Day 1
Morning departure from Istanbul to Ankara ( 3 to 4 hours drive ) Arrival in Ankara, check in the hotel, Overnight stay
Day 2
Today you can discover, Anatolian Civilization Museums and the Mausoleum of Ataturk, 16:00 Departure from Ankara, 20:00 pm Arrival in Urgup Cappadocia, Transfer to your hotel, Overnight stay in Urgup Cappadocia
Day 3
Sites you’ll see today
*The World Heritage Site of Goreme Open-Air Museum --This is a cluster of rock cut Byzantine churches, chapels and monasteries which include some wonderful 11th and 12th century frescoes on the cave walls. This place was used by the Christians as a place of refuge from those opposed to Christianity and also was a major monastery. Rooms, churches, houses, and gathering halls have all been cut into the rock or formed from natural caves. Within the caves you can explore and see the preserved mosaics and frescoes.
*Fairy Chimneys--These geological phenomenon have been shaped over millions of years. They were formed during volcanic eruptions in the region. Reaching at times 40 meters in height, they are conical in shape and have a "hat" top to them.
*Devrent Valley--This valley is know as "the pink valley" because of the color of it’s soil. This is a lovely place to wander around and look at the magical rock formations indicative to Cappadocia, including the Fairy Chimneys.
*Uchisar Castle--Also called a fortress, this is actually a formation of two gigantic rocks surrounded by smaller rocks that together form a natural fortress with towers. These formations were inhabited during both the Byzantine and Ottoman times. You can climb and explore the different caves and rooms throughout the fortress, experiencing first-hand what it must have been like to hide in these fortified rocks, waiting for the ancient enemy to pass by or give up.
*We will also get the chance to visit local craftspeople and learn how they make dolls and create traditional pottery. >Breakfast/Lunch provided - <overnight in URGUP.
Day 4
Today will be spent walking through an underground city where ancient people once fled for their lives escaping the Arab invaders, wandering through Ilhara Gorge and spending time in an Anatolian village. As we will need to drive for awhile in order to reach our first destination, we will be starting out quite early this morning.
Sites you’ll see today
*Underground City of Derinkuyu--You will gradually stroll your way down into the depths of the earth in this ancient underground city that has 18-20 floors as deep as 40 meters below the ground. Don’t worry, you will only go down to the 8th floor. Cappadocia has around 36 underground cities. Archeologists date these back to the time of the Hittites which lived 4000 years ago. Others believe they were inhabited around the 7th century BC.....Regardless of how old or young they are, undoubtedly they will leave you with a sense of awe of how the dwellers of these cities lived. As you wind down you will begin to feel as if you are in a huge block of Swiss cheese. Everywhere you look there will be nooks and crannies carved into the rocks: holes, windows , paths, alleys, little rooms. . . it is really a maze of mass proportions. You will see ancient kitchens and stables; storage jars for oil, wine and water; rock carved tables, chairs, and beds; and deep wells for water supplies. You will be amazed at the elaborate ancient ventilation system in place. These cities were fortified and prepared for it’s inhabitants to hide out for months from attackers, especially during the Arab invasions. During Christian times the hiding worshippers even built little chapels that you can still see.
*Ihlara Gorge will seem like an oasis in the middle of the Anatolian plain. Delve into the gorge and see the beautiful greenery as you follow the river. Around you will see ancient monasteries complete with pigeon holes cut into the cliffs by the monks. They used these pigeons as messengers to communicate with their monk friends!
*Traditional Anatolian villages -- The head-scarved women out at work in the fields from sun up until sun-down, and the mustached, vest-wearing men hard at work playing cards in the coffee shops. You will get time to stroll in such a village and see the average Turkish villager at work...or play.
>Breakfast/Lunch provided,
Day 5
After breakfast we will depart from your hotel, and go an all day drive down to Adiyaman, ( Arrival in Adiyaman check in the hotel, Overnight stay in Adiyaman.
Day 6
03:00 a.m in the morning we will depart from the hotel and drive up to Nemrut Mountain, You will be seeing first light of the sun on the statues of the king Antiochos I the Gods, and you will have free time to explore more of the area, after that we will go back to the hotel hotel for breakfast and relaxing, and then we will depart from Adiyaman and carry onto Sanliurfa, and we will visit Atatürk Dam will be the first stop · Lunch in SANLIURFA · Rizvaniye Mosque · Fish lake · A cave where prophet Abraham was born in · Ayn –i Zeliha Lake · Urfa Castle · The palace of prophet Eyyüp · Historical Urfa Bazaar, Overnight stay in Urfa Sanliurfa (glorious Urfa) is a city of pilgrimage, sacred to Muslims, Christians, and Jews as the birthplace of Abraham. According to Legends, Abraham fervantly believed in a single god. He fought idolatry and smashed idols for the spread of monotheism.
Day 7
After breakfast we will ptu you on a all day bus ride to Van, Arrival, check in the hotel, Overnight stay
Day 8
After breakfast we will take you no a guided tour of Van you will visit the Lake Van & Ahdamar Island, ( full day tour ) after the tour we will transfer you the Van airport, and will put you on a 2 hours flight back to Istanbul,
Cost will be € 945.00 per person in double room and € 1.145.00 for single supp.
Price includes
* All Transportations by comfortable vehicles
* 4 star accommodation with breakfast & 5 Lunches
* Domestic flight tickets ( Istanbul - Kayseri & Van - Istanbul )
* Proffessional English speaking guides
* Entrance fees to the Ancient sites
* All of the service charges and local taxes
( This is a customize program and it is available all year around, if you are interested in getting more information about the cost, and hotel name and their websites, then simply send us an e-mail inquiry and let us know the dates you like to travel, then we will get back to you with full on information.
We can also extend your stay by adding more sights like Antalya, Fethiye or more days in either in Kusadasi and Istanbul and make the program suitable for your time and interest.
|
