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 Day 1: Monday Arrival in İzmir
Upon arrival in İzmir Airport, you will be
met by a Estamos Travel representative and
transferred to your hotel. You have the
afternoon and evening free to relax and/or
check out the city. Dinner and overnight
stay in the hotel.
Day 2: Tuesday İzmir & Kuşadası
After breakfast, we will drive you to
Sardis, an ancient capital of the state of
Lydia, where gold and silver coins were
minted for the first time in history.
Sardis, is also important as an early
Christian settlement. The place was very
receptive to early Christian teachings, and
there lived a substantial community in the
area by the first century AD. We will have
lunch en route. After lunch, we will visit
the Temple of Artemis, the Acropolis, the
Gymnasium, and the ancient synagogue. We
will return to Kuşadası, Aydın for dinner
and overnight.
Day 3: Wednesday – Kuşadası
Following breakfast we will depart for a
full day tour of Ephesus (Efes). Ephesus is
one of the most extensive and complete
Greco-Roman cities in the world. It contains
one of the Seven Churches or Revelation, as
well as an ancient large port which had a
population of 250,000. Walking through the
marble streets, visitors can not help but
imagine the grandeur of this –once- great
city and its influence in the development of
architecture, religion and economic systems
and arts. It should also be mentioned that
St. Paul lived and preached in this wonder
city. After lunch, in the area, we will
visit the Archeological Museum of Selcuk,
the Basilica of St. Jean / St John (St. John
Bazilikası), and the House of Virgin Mary,
where she is believed to have spent her last
days. We will take you back to Kuşadası for
dinner and overnight.
Day 4: - Thursday – Kuşadası & Çanakkale
Leaving the Kuşadası area, we will drive to
the Asian Pergamum (Bergama) Ruins, the most
favored of the Seven Churches of Revelation.
Christianity reached the city of Pergamum
very early and this particular church was
praised for its forbearance during hard
times. It was here in Pergamum, that the
first Christians were executed by Romans.
You will see the Pergamum (Bergama)
Acropolis, located 1,000 feet above town, as
well as the Altar of Zeus, and the Temples
of Trojan and Dionysus. Following lunch, we
will go on to Asklepion –the earliest bath
center of Asia Minor, and the Red Basilica
which was dedicated to Egyptian Gods:
Serapes, Isis and Harpocrates. The city of
Troas which will be our next stop which is
not far away. In his second journey, Paul
had a vision in which he was called to
Macedonia in which instance he made his
passing through this ancient city. Later in
his third journey, Paul spent a week in
Troas preaching and resurrected Eutychus. We
will continue our drive north to Çanakkale
for dinner and overnight.
Day 5: Friday – Çanakkale & İstanbul
Following breakfast we will leave our hotel
and visit Troy (Truva), the legendary town
of the Iliad of Homer. The first excavations
were made by the German archeologist
Heinrich Schliemann in 1971, and it was
revealed that Troy was a real place –not
just a mythological legend. You will see the
excavation.jpg) s showing several layers of this
civilization and the recreated Wooden Horse
of Troy (Truva Atı). We will continue our
journey north to the ferry across the
Dardanelles (Çanakkale Boğazı) to İstanbul
for overnight.
Day 6: Saturday – İstanbul
We will depart hotel in the morning to visit
the spectacular Blue Mosque and Külliye (Süleymaniye
Camii ve Kulliyesi) decorated with beautiful
17th century İznik Tiles (İznik Çinileri).
Then stroll around the historical Hippodrome
(Hipodrom) where chariot races were once
held. Continue with the magnum opus of
Byzantine (Bizans) art: the Hagia Sophia /
St. Sophia and Museum (Aya Sofya Muzesi). An
early Christian church, later converted to
church under Ottoman (Osmanlı) rule, this
magnificent temple now serving as a museum
with all the artifacts from the Byzantine
era intact, is especially famous for its
mosaics. In the afternoon, we will visit the
Topkapı Palace and Museum (Topkapı Sarayı
Müzesi), the residence of the legendary
Ottoman Sultans, now converted into a
museum. It consists of several exhibition
halls, such as the treasury, the porcelain
section, armory and holy relics. We will
complete this historical day with a visit to
the Grand Bazaar (Kapalı Çarşı) and return
to hotel for overnight.
Day 7: Sunday – İstanbul
Today you will have two options to choose
from. If you are feeling a little tired from
all the activities
 and things to see, we
invite you to join us for a day of
relaxation in the Princess Islands.* If you
are feeling more adventurous, or have a
specific plan in mind that was not included
in the tour plan, this is the perfect day to
execute it. For those of you who would like
to join us, we will take a morning ferry
ride to Büyükada, the biggest of the
Princess Islands which used to be the summer
resort for the wealthy non-Muslim community.
There will be a tour of the island by horse
drawn carriages, a wonderful patio lunch and
free time to do shopping, walking around the
island (where there is no motor vehicles
traffic). Or, you may just lie down in the
sun and relax. A ferry ride in the evening
will take us back to the city and our hotel
for overnight.
Day 8: Monday – İstanbul
We will take you to Spice Market (Mısır
Çarşısı), in use as one of the world’s
largest spice bazaars since 1665. Next, we
will board the ferries across the Bosphorus
which will take you to both European and
Asian sides of the city. This beautiful
voyage will take you along the shores of
Bosphorus, and you will see the Rumeli
Fortress (Rumeli Hisarı) from the 15th
century as well as the seaside summer
palaces and unique wooden houses of the
area, as well as the natural beauty of the
forests above. The last stop on the cruise
is th e fishing village of Sarıyer, close to
Black Sea (Karadeniz). From there on we will
drive you by coach via the world’s only
intercontinental bridge to take you to
Çamlıca Hill (Çamlıca Tepesi) on the Asian
side. Çamlıca Hill is the highest point in
İstanbul where you can enjoy the
breathtaking scenery. We will visit the
Beylerbeyi Palace (Beylerbeyi Sarayı), the
summer residence of the royal Ottoman family
with original furniture and magnificent
gardens. Return to hotel for overnight.
Day 9: Tuesday – Departure
Following breakfast, we will transfer you to
airport for your flight back. |
Discover Anatolia: Landmarks
Tour 8 Nights / 9 Days
Information
