The Turkish Highlights Special Winter Tour is a reasonably priced 8 days tour version of semi-private or small group tours to the most popular destinations in Turkey including Istanbul, Cappadocia, Ephesus, and Pamukkale during the winter.
What to see during the 8 Days Turkey Winter Highlights Tour?
Tours can be customized according to the group you want to go to. Our knowledgeable and experienced travel consultants will be able to reach your desired holiday location without having to search for individual places.
What to expect during the 8 Days Turkey Winter Highlights Tour?
Day 1: Arrival at Istanbul
You will be greeted at the airport and transferred to your hotel with a transfer. Accommodation in Istanbul.
Day 2: Istanbul City Tour
You will be picked up from your hotel after breakfast. You will visit: Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, and Roman Hippodrome Grand Bazaar After lunch you will see: Topkapi Palace, and Sultan Tombs. At the end of the tour, you will be dropped off at your hotel.
Day 3: Bosphorus Cruise and Flight to Cappadocia
You will be picked up from your hotel after breakfast. You will have a half-day Bosphorus Cruise. You will visit: Golden Horn passing by, Spice Bazaar, and then have a boat cruise on Bosphorus by public boat. You will also view the Imperial Gardens of Royal Yildiz Palace, Çiragan Palace Hotel Kempinski, and Beylerbeyi Palace during the tour. After the cruise, you will be dropped to Sultanahmet Square or Taksim Square. You will be picked up from your hotel to be transferred to Istanbul Airport to take an afternoon flight to Kayseri. Upon your arrival, you will be greeted and transferred to your hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 4: Southern Cappadocia Tour
Depart from your hotel after breakfast, and the tour starts with a 4km hike through the Rose Valley visiting the churches. The next visit is to the Christian & Greek village of Cavusin. We will have lunch in Pigeons Valley unique with small niches carved in the rocks. Cappadocia has several underground cities used by the residents to escape from their enemies and Kaymakli Underground City is among the most famous ones. You will also visit the Ortahisar Natural Rock Castle offering a beautiful view over the valley. Drop off at your hotel in the afternoon.
Day 5: Northern Cappadocia Tour
Optional balloon ride in the early morning at sunrise time. Drop off at your hotel for the breakfast for the day tour.
Pick up from your hotel after breakfast, and you will visit Devrent Imagination Valley and walk through this lunar landscape. Next, visit the Zelve Open Air Museum, where you will witness houses carved into the rocks, a Seljukian mosque as well as the traces of the ancient civilizations, Pasabagi with the world-famous Fairy Chimneys, the village of Avanos, where you will witness a pottery-making demonstration using ancient Hittite techniques. After your lunch at a local cave restaurant, we will visit Uchisar Rock-Castle, which is the highest point in the region, Esentepe a panoramic view of Goreme valley and Goreme Open Air Museum.
Day 6: Flight to Kusadasi and Free Day
You will be picked up from your hotel and transferred to the airport to take a day flight to Izmir. You will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel in Kusadasi. Free day.
Day 7: Ephesus
You will be transferred to the airport for an early flight to Izmir. Upon your arrival, you will be transferred to Ephesus ancient city, the most splendid ancient city in Turkey, and requires about 2 hours to visit. The next visit is to the Virgin Mary’s House where it is believed she spent the last years of her life and was buried there. After lunch, you will visit the remaining important places to see in the area: Ephesus Museum where the objects discovered in Ephesus are exhibited, the Temple of Artemis which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, St. John Castle, and the remains of Church situated at the top of Ayasoluk Hill and Isa Bey Mosque an important structure belonging to Turkish heritage. At the end of the tour we drive in the direction of Pamukkale, and you will be dropped off at your hotel.
Day 8: Hierapolis and Pamukkale Tour
You will be picked up from your hotel after breakfast for the tour of Pamukkale, where You will arrive at the North Gate of Hierapolis. You will see the Necropolis of Hierapolis which is one of the biggest ancient cemeteries in Anatolia with 1.200 graves, the Roman Bath, the Domitian Gate, and the Main Street, Byzantium Gate. Then, you walk to the natural warm water terraces which were formed by running warm water that contains calcium. The temperature of the water is about 35 Celcius. You can see the gleaming white travertine terraces of Pamukkale, located next to the ruins of Hierapolis. The extraordinary effect is created when water from the hot springs loses carbon dioxide as it flows down the slopes, leaving deposits of limestone. The layers of white calcium carbonate, built up in steps on the plateau, gave the site the name Pamukkale cotton castle. After lunch, free time at the site. If you like to swim in the Ancient Pool which is also called Cleopatra’s Pool. The Cleopatra Pool is warmed up by hot springs and littered with underwater fragments of ancient marble columns. Possibly associated with the Temple of Apollo, the pool provides today’s visitors a rare opportunity to swim with antiquities! During the Roman period, columned porticoes surrounded the pool; earthquakes toppled them into the water where they lie today. After the tour, you will be transferred to Denizli Airport to take an early evening flight to Istanbul.
Extra Tour Details
- Everyday departure (All year round)
- Duration: 8 days
- Private/Group
What has been included in this excursion?
Included:
- Accommodation BB
- All sightseeing & excursions mentioned in the itinerary
- Lunch during the tours
- Transfer service from Hotels & Airport
- English Guide
Excluded:
- Beverage during the tour
- Tips to the guide&driver(optional)
- Entrance Cleopatra Pool
- Not mentioned diners
- Not mentioned flights
- Entrance fee for Harem Section in Topkapi Palace.
- Personal expenses
Which extra activities can you do?
- Pamukkale Paragliding
- Pamukkale Hot Air Balloon
- Cappadocia Hot Air Balloon
