| Day
1 |
Istanbul
to Cappadocia |
| |
Tranfser to Istnabul Airport for evening flight
to Kayseri.
Transfer from airport to hotel |
| |
Stay overngiht
in Cappadocia |
| Day
2 |
Cappadocia
Tour |
| |
Depart from
your hotel to visit Devrent Valley to see the unique
fairy-chimneys. Then visit
Zelve Open Air Museum, where three canyons meet
in the valley.
Drive to Pasabagi (Monk's Valley) to see the most
interesting mushroom-shaped pinnacles. Drive to
the city of Avanos for lunch. In the afternoon visit
another beautiful open-air museum at Goreme where
the remains of rock-cut churches and frescoes and
Christian settlements date back hundreds of years.
Lastly, before returning to your hotel, visit the
natural rock castles at Uchisar |
| |
Stay overnight
in Cappadocia |
| Day
3 |
Cappadocia
Tour |
| |
Depart from
your hotel to visit Red valley, explore the famous
rock-cut churches and hike
5 km through the Güllüdere valley. Then visit Cavusin
village. This village is famous
for the houses and churches of the Christian clergymen.
Drive to the pigeon valley for lunch. In the afternoon
visit Kaymakli underground city where Early Christians
lived in fear and faith.
On the way back visit the natural rock castles at
Ortahisar and the Greek village of Mustafapasa. |
| |
Stay overnight
in Cappadocia |
| Day
4 |
Cappadocia
to Kahta Nemrut mount tour |
| |
Early departure
from Cappadocia for Adiyaman. Visit the Seljuk Karatayhan
Caravanserai on the famous Silk Road. Then drive
through the Taurus Mountain Chain. After having
lunch in Tekir Forest, we head towards Kahramanmaras,
which is famous for its ice cream.
We arrive in Kahta in the late afternoon and visit
the Karakus tumulus where the royal family members
were buried. We then visit the Old Roman Cendere
Bridge over the Cendere Stream. We visit Mithridates
I Hierothesion in Arsemia, which was once the capital
of the Kommagene Kingdom.
Finally we go to Mt. Nemrut to see the Colossal
God statues while the sun is setting |
| |
Dinner at Atatürk Dam |
| |
Stay overnight
in Kahta |
| Day
5 |
Kahta to
Urfa tour - Harran |
| |
After breakfast
at the hotel we visit Atatürk Dam, which is in one
of the
biggest project of Turkey (GAP). Arrive to Urfa
and have lunch after which we will then visit another
archeological site, Harran, mystical and ancient
'bee-hive' house built of mud-brick, which is mentioned
in Genesis as being a place where Abraham lived.
At the same site we will visit the first Islamic
University of the world. Visit the birthplace of
the Prophet Abraham with its mosques, Abraham's
birth-cave, and beautiful gardens.
Hve dinner at a local restaurant |
| |
Stay overnight
in Urfa |
| Day
6 |
Harran
tour to Diyarbakir |
| |
We leave Urfa
for Mardin. It looks spectacular. In Mardin, with
its tiered layers of houses, mansions, mosques and
churches rising out of the endless, level plain
and clinging to a huge citadel-topped rock, we visit
Deyrulzafran monastery (Saffron
Monastery), which is still used by the Syrian Orthodox
communities. After visiting
the monastery, we drive to Diyarbakir |
| |
Stay overnight
in Diyarbakir |
| Day
7 |
Diyarbakir
tour - Van tour |
| |
We visit the
city walls of Diyarbakir, which were built by the
Romans. Then
we visit the Ulu Cami, the first of Anatolia's great
Seljuk Mosques. Afterwards drive to Bitlis to visit
a 13th century Caravanserai. Catch the ferryboat
to Akdamar Island, situated in the biggest lake
in Turkey, to view an exquisite example of an Armenian
Church |
| |
Stay overnight
in Van |
| Day
8 |
Van tour
|
| |
First we visit
Van Castle, which is 100m high and 300m wide at
the base. It was the site of an Urartian temple,
of which only a couple of arched niches remain.
After visiting Van castle we continue to Çavuştepe,
the site of an Urartian Royal Palace, built between
764 and 735 BC by King Sardur II. The next stop
is Hosap Castle, which was constructed at the behest
of Sari Suleyman Mahmudi, a local Kurdish strong
man, in the 1640s. |
| |
Stay overnight
in Van |
| Day
9 |
Van -
Dogubeyazit tour |
| |
We leave Van
after breakfast and travel to Dogubeyazit. We stop
at the wonderful Muradiye Waterfall. Then we head
for Ishakpasa Palace, a 17th century palace set
on a 200m high plateau overlooking the town. |
| |
Stay overnight
in Dogubeyazit |
| Day
10 |
Dogubeyazit
- Kars tour |
| |
We drive to
Kars, which has a spectacular castle and still has
fine
examples of Armenian architecture, one of which
is the breathtaking site
of the ancient city of Ani located on the Armenian-Turkish
border. |
| |
Stay overnight
in Kars |
| Day
11 |
Kars -
Trabzon tour |
| |
We drive west along the Black Sea to Trabzon,
founded by the Kingdom of
Miletus, the largest city in the Black Sea region.
The route isthrough a forested region, passing through
small, unspoiled villages untouched by tourism.
We shall arrive in Trabzon in the late afternoon,
giving some free time to enjoy the city at your
own pace |
| |
Stay overnight in Trabzon |
| Day
12 |
Trabzon |
| |
After breakfast we visit the Hagia Sophia Museum
with its spectacular frescoes. We then head inland
to visit the mystical Sumela Monastery, dating back
to early Christianity, which was built high into
the side of the steep cliff face |
| |
Stay overnight in Trabzon |
| Day
13 |
Trabzon
to Istanbul |
| |
Transfer to Trabzon airport for your morning flight
to Istanbul |
| What's Included |
| * |
All
land transportations |
| * |
Domestic
Flight tickets |
| * |
Accommodation in 3* or 4* hotels on HB
basis |
| * |
Experience Tour Guide |
| * |
Guided
tours as per itenerary |
| * |
Entrance
fees |
|
| What's NOT Include |
| * |
Expenses
of a personal nature |
|
|
