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Day 1: Arrive in Istanbul

Welcome to Istanbul! Favored as a must-see by travelers from all over the world, this historically rich city boasts a breathtaking skyline of ancient domes and minarets. After de-boarding the plane and going through customs, collect your luggage and meet your driver just outside the luggage hall.

Transfer to the 10 Karakoy hotel in Istanbul followed by a free evening to enjoy dinner at a nearby restaurant.

Day 2: Old City Tour

After breakfast at the hotel, depart with your personal guide to explore the Old City starting at Seraglio Point. See the famous Hippodrome, a public gathering space where chariot races, gladiator games, and official ceremonies took place. Next, witness the beautiful Iznik tiles covering the interior of the Blue Mosque followed by a visit to Hagia Sophia church.

James Bond fans will recognize the Basilica Cistern as the underground water palace Bond paddled across in the film From Russia with Love. You won’t be able to spy on the Russian Embassy, but you can marvel at the underground chamber that has been restored to its original splendor.

Your Old City tour ends with a visit to the Topkapi Palace. Explore every corner of Ottoman architecture as your guide takes you through the palace’s many pavilions, courtyards, and gardens. Return to hotel for the evening and leisure time.

Evening Optional Excursion: Ayasofya Hamam Turkish bathhouse

Treat yourself to an authentic Turkish bath experience. The suggested “Pir-i Pak” service includes a pampering steam bath, peeling, and soap massage. Duration: 30 minutes.

Day 3: Bazaars and Boat Ride

Awaken your senses with a visit to the aromatic Spice Bazaar. Browse spices, herbs, and souvenirs before heading to the pier to board the ferry that cruises the Bosphorus strait. Bordered on one side by Europe and the other by Asia, floating down the waterway exposes amazing photo opportunities as you pass marble palaces, ancient wooden villas, and more.

Disembark on the European side of Istanbul and begin a walking tour of the Pera neighborhood. Home to many boutiques, cozy cafes, and glittering nightclubs, Pera is recognized as the “chic” part of Istanbul. Galata Tower offers a great view of the whole neighborhood. Afterwards, flex your artistic eye at the Istanbul Modern, Turkey’s first museum of modern and contemporary art. Return to the hotel and enjoy leisure time.

Evening Optional Excursion: See a Whirling Dervish performance at the Galata Whirling Dervish Hall (subject to availability).

Day 4: Sightseeing in Istanbul

Enjoy breakfast followed by a drive to the Theodosian Walls, defensive stone walls built in the 5th century to protect Istanbul from land and sea attacks. Nearby, the Chora Museum dazzles you with its intricate mosaics depicting scenes from Christ’s life. Sightseeing continues at the grand Suleymaniye Mosque followed by shopping at the Grand Bazaar. Located in the heart of the Old City, the Grand Bazaar is one of the world’s oldest covered markets featuring 4,000 shops.

After indulging in a bit of shopping, cross the Bosphorus Bridge to the Asian side of Istanbul and visit Beylerbeyi Palace. Built as a summer residence for the sultan, the palace boasts bathing pavilions and a gorgeous reception hall with an enchanting fountain.

Top off the day with a treat at the historical Kanlica Yogurt. Described to serve “yogurt from heaven,” they’ve been churning this creamy delight since 1893. Return to your hotel with a satisfied sweet tooth.

Day 5: Istanbul to Cappadocia

Transfer to the Istanbul Airport and board the plane to Kayseri. When you arrive, head to the wondrous Cappadocia. You’ll be met with visually striking landscapes protruding with massive rock towers known as “Fairy Chimneys.” These formations have been hollowed out to harbor remarkable cave towns where locals dwell.

Explore the area, visiting places like Devrent Valley and Pasabagi, a.k.a. Monk’s Valley. Then drive to Avanos to see its renowned pottery made from the red clay residue of the Kizilirmak River. Take time for lunch before continuing to Goreme Open Air Museum and the Uchisar Rock-Castle. You’ll be given plenty of time to take pictures of the magnificent surroundings. Transfer to the Taskonaklar hotel and use free time to enjoy dinner at a local restaurant.

Day 6: Valleys and Castles of Cappadocia

Have breakfast at the hotel before heading to Rose Valley for a trek among the famous rock-cut churches. After your hike, take time to rest and have lunch in the old Greek village of Cavusin.

The afternoon consists of a visit to Ortahisar Castle and entering Kaymakli Underground City, where early Christians lived to avoid persecution. On the way back to the hotel, stop at Pigeon Valley, featuring panoramic views of its vineyards. Use this chance to taste genuine Cappadocia wine at a local winery before driving back to the hotel for the evening.

Evening Optional Excursion:

Fly high over the Cappadocia “moonscape” in a hot air balloon. Floating down into the valleys and over the fairy chimneys is an extraordinary experience you won’t regret.

Day 7: Cappadocia Architecture Tour

Ready yourself for a feast of architecture! After breakfast at the hotel, head to Mustafapasa. Once a large Greek town, Mustafapasa is famous for its buildings. Today, remnants of its Greek history are present in Greek mansions, churches, and the Medrese Seminary.

Follow with a visit to the Keslik Monastery, whose walls are covered by Cappadocian frescoes that were forbidden by the Byzantine Emperors at the time. Your driver then takes you to the Sobesos Excavation site where archeologists have uncovered many important artifacts. See Roman baths, tombs, and mosaics before continuing to Soganli Valley. Once the area’s third largest monastic center, the valley now boasts many cave churches and beautiful hiking trails.

Return to hotel for evening leisure time.

Evening Optional Excursion: Partake in a cooking class with a local family. This cooking class teaches cooking techniques, local dessert recipes, and gives you hands-on experience cooking Turkish foods.

Day 8: Farewell, Turkey

Enjoy leisure time around the hotel until your flight. Transfer to Kayseri Airport for your return flight to Istanbul Airport for your international flight connection.

Day 1 Istanbul

Welcome to Istanbul, the first step of our Turkish adventure. On arrival, you’ll be met at the airport and transferred to your boutique hotel in the heart of the Old City. Istanbul is the largest city in all of Europe, it’s a place filled with history, culture and charm. From the magnificent mosques to the bustling bazaars, this place is sure delight you at every turn. On arrival, you might like to stretch your legs, get acquainted with the city and make your way to visit the 1500-year-old UNESCO World Heritage monument, Hagia Sophia. With incredible architectural beauty and varied history, it was originally built as an Orthodox Christian cathedral, then converted into a mosque, then a museum and has now been turned back into a mosque again. After exploring the city, this evening, join your local leader and small group for an important welcome meeting at the hotel at 6pm. Then, take a short stroll to a local restaurant to enjoy dinner together and be welcomed with richly flavoured Ottoman and Turkish cuisine.

Day 2 Istanbul

After breakfast, join your small group and local leader to explore Sultan Ahmet I’s Blue Mosque. With six minarets, 260 windows and it’s iconic, blue-tiled walls (made up of more than 20,000 Iznik ceramic tiles), the Blue Mosque is known as one of the most magnificent in all of Istanbul. After some time to gaze upon its beauty, you'll head out to explore the rest of the city on an orientation walk. Make your way to Sultanahmet (the Old City, formerly Constantinople), where historical sites and backstreets filled with hidden gems intertwine. Explore the hippodrome and the decorative statues and obelisks that remain from a time when this now tree-lined land would hold thousands of chariot racing fans. Then, get into some good-natured haggling with local artisans in the Grand Bazaar, packed with over 3,000 stalls of handcrafted jewellery, textiles and books. After exploring the best this fascinating city has to offer, it’s time to kick your feet back on a private yacht and marvel at the Istanbul skyline from sea. This fairy-tale experience across the Bosphorus Strait, which separates Europe and Asia, features panoramic views from the waterway that’s dotted with artisan palaces, mansions and historic monuments. Sit back and soak up the vistas after a jam-packed day of exploration.

Day 3 Kusadasi

After breakfast, it’s time to bid farewell to Istanbul and journey to Kusadasi, with a stop in Pergamon along the way. The ancient city of Pergamon, sitting high above the Bakirçay Plain in Turkey’s Aegean region, is easily accessible by cable car. At the top of the hill, you’ll discover crumbling ruins, large and small. Some of the most fascinating spots to explore include the well-known library that helped put Pergamon on the map, the colossal Temple of Trajan, 10,000-seat Hellenistic theatre and the Altar of Zeus. After some time here, walking in the footsteps of ancient emperors, we’ll continue to Kusadasi. Tonight, get comfortable at your perfectly appointed boutique hotel on the edge of the Aegean Sea – this will be your home away from home for the next three nights.

Day 4 Kusadasi

After breakfast today, you’ll explore the ancient city ruins of Ephesus. This is one of the best-preserved classical cities in the Eastern Mediterranean and arguably the greatest Greco-Roman site in the world. As you walk in the footsteps of Cleopatra and Mark Antony, you’ll get a glimpse into how the ancient Romans lived. Stroll the marble streets surrounding the ancient theatre and explore the gymnasium, baths and beautifully restored Library of Celsus. From ancient ruins to ancient traditions, next up you’ll be treated to a carpet weaving demonstration and learn about the art of traditional carpet weaving from local social enterprise; Sultanköy. Carpet weaving holds incredible history in Turkey and has been dated back to the early Neolithic age – Sultanköy provides local women with employment while protecting and developing the ancient tradition. After a picnic lunch at Sultanköy, you’ll learn all about Turkish recipes and flavours with a hands-on cooking class. Get to know the local chef as you prepare a traditional meal and feast on your creations together – the perfect end to an incredible day.

Day 5 Kusadasi

Wake up without an alarm today and enjoy this coastal paradise at your leisure. Kusadasi is the perfect springboard to see some Turkey’s most incredible ruins and natural wonders, you might choose to take advantage of this and book an optional tour to explore Pamukkale & Hierapolis Ancient City. Pamukkale’s mineral springs have become well-known for their magical turquoise waters framed by a snow-white mineral build-up that cascades over the cliffs. Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the hot springs were believed to hold therapeutic healing properties by ancients Greeks and Romans. After marvelling at the mineral pools and taking in the incredible landscape, discover nearby Hierapolis Ancient City. Explore the ruins of this equally beautiful ancient city and UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you’d rather skip the optional tour and stay closer to town, perhaps, stroll the seafront promenade and grab a bite to eat by the harbour or enjoy a little banter with the locals at the main bazaar area. However you choose to spend your day, you can swap stories with your fellow travellers over your group dinner this evening.

Day 6 Cappadocia

Today, catch a flight to Kayseri and be swept away by the mystical beauty of Cappadocia, where we’ll stay in specially restored cave suites in the Old City centre. After checking in, you’ll be welcomed into a local home for home-cooked Turkish lunch – the best way to start this leg of our adventure. Next up, it's time to explore Goreme open air museum. Another incredible UNESCO World Heritage Site to check off our list, you’ll find richly decorated rock-carved churches, monasteries and chapels to marvel at. After getting to know Goreme, it’s time to get to know Cappadocia on a panoramic sights tour. Discover the region’s highlights like Imagination Valley where rock formations, known as fairy chimneys, stand majestically amid the orange-coloured landscape. With your local leader by your side, you’ll learn how these unusual formations came to be.

Day 7 Cappadocia

After breakfast, we make our way to yet another out-of-this-world location to explore the underground cities beneath Cappadocia. It’s believed that these intricate subterranean homes were created in the 8th and 7th centuries BCE. Amazingly, there are roughly 200 them – more incredibly, they were abandoned in 1923 and not rediscovered until some 40 years later. You might spot remnants of subterranean wine cellars, stables and chapels, although it’s believed they were below ground for safety reasons, these city folk seem to have lived their lives to the fullest. Next, visit the studio of a local ceramic master whose family have been in the pottery business for six generations. You’ll learn the history and techniques of traditional Turkish ceramics and discover how the rich clay from the red river is moulded into exquisite pieces. Finally, in the afternoon, you’ll enjoy an easy hike through Red Valley – named for the incredible red hues the rock formations throw at sunset. Watch in awe as the sun sets over the landscape before heading back to town to enjoy our final dinner together with a delicately prepared traditional central Anatolian dish. There’ll also be time today to take to the skies with an optional hot air balloon ride (at your own expense) if you wish.

Day 8 Cappadocia

After breakfast, our Turkish adventure comes to an end. If you would like to extend your stay in Cappadocia, we would be happy to arrange additional accommodation for you (subject to availability).