Turkey: In the Footsteps of Great Civilizations

Tour start date(s):	11-04-2025, 25-04-2025, 16-05-2025, 23-05-2025, 06-06-2025, 05-09-2025, 19-09-2025, 03-10-2025, 17-10-2025, 31-10-2025
Duration:	10 Days- 9 Nights
Location:	Istanbul (3n) – Ankara (1n) – Cappadocia (2n) – Konya (1n) – Pamukkale – Ephesus – Kusadasi (1n) – Pergamon – Ayvalik (1n) – Troy – Istanbul
Price (including tax):	DBL $1830 USD,TPL $1810, SNG $2020 USD/Without Flights

Here, civilizations changed,
great empires were born and died,
Christianity grew,
great philosophers, commanders, and emperors lived here,
HISTORY WAS MADE HERE...

Tour dates in 2025:
2025-05-23, 2025-05-16, 2025-04-25, 2025-04-11, 2025-03-07, 2025-06-06, 2025-09-05, 2025-09-19, 2025-10-03, 2025-10-17, 2025-10-31

Day 1 (Friday): Arrival at the New Istanbul Airport, individual transfer to the hotel (arrival possible at any time), check-in. Free time.

Day 2 (Saturday): Breakfast at the hotel. From 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM, join a bus excursion for the whole day (joining the group): 2 Continents: Hippodrome Square, Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia (outside viewing), Topkapi Palace, Bosphorus cruise. Return to the hotel. Overnight in Istanbul.

Day 3 (Sunday): Breakfast at the hotel. From 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM, join a bus excursion for the whole day (joining the group): Sunday tour of Istanbul: Dolmabahce Palace, Suleymaniye Mosque, Balat district, Vlacherna Church, Patriarchate, Chora Museum. Return to the hotel. Arrival of your group for the tour. Overnight in Istanbul.

Day 4 (Monday): Breakfast at the hotel. Departure from the hotel at 8:15 AM with luggage, start of the journey, and transfer to the capital of Turkey, Ankara (~450 km). Ankara city tour: Ataturk Museum – a place where everything related to the Turkish Republic is gathered, from exclusive cars of its founder Ataturk to huge panoramas depicting the events of the Turkish War of Independence in the 1920s, visiting the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations, where you will see artifacts made by humans 40,000 years ago. Walk along the walls of Ankara Fortress. Arrival at the hotel, check-in. Dinner. Overnight in Ankara.

Day 5 (Tuesday): Breakfast at the hotel. Departure from the hotel at 8:15 AM with luggage. Transfer from Ankara to Cappadocia (~250 km) with a stop at the shore of the second-largest salt lake in Turkey, known for its flamingos. Cappadocia tour: You will see the most beautiful view on Earth – a vast mountain plateau covered with churches, monasteries, and homes carved into the rocks.

In the evening, for an additional fee, we offer a Whirling Dervishes performance (9:00 PM to 10:00 PM). Dinner.

Day 6 (Wednesday): At dawn, for an additional fee, a hot air balloon flight is offered. Breakfast. After breakfast, your exploration of Cappadocia continues, with visits to valleys with unique rock formations, the underground city of Kaymakli, and the Göreme monastery complex with its unique frescoes in dozens of small churches carved into the rocks. You will also visit a pottery workshop, where you can watch unique pieces being made (and even try making your own vase on a pottery wheel!). You will have the chance to see how famous Turkish carpets are woven and see the “flying carpet” in person. Dinner and rest at the hotel.

An optional Turkish Night is available for an additional fee.

Day 7 (Thursday): Breakfast. Departure from the hotel with luggage. Transfer to Konya (~220 km). Visit the Mevlana religious complex. Mevlana is an ancient Eastern monastery, home to monks, poets, and philosophers. It is the center of Sufi culture. It was founded by Mevlana Rumi – his role in Eastern poetry is as great as Pushkin's in Russian literature. Rumi was also the founder of the Whirling Dervish order. At 12:00 PM, departure from Konya. Lunch break. Continue the journey to Pamukkale (~420 km). Arrival at the hotel, check-in. Dinner. Overnight in Konya.

Day 8 (Friday): Early breakfast (departure from the hotel at 8:00–8:15 AM). Visit the huge ancient necropolis of Hierapolis. The enormous tombs, which have preserved their coolness and twilight for two millennia, will amaze you with their size. Then, you will visit the travertines! Beautiful white mountains, where hot mineral water flows, with many natural pools… For an additional fee, you can swim in Cleopatra's Pool. Departure from Pamukkale at 11:30 AM–12:00 PM. Lunch at 12:30 PM. Sanitary stop at 2:30 PM. Transfer to the ancient city of Selçuk (~190 km). Here, you will visit the ancient city of Ephesus, one of the centers of early Christianity, the Church of St. John, and the House of the Virgin Mary, where you can make a wish (it will definitely come true!), and the ruins of the Temple of Artemis, which was burned by Herostratus (arrival in Ephesus at 3:30 PM–4:00 PM). Check-in at a cozy seaside hotel in Kuşadası. Dinner (7:00 PM). After dinner, you can take a walk through the city and enjoy the scent of the Aegean Sea.

Day 9 (Saturday): Breakfast. Departure from the hotel with luggage. Transfer to Pergamon (~190 km). Tour of the capital of the Kingdom of Pergamon, from which the word "parchment" comes. You will touch the walls of the ancient library, where the book first appeared in its present form. Visit the luxurious temple of Emperor Trajan, see the base of the Altar of Zeus, and the magnificent mountain theater, with its rows of seats located on the steep slopes of the mountain. Transfer to the seaside town of Ayvalık. Check-in at the hotel. Dinner.

Day 10 (Sunday): Breakfast. Departure from the hotel with luggage. Transfer to the legendary Troy (~65 km). Tour of Troy, which was captured thanks to the cunning of Odysseus. You will see the field where Achilles dragged Hector's body behind his chariot. Then, you will transfer across the Dardanelles Strait to Istanbul (~360 km). Arrival at the New Airport at 8:00 PM and departure from Turkey.

Thus, in seven days you will visit 10 ancient and modern cities in Turkey, encounter 5 ancient civilizations of the world, visit both Europe and Asia, explore more than 20 unique architectural ensembles, and see at least a thousand ancient artifacts, relics, frescoes, and statues, totaling an age of at least 100,000 years.

Attention! The tour program ends on Sunday with the arrival of the group at the New Istanbul International Airport at 8:00 PM. Plan your departure from Turkey after 10:00 PM. You may book an additional night at the airport hotel (cost of an additional night to be clarified during booking) and depart the next morning.

We recommend booking a hotel in Istanbul, where you stayed at the beginning of the tour. Transfer from the airport and back to the airport the next day is free!

Tour cost:
Double/pp - $1,830.00, Triple/pp - $1,810.00, Single - $2,020.00

The tour includes:

• Group transfer from the new airport to the hotel and back
• Accommodation in 3-4* hotels; breakfast + dinner
• Transfers on a comfortable bus
• Services of a professional Russian-speaking guide
• Entrance tickets to museums

Additional costs:

• Drinks at dinner
• Tourists arriving at Sabiha Gokcen Airport and departing from Sabiha Gokcen Airport must pay for a one-way transfer - $70 per car (1-6 people)
• Visa
• Additional excursions, tips for the guide, driver, hotel staff (optional)

Hotels 3-4 along the route (or similar):*
Istanbul - Hotel Erden Sarayevo
Ankara - New Park Hotel
Cappadocia - Suhan Hotel
Konya - Adempira Thermal and Spa Hotel
Kuşadası - Hotel Marina
Ayvalık - Erden Gardens Hotel

Attention! Additional nights in Istanbul after the tour can be booked.

Cost of additional nights in Istanbul before the tour at the hotel where the group stays with breakfast:
Double/pp - $60, Triple/pp - $55, Single - $85

It is possible to book first seats on the bus for an additional fee:
1-2 seats, 5-6 (behind the driver) 7-8 (behind the guide) - $60 per person. Please check availability when booking.

The company reserves the right to change the order of visiting excursion sites while maintaining the overall program.
The company reserves the right to change the cost of the tour with prior notice.