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Istanbul Nature & adventure

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From Istanbul: Ephesus & Pamukkale 2-Day Trip with Flights

1. From Istanbul: Ephesus & Pamukkale 2-Day Trip with Flights

Visit the ruins of Ephesus and the pools of Pamukkale on this 2-day tour from Istanbul. Fly from Istanbul and stay overnight in Kusadasi as you travel to Turkey's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Day 1 Begin your travels with a pickup from your hotel in Istanbul. Your driver will take you to the airport so you can board your 1.5-hour flight to Izmir. At your arrival, you wıll be greeted by your driver and safely taken to Selcuk to meet with your group participants and start your full-day tour. During the course of your day break for lunch. Head to the House of Virgin Mary, a church built on the top of the foundations of a structure thought to be the house where the Assumption happened and Mary spent her last days. Continue on to Ephesus, an archeological treasure and well-preserved classical city in the Eastern Mediterranean. See one of the Seven Wonders of the World, the Temple of Artemis, and walk along ancient streets before you concluding your day with a drive to your hotel for a 1-night stay. Day 2 Enjoy your hotel breakfast and check out in the morning to start your full-day tour. Go to Pamukkale, also know as the Pools of Heaven on Earth. See why Pamukkale was a popular settlement and be mesmerized by its hot springs. Head to the ancient city of Hierapolis, home to the biggest necropolis in Anatolia, and see the Sacred Pool, a stunning site of thermal waters rippling over scattered ancient ruins. After your day tour, you will be driven to Cardak Airport for your return flight back to Istanbul. Upon arrival ın Istanbul you will be greeted by your driver and transferred safely back to your hotel.

From Istanbul: Day Trip to Cappadocia with Flight & Lunch

2. From Istanbul: Day Trip to Cappadocia with Flight & Lunch

Explore the most important landmarks of Cappadocia along with its fascinating rock formations on a full-day guided tour from Istanbul. See the Goreme Open Air Museum, Devrent Valley, fairy chimneys from Goreme Panorama, and more with an authentic Turkish lunch at a restaurant. Get picked up from your hotel in Istanbul and arrive at the airport for a 1.5-hour flight to Kayseri. Meet your local driver and enjoy the ride to Cappadocia, where you will join other group participants and begin your tour. Explore the Goreme Open Air Museum and study the many rock-cut churches from as far back as the 10th century. Next, visit Devrent Valley, famous for its quirky animal-shaped rocks, and feel like you're in another world. Head to Pasabag, also known as Monks Valley, and see the chapel dedicated to St. Simeon along with a hermit's shelter. Admire some of the most striking fairy chimneys with a unique mushroom shapes. Stop for a typical Turkish lunch in Avanos. Then learn to make pottery with local experts. Take in the best views of the fairy chimneys from Goreme Panorama before marveling at more magnificent landscapes from Uchisar Rock Castle. Drive back to Kayseri for your return flight to Istanbul where your driver will greet you and take you back to your hotel.

Istanbul: Istanbul Aquarium Ticket & Shuttle Bus from Taksim

3. Istanbul: Istanbul Aquarium Ticket & Shuttle Bus from Taksim

Come and explore Istanbul Aquarium, a one-of-its-kind aquarium housing 1,500 species from all over the world, with this time-saving entry ticket and roundtrip transfer service. The world-renowned aquarium is a top destination for families with children and anyone who loves marine life. Thanks to its size, variety of fish species and engaging activities such as interactive games and 5D cinema, it is an unforgettable experience for everyone. Over 17,000 sea and land creatures await you in the magical underwater world of Istanbul Aquarium. Say hello to the myriad of inhabitants by following a 1.2 kilometer long geographical route, letting you travel from the Black Sea to the Pacific Ocean. Gaze at the 17 different ocean environments and a rainforest while keeping an eye out for sharks, balloon fish, piranhas, penguins, clownfish, and many other fascinating water animals. Best of all, with our skip-the-line ticket and shuttle transfer service, you can enjoy hassle-free access to this popular attraction. Enter the aquarium quickly and easily without having to wait in line. The included shuttle service will take you from the pickup point in Taksim to Istanbul Aquarium, and vice versa, so you can sit back and relax without having to worry about getting there on your own.

Istanbul: 8-Day Cappadocia, Ephesus, Konya, Pamukkale Tour

4. Istanbul: 8-Day Cappadocia, Ephesus, Konya, Pamukkale Tour

Discover the highlights of Turkey on a guided 8-day sightseeing tour. See the best of Istanbul, Cappadocia, and Konya. Visit the famous sites of Ephesus, Pammukale, and the Devrent Valley. Day 1: Arrival in Istanbul Arrive at Istanbul Airport (IST) or SAW airport where the tour representative will meet you with your name sign and private transfer to the hotel for your overnight stay in Istanbul. Day 2: Full-Day Istanbul Tour with Breakfast After breakfast, enjoy a walking tour of Istanbul. Visit the Topkapi Palace, Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, and Hippodrome, where chariot races and the Byzantine riots took place. Visit the Grand Bazaar for shopping and spend the night in Istanbul. The Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays so the Spice Market will be visited instead. Day 3: Istanbul – Izmir – Ephesus Tour – Kusadasi with Breakfast and Dinner Start day 3 with early morning pickup from the hotel and transfer to Istanbul IST or SAW airport for your flight to Izmir. Arrive at Izmir Airport and be met by your tour guide. Drive to Ephesus and see the Artemis Temple before continuing to Ephesus, one of the 12 cities of Ionia (an ancient Greek district on the western coast of Asia Minor). After Ephesus, visit the House of the Virgin Mary. This house is located in the Aladag Mountains 5 miles from Ephesus. Then drive to Kusadasi to stay overnight. Day 4: Kusadasi – Pamukkale Tour with Breakfast and Dinner Drive to Pamukkale to visit the Travertines, white terraces, and Hierapolis ancient city. Stay overnight in a Thermal Hotel. Day 5: Pamukkale – Cappadocia Cave Hotel with Breakfast Drive to Cappadocia which will be approximately 8 hours of driving. Visit the Mausoleum of Mevlana, the worldwide famous mystic, and Sultanhani Caravanserai, a roadside inn where travelers could rest Overnight in Cappadocia in a cave hotel. Day 6: Cappadocia Tour Cave Hotel with Breakfast See the Three Sisters Fairy Chimneys in Urgup. Then, visit Kaymakli Underground City. Visit the famous Goreme Open Air Museum Continue to Uchisar Rock Castle to have a panoramic view of the valleys of Cappadocia. Spend the night in a traditional Cappadocia cave hotel. This day includes an optional hot air ballooning experience during sunrise. Day 7: Full-Day Cappadocia Tour - Istanbul with Breakfast In the morning, admire the lunar landscape of the Devrent Valley. Stop at Avanos, the center of terra cotta works of art since 3000 BC, and enjoy a demonstration in a traditional pottery workshop. Transfer to the airport for your domestic flight from Kayseri to Istanbul and then head to your hotel for an overnight stay. Day 8: Home with Breakfast After breakfast check out from the hotel and relax with a private transfer to the airport. Depends upon flights/hotel availabilities, reverse (Istanbul-Capp.-Pamukkale-Ephesus-Izmir-Istanbul) can be organized.

Ephesus and Pamukkale: Day Trip by Plane from Istanbul

5. Ephesus and Pamukkale: Day Trip by Plane from Istanbul

Travel back in time on a guided tour from Istanbul to the ancient cities of Ephesus and Hierapolis. Spend a full day marveling at ancient, multi-cultural architecture and monuments without worrying about any of the details of traveling and organizing.  Start your day with pickup from your hotel in Istanbul in the early morning and transfer smoothly to the airport to catch your flight to Izmir. Be greeted upon your arrival and travel to Ephesus to meet with your guide. Explore this iconic former-Greek city, built in the 10th century, famed for its temples, monuments, and theaters. Known as the commercial, religious, and social center of antiquity, this is sure to be the highlight to your whole visit to Turkey. Discover the city’s combination of Greek, Roman and Byzantine markers of civilization. Visit the Fountains of Trajan, Polio, the Temples of Hadrian and Domition, and the Library of Celcius. Be awed by the the Great Theater with its capacity for 24,000 spectators, the Temple of Artemis, and the House of the Virgin Mary. Continue to Pamukkale which is known for its natural thermal spring waters.  Find out why this site is known as the cotton castle as you see how the chemical properties of the water have formed pure white colored travertines and stepped water terraces that line the mountain’s slope, resembling piles of cotton. Visit the ancient city of Hierapolis, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The highlight of this site is be the Sacred Pool, which you can enter if you choose. There, shallow thermal waters ripple over a wonderful scattering of ancient Roman ruins that lie beneath. Head to the Necropolis of Hierapolis which contains 1200 gravestones, including that of Marcus Aurelius Ammianos. After your tour, transfer back to Denizli Airport for your evening flight back to Istanbul and be transferred back to your hotel.

Istanbul: Bursa and Uludag Full-Day Trip with Cable Car Ride

6. Istanbul: Bursa and Uludag Full-Day Trip with Cable Car Ride

Visit Uludag Mountain, one of Turkey's best destinations for winter sports, on this day trip from Istanbul. Ride on the cable car, enjoy a traditional Turkish lunch, and take a walk through the old silk market. After getting picked up from your hotel in Istanbul, hop on the ferry at Kocaeli for a 45-minute journey to Yalova, where you will drive to Bursa, the former Ottoman capital. Your first stop of the day is the historical Inkaya Tree, a 600-year-old tree and the symbol of Bursa. Refuel with a mixed grill lunch on the outskirts of the town. Continue to Uludag Mountain and climb to the summit by bus. Enjoy some free time for winter activities such as skiing, motor skiing, or riding on the chair lift before taking the cable car back down the mountain for some panoramic views. Next, head to the Green Social Complex, where you'll find the stunning Green Mosque and the Green Mausoleum. These impressive sights are nearby the Old Silk Market, where you can find typical Turkish products such as Turkish delight, honey, and jam (not included in tour cost). Return to Istanbul by bus in the evening and get dropped off back at your hotel.

Istanbul: Day Trip to the Princes' Islands

7. Istanbul: Day Trip to the Princes' Islands

Only an hour’s ferry ride from the city center, the Princes’ Islands consist of 9 small islands that will transport you back in time and away from hectic city life. Spend a day exploring 2 of these islands, Heybeliada and Buyukada, to gain insight into a multicultural society in modern Turkey, akin to the multicultural society that existed here during the Ottoman Empire. Start with a cruise over the Marmara Sea to Heybeliada for a walking tour. Ride through the pine forests next to picturesque bays and past old villas. Then, take a ferry over to the largest island, Buyukada, and have lunch at a nice restaurant. Spend the afternoon enjoying the cheerful local life near the village square. Admire the well-preserved Victorian-era cottages that are covered in colorful flowers all summer.

From Istanbul: Day Trip to Ephesus with Flight and Lunch

8. From Istanbul: Day Trip to Ephesus with Flight and Lunch

See the highlights of Ancient Ephesus including the popular pilgrimage sites such as the Temple of Artemis and the House of the Virgin Mary. Get picked up from your hotel in Istanbul and arrive at the airport for a 1.5-hour flight to Izmir. Meet your local driver and enjoy the ride to Selcuk, where you will join other group participants and begin your tour. Start off with a visit to the House of the Virgin Mary, a popular Catholic pilgrimage site known as the house where Mary spent her final days. Contınue on to explore Ancient Ephesus, one of the best preserved classical cities in the Eastern Mediterranean and once considered the most important trading center in the region. Marvel at the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Feel like you’ve stepped back in time as you walk along the streets of Ephesus and admire beautiful monuments such as the third largest library of the ancient world and the largest Roman theater on the Asian continent. Drive back to Izmir for your return flight to Istanbul where your driver will greet you and take you back to your hotel.

Sapanca Lake and Masukiye Full-Day Tour from Istanbul

9. Sapanca Lake and Masukiye Full-Day Tour from Istanbul

Enjoy a full-day tour away from the hustle and bustle of Istanbul on a day trip to the Gulf of Izmit and the freshwater lake of Lake Sapanca. Following a pick-up from your hotels in the city center, transfer to Lake Sapanca for a walk in nature. Located on a tectonic hole, between Izmit Bay and the Adapazari Meadow, Lake Sapanca is known for its scenic beauty. Continue to the picturesque village of Masukiye to enjoy lunch under a canopy of trees. Then, drive to a waterfall before climbing Kartepe Mountain. Hike in the mountains, or take the ski lift if you prefer. Discover a popular area for picnics in summer and ski breaks in the winter. Transfer back to your hotel in Istanbul for the end of tour services.

From Istanbul: Cappadocia 3=Day Trip with Balloon Flight

10. From Istanbul: Cappadocia 3=Day Trip with Balloon Flight

The experience will start with and very early pick up from your hotel in İstanbul. Take your flight to Cappadocia and start enjoying every second of it. On the first day, we will pick you up from your hotel in İstanbul and take you to the airport. Once you fly and reach to Cappadocia, we will greet you at the airport and start your Cappadocia tour. Our Cappadocia tour will start with Göreme panorama, where we'll have the opportunity to explain how Cappadocia come into existence as we know it. Then we will drive to Göreme open air museum, to explore this grand religious complex and it's famous cave churces. We will continue our tour with a visit to Devrent valley, to let our imagination run wild and trying to figure out which rock looks like what. Then we will pay a visit to town of Avanos for lunch. Your lunch will be at a local restaurant, serving local dishes. A visit to a pottery workshop is necessary while in Avanos, so we'll get into one, and let our hands get dirty with clay. Our last visiting point will be at Uçhisar Castle region at Pigeon valley, where we will have the perfect photo opportunuties. With the end of the tour, we will take you to your hotel, to relax and get ready for tomorrow. After getting a good nights sleep, you'll need to get up quite early for a hot air balloon flight at sunrise, at Soğanlı Valley. Your pick up vehicle should arrive pre-dawn and all you have to do is getting into the car and let us take you to your balloon basket. After flying for 1-hour and celebrating your landing, you'll celebrate it with a champagne, as tradition dictates. After that, we will take you to the hotel and you'll have brief time window to have your breakfast before your car arrives for the second part of your tour. Now we're going south, mainly Kaymaklı underground city, and Ihlara valley. Our first stop should be a nice viewpoint at Red Valley, to get ourselves ready for a day full of adventure! Then we will hit the road once again, to see Kaymaklı underground city, it literally is a city, but underground; with it's living areas, stables, kitchens, places of worship, cellars and even cemeteries. After spending enough time at the Underground City, we will drive approximately 1 hour to Ihlara valley. Once we reach there we will descent into the valley trough stairs and start admiring this unique place. This visit will include at least a 3,5 km hike, so better be prepared. Once we get what we want from this lovely canyon. We will stop by the little stream of Belisrıma which goes trough the canyon, for a lunch. Our last point of visit will be Selime monastery, the biggest religious building in entire Cappadocia. With the end of the tour, we will take you back to your hotel. On the third day, following your breakfast, we will once again come for you; to take you to the airport for your flight back to İstanbul. Once you land in İstanbul, our colleagues will greet your at the airport and drive you back to your hotel.

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What people are saying about Istanbul

Overall rating

4.3 / 5

based on 1,177 reviews

The trip was one of the best planned trips I have ever been on, in the 12+ countries I've visited. Excellent planning, time management, hotels, professional service and food across cities. I'd especially like to say special thanks to our professional tour guides, Gurkan Nakipoglu and Layla Yasar who made the experience extremely memorable. In particular, Gurkan was with us from Izmir through Cappadocia and really provided most valuable information about the history, culture, and curated the type of places we visited. It opened our minds beyond the basic info we had about Turkiye. Similarly Layla's insights on Istanbul and the history of the country was quite enriching. A trip to a country with such great history and culture, is incomplete without gaining such insight and knowledge. Thank you again!! Cheers, Neeraja

Loved this tour. It’s a bit tiring but Cappadocia is a must in everyone’s bucket list. It’s amazing so the trip was worth it. The transfers, arrangement and guide were all superb! Big shout out to Shukria, our guide she is the Queen! Really knowledgeable and very kind mannered. Money well spent.

Super recommend! 10/10 Really Amazing. Everything was planned really well and coordinated perfectly. We had so much fun and learned a huge amount of knowlege of Ephesus and Pamukkale - Thanks to Emray. Our Amazing tour guide!!

complete package, hassle free and they give reminders to ensure you don't miss any itinerary.

Amazing tour! Very professional and kindly guide and company agents