Grand Tour of Turkey

 Fly from your chosen UK airport to Istanbul and transfer to the Pera district for two nights at the 4-star Nippon Hotel Istanbul.(D)

A tour today takes you to visit Turkey’s largest and most grandiose palace, the Dolmabahçe, dominating the waterside; and to the 15th century Yedicule Fortress, ‘The Castle of Seven Towers’, its square twin towers forming the city’s Golden Gate, its dungeons steeped in gruesome legends. Later, cruise along the Bosphorus, passing palaces, mosques and villas; and enjoy a drink at the Pera Palas.
(B)

Skirting the Sea of Marmara, travel (4hrs) to Gallipoli and the sites of the ANZAC landings, and sail across the Dardanelles to Çanakkale’s cobbled lanes and clocktower Overnight at the 4-star Kolin Hotel.
(B, D)

Visit the ruins of ancient Troy (its legend celebrated with a huge wooden horse on the seafront of the contemporary town); and travel to modern Bergama to view the acropolis of Pergamon, high on a hill above the town, with ancient tunnels, temples and a theatre sprinkled below. Continue to Izmir for an overnight stay at the 5-star hotel Mövenpick Izmir.
(B, L, D)

Follow in the footsteps of biblical saints in the ruins of ancient Ephesus, where marble-paved streets are lined with a feast of iconic monuments. Visit the Roman Terrace houses, museum, and 6th century Basilica of St. John, built over his burial site. Two nights at the 5-star Korumar Hotel De Luxe, Kusadasi.
(B, D)

Coast and country combine in a leisurely day today, with a morning visit to Degirmen Organic Farm and Olive Oil Museum and a free afternoon to enjoy Kusadasi’s beaches.(B, D)

Teaming Greek and Roman traditions in the sculpted marble of the 2nd century BC city of Aphrodisias, the star of the archaeological site is the Temple of Aphrodite, our first visit today; before continuing to the Roman ruins and calcified waterfalls of Pamukkale. Overnight at the 4-star Colossae Thermal Hotel.
(B, D)

We continue eastward (6hrs) to Konya, the Seljuk capital, to visit the Mevlana (Whirling Dervishes) Museum and to see the mosques and madrasah of Karatay. Overnight at the 4-star Hotel Bera.
(B, L, D)

After visiting Konya’s Alâeddin Mosque, travel (3hrs) to Cappadocia’s high plateau region, stopping enroute at the small town of Sultan Han, in an isolated spot on the old Silk Road, to see the Seljuk Caravanserai, the largest in Turkey. Two nights at the ‘special category’ Hotel Yusuf Yigitoglu Konagi, built into the rock.
(B, D)

Experience the ‘other-worldly’ landscape of the Göreme Valley, with unique chimneys, its rock-hewn churches, Uçhisar castle and subterranean city of Kaymakli. An optional and equally atmospheric event is the Whirling Dervish ceremony at an ancient caravanserai (£45).
(B, D)  

Visit the UNESCO listed ruins of Hattusha, the Bronze Age capital of the Hittite empire, with its city walls, King’s, Sphinx and Lion Gates, rock temple, and mysterious glassy green stone at the Great Temple complex. Continue to Ankara for overnight at the 4-star Radisson Blu Hotel.
(B, D)

 We visit the Museum of Anatolian Civilisations and the ‘Anitkabir’, Atatürk’s Mausoleum, which crowns a hill at the heart of Ankara, approached via an avenue of stone lions; before going back in time to the 7th century BC tomb of King Midas at Gordion. Overnight in Bursa at the 4-star Gonluferah City Hotel.
(B, D)

A morning tour takes you to the architecture and artistry of three mosques - the Great, the Green, and the Muradiye, and continues to Bursa’s Ottoman tombs and the silk bazaar, before we leave the city and cross the Sea of Marmara by ferry, to come full-circle back to Istanbul. Two nights at the 5-star Eresin Topkapi.
(B)

The final day is filled with visits to Istanbul’s most iconic sights, the 6th century St. Sophia church/mosque, the multi-minareted Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome, Grand Bazaar, the mystical subterranean structures of the Basilica Cistern, and the jewel in the crown of Sultanahmet Square, the lavishly opulent Topkapi Palace; rounding-off the day with a rooftop dinner.(B, D)

Return flight from Istanbul.
(B)