Classic Turkey: Itinerary
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15 Day Escorted Tour of Western, Central, and Southern Turkey and Istanbul
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| Day 1 |
DEPART U.S. |
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Depart the United States for Istanbul, Turkey on Turkish Airlines.
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| Day 2 |
ISTANBUL |
Hos Geldiniz! Welcome to Turkey! Upon your arrival in Istanbul, you will be met by a Troy Tours representative and transferred to your hotel.
Meals: Dinner is your own.
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| Day 3 |
ISTANBUL |
After breakfast, you will visit the Blue Mosque, built in only 7 years by order of Sultan Ahmet I in 1609.
It gets its name from the blue Iznik tiles that cover the inside. Stroll through Topkapi Palace, with its
impressive displays of jewelry, porcelain, clocks, miniatures, textiles, and religious artifacts. "Topkapi"
means "Gate of the Cannon" for the Byzantine arsenal once situated where the Palace now stands. Visit St.
Sophia, the Christian masterpiece whose construction was presided over by the Emperor Justinian. The day's tour
ends with a visit to the Grand Bazaar, a shopper's delight with more than 4000 shops from which to choose.
Meals: Dinner is your own
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| Day 4 |
ANKARA |
Today you will cross the Bosphorus to the Asian Continent and continue to Ankara. You will visit the Anatolian
Civilization Museum housed in a 15th century covered bazaar and inn. It contains a rich collection of Hittite
artifacts, which date to the beginning of the 2nd century B.C. There are also masterpieces of other cultures that
flourished in the Anatolian heartland.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 5 |
CAPPADOCIA |
After breakfast, your tour continues to Cappadocia, passing a large salt lake. Enroute, you will visit a Caravanserai, many of which were built throughout the countryside by Seljuk
and Osmanli rulers as inns for weary travelers and their animals. You will then stop at the picturesque village of Uchisar.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 6 |
CAPPADOCIA |
Today's visit takes you to the labyrinthine tunnels of an underground city, with numerous levels
carved out of the earth containing chapels, living quarters, kitchens, stores, and cellars. Many of these amazing
cities were so well hidden that they were not discovered until the 1950's. The tour then proceeds to Goreme Valley
and the open-air museum of Zelve, with their impressive rock churches and frescoes.
Meals: Dinner is at
the hotel.
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| Day 7 |
ANTALYA |
After breakfast, drive to the holy city of Konya, home of the Sufi mystic, Mevlana Rumi, and visit the Museum of the
Whirling Dervishes and the Selcuk Mosaic Museum.
Continue to Antalya, the jewel of Turkey's Mediterranean coast, aptly named the "Turquoise Coast."
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 8 |
ANTALYA |
Today's half-day tour takes you for a visit to the vast ruins of Perge, with its Acropolis, thermal baths,
Roman basilica, and paving stones that still exhibit the marks of chariot wheels. The Aspendos Theater is next. The
remainder of the day is free.
We recommend you stroll through the charming Old Section of Antalya.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 9 |
PAMUKKALE |
Today, your tour travels to Pamukkale, where calcareous water cascading over the mountainside,
forming numerous levels of water basins and white stalactites, has given it the colorful name of "Cotton Fortress."
While there, you will visit the ruins of Hierapolis, founded in 190 B.C. by the King of Pergamum.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 10 |
KUSADASI |
After breakfast, visit Aphrodisias, the remains of an ancient city that flourished in the 1st century B.C.
Archaeological excavations are ongoing, uncovering a wealth of artifacts, the remains of a once thriving community of
60,000 inhabitants. Continue to the resort town of Kusadasi.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 11 |
KUSADASI |
You will have a half-day tour of the ruins of Ephesus, one of the largest archaeological sites in the
world. Founded in the 13th century B.C., it was an important center of Christianity, where the Apostles Paul and John
preached the infant religion.
Return to Kusadasi. The afternoon is free.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 12 |
CANAKKALE |
After breakfast, drive along the Aegean to the famous ruins of Pergamum, the site of one of the Seven Churches of Asia Minor.
Next, visit legendary Troy where you can see a replica of the wooden horse. Once thought to be the figment of literary
imagination, Troy was uncovered due largely to the efforts of Heinrich Schliemann, who steadfastly believed in its
existence, using his own money to successively uncover nine different settlements in Troy.
Meals: Dinner is at the hotel.
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| Day 13 |
ISTANBUL |
After breakfast, the tour will cross the Dardanelles, the Hellespont of antiquity, and site of fierce battles
during World War I. Continue to Istanbul. You will have the evening at leisure.
Meals: Dinner is your own.
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| Day 14 |
ISTANBUL |
Full day at your leisure.
Meals: Dinner is your own.
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| Day 15 |
RETURN TO THE UNITED STATES |
| After breakfast, you will be transferred to the airport for your final departure. |
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