We usually recommend flights to connect destination cities, which is more effective and saves time. Feel free to tell us if you prefer to experience the trains or buses.
Meals
Lunches are prepared in local restaurants for you to taste authentic Turkish food. Please tell us if you have any special dietary requirements, such as vegetarian, Indian, gluten-free, or halal. Your guide will take care of it.
Hand-picked Hotels
Price Includes
Price from: $3,520 (tour code: gh-tk-2)
Why Travel with Global Highlights During the Pandemic
- Tailor-made experience: All of your ideas/needs will be carefully considered to create your ideal trip.
- Worry-free planning: Your 1:1 travel consultant in Asia will take all the uncertainty out of your planning, helping you navigate any travel restrictions.
- No-risk booking: 100% refund policy! (prior to 3 weeks before departure, more details)
