Cappadocia - Pamukkale - Ephesus 5 days Escorted Tours (Customizable)

Guaranteed departure: Every day all year-round in 2008 !

Day 1 - Istanbul - Cappadocia
Take the morning flight from Istanbul Ataturk airport to Kayseri. Arrival and meeting at the airport just outside the arrival's gate with a sign bearing your name and transfer to Cappadocia. In the morning, first meeting with the lunar landscape of Cappadocia: rock formations beyond belief in Devrent valley; walking in Zelve Open Air Museum: 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". Lunch 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). Climb on top of the Uchisar Rock-Castle to have a panoramic view of the valleys of Cappadocia. Overnight Cappadocia.

Day 2 - Cappadocia
Tour to Kaymaklı Underground City, one of the most interesting underground settlements in Cappadocia. Soğanlı Valley, an Open Air Museum in a wild natural setting near a typical Cappadocian village with its different style Rock-Cut churches and frescoes. Villages in the valleys, surrounded by the "table top" mountains, are spectacular. Lunch and Visit to Sahinefendi newly discovered (01 May 2002) mosaic houses & Archaeological excavation site. Continue with Keslik Monastery near Cemil, that hides its frescoes behind a very thin smoke layer which we can only see by torch light. Our tour finishes with a visit to Mustafapaşa (Sinasos), an old Greek town with its spectacular old Greek houses; very fine examples of late Greek settlements and architecture. Overnight Cappadocia

Day 3 - Cappadocia - Ephesus
Take the morning flight from Kayseri to Izmir  by Sunexpress ( Saturdays & Wednesdays, direct flights by Sunexpress - Departure: 09:25am Arrival: 11:00am, the other days via Istanbul by Turkish airlines: 06:45 ASR IST 08:15 TK0267 THY   
09:00 IST ADB 10:05 TK0316 THY) . Arrival and meeting at the airport and Visit to the ancient city of Ephesus. We will spend several hours walking in the footsteps of Alexander the Great, Caesar, Cicero, Apostles Paul and John and many other familiar historical names. The recently opened Slope Houses where the wealthiest Romans lived are an excellent example of sensitive excavation and presentation. The mosaics and frescos are spectacular. Tradition has it that Virgin Mary was brought here by St John after the Crucifixion and lived her final years near the city of Ephesus on an isolated mountaintop. A lovely chapel is constructed on the site tended by Franciscans and open to visitors. It has been designated a pilgrimage site by the Pope. Overnight Sirince or Kusadasi near Ephesus. (B)

Day 4 - Ephesus - Pamukkale
Drive to Pamukkale, on the way, visit to Aphrodisias. Aphrodisias was primarily known as a center for the arts, specifically sculpture. The Aphrodisias School of Sculpture had a distinctive style and was very well circulated throughout the Greek and Roman world. Discovery of Travertine terraces and Hierapolis. The travertine terraces at Pamukkale are one of the most spectacular natural wonders we ever have seen from various mineral springs in a vast white cliff side, about 200 m overlooking the plain, calcite-laden waters have dripped down over a series of terraced levels and created a fairyland of bizarre solidified cascades and shell-shaped basins. It looks like creations from snow or like balls from cotton, which gave the scenery the Turkish name Pamukkale (cotton castle): “pamuk” for cotton and “kale” for castle. Moreover the water in the basins is changing its color according to how the light enters. Overnight Pamukkale. (B.D)


Day 5 - Pamukkale - Istanbul
Transfer to airport in Denizli and take a flight from Denizli to Istanbul (08:40 DNZ IST 09:50 TK0237 THY ). Connect to your international flight and leave Turkey

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