PRE - TOURSPERGAMUM
CAPPADOCIA
EPHESUS
ISTANBUL 
PERGAMUM Bergama (Pergamum) is a well-known town not only in Turkey, but also all over the world. In the west of the town, a very important center of culture, arts and medicine in ancient times, there is one of the oldest and largest hospitals in history, the Asclepion. At the entrance of the hospital constructed in the name of Aesculapius, the god of health, there are snake reliefs, which symbolized the god and eventually became the symbol of medical science. Galen of Pergamum, the noted medical scientist, practiced in this hospital. The most important architectural monuments in Pergamum are located on the acropolis. The library famed for its 200,000 books, the Temples of Athena and Trajan besides the steepest amphitheater in the world and the foundations of the Altar of Zeus, one of the artistic wonders of the world, are located here. (Today, the entire altar is in the Pergamum Museum in Berlin.)
Pergamum Tour November 14, 2009 Saturday
Full Day Pergamum Tour Details:
Leaving from Izmir after breakfast to join in tour of Pergamum.
Arrival to Pergamum and visit archeological sites.
Visit to Aesculapium, ancient medical center built in the name of Aesculapis, God of Medicine.
Lunch and continue to Pergamum Acropolis. Visit Atena and Trojan Temples, Temple of Zeus, Temple of Dionysos, Gymnasium of Youth, Odeon, Library, Agora, Great Theatre and Roman Bath.
Price: 55 Euro Per Person
Included Services: All the transfers from hotel and back to hotel; full day tour of Pergamum; lunch; entrance fees; professional guidance
Please contact us for details.
EPHESUS Ephesus was an ancient Greek city on the west coast of Anatolia, in the region known as Ionia during the Classical Greek period. It was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League. The city was famed for the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BCE), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The city's importance as a commercial centre declined as the harbor was slowly silted up by the Cayster River. Ephesus was one of the seven churches of Asia that are cited in the Book of Revelation.The Gospel of John may have been written here. It is also the site of a large gladiators' graveyard. Ephesus was an important center for early Christianity from the AD 50s. From AD 52-54, Paul lived here, working with the congregation and apparently organizing missionary activity into the hinterlands. The house of the Virgin Mary is believed to have been the last home of Mary, mother of Jesus. It is a popular place of pilgrimage which has been visited by three recent popes.
Ephesus Tour & The House of Virgin Mary, November 15, 2009 Sunday
Full Day Ephesus Tour Details:
Leaving from Izmir after breakfast to join in tour of Ephesus.
Arrival to Ephesus and visit archeological sites.
Temple of Artemis was one of the Seven Wonders of the World and located in Ephesus. Throughout the excavations in Ephesus, the actual location of the temple was presumed in different places. Its ancient cult dedicated to Artemis was famous in antiquity and made ancient Ephesus a much-visited pilgrimage place. Each year one month was considered a holiday and set aside for the religious ceremonious observations.
The Ruins of Ephesus, concert hall, market places, colonnaded street, temples, fountains, library, theather, arcadian way and more.
Lunch in the Location.
The House of Virgin Mary: It is known with certainty That the Virgin Mary went to Ephesus and lived there for some time. Whether or not she died in Ephesus was not known until Anne Catherine Emmerich's vision.
Price: 55 Euro Per Person
Included Services: All the transfers from hotel and back to hotel; full day tour of Ephesus; lunch; entrance fees; professional guidance
Please contact us for details.
POST - TOURSCAPPADOCIA Cappadocia is a famous and popular tourist destination, as it has several cone-shaped geological formations. After the eruption of Mt. Erciyes about 2000 years ago, the volcanic deposits formed softrocks in the Cappadocia Region. People of Göreme, at the heart of the Cappadocia Region, realized the these soft rocks could be easly carved out to form houses, churches, monastaries. The Göreme open air museum is the most visited site of the monastic communities in Cappadocia and is one of the most famous sites in central Turkey. It is complex comprising more than 30 rock-carved churches and chapels containing some superb frescoes, dating from the 9th to the 11 centuries.
Cappadocia Tours
1st Option November 18 - 19, 2009 Wendesday – Thursday (From Izmir)
2nd Option November 21 - 22, 2009 Saturday – Sunday (From Istanbul)
Cappadocia Tour Details:
Day 1
After breakfast, transfer to Airport and fly to Kayseri, then drive to Cappadocia.
After having lunch enroute at typical regional restaurant, we start to visit underground city of Kaymaklı and than natural citadel of Uchisar and Valley of Goreme, an open air museum with its churches hewn out of rocks and its colourful frescoes.
Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 2
After buffet breakfast we will visit Zelve, Cavusin Valley, in the afternoon Mustafa Pahsa and Orta Hisar will be visited.
Return to Istanbul, transfer to the hotel or transfer to the connection flight.
Price: 220 Euro Per Person
Included Services: All the transfers from airport to hotel and back to airport; city transfers; two lunches; one dinner; entrance fees; professional guidance.
Please contact us for details.
ISTANBUL Istanbul is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Due to her geographic location, Istanbul has always been a settlement area from early ages onwards. And besides connecting the two continents, Europe and Asia, Istanbul has become a center where various cultures and religions are combined, surrived and succeeded each other. This cultural structure which enables a good number of elements that contradict with each other and yet exist together even one in another, is the produce of an accumulation of about one thousand years.
Besides her natural beauties, Istanbul has a lot of historical works remaining from the Byzantium and Ottoman periods. Especially the trio of Topkapi Palace, St Sophia Museum located in Sultanahmet Section and the Kariye Museum are the places which attract the utmost interest of foreign tourists.
In both of these periods, Istanbul has preserved her features of being a political and religious center and has become the religious center of both, the Christianity and the Islam. Therefore, she was ornamented with many great monuments with different functions belonging to these two religions.
Istanbul is also important as a shopping center for foreign tourists. In this relation, historical and economic values of the Covered Bazaar is significant. On daily basis, approximately 10,000 tourists visit this market which has a surface area of 47,600 sq, 61 streets and about 3,600 shops and also a touristic coffee-house. Istanbul is highly suitable for the development of "Cultural Tourism". In recent years, many cultural conferences of international character, were arranged in the town. Additional facilities are made for the development of "Congress Tourism".
Istanbul Tour November 18 - 20, 2009 Wendesday – Friday (From Izmir)
Day 1 – November 18, 2009 Wendesday
After breakfast transfer to airport. Upon arrival in Istanbul you will be collected from the airport and transferred to the fascinating Ancient City of Istanbul.
MORNING TOUR starts with Haghia Sophia, the most influential church of Byzantium. Originally built by Emperor Constantine in the 4th century, reconstructed by Emperor Justinian in 6th century and converted into a mosque by the Ottomans in the 15th century, it still stands today as one of the world's greatest architectural marvels. The magnificent interior is testament to the unique east-west synthesis that is manifest in Istanbul. Shimmering biblical mosaics juxtapose huge plaques bearing the names of Islamic caliphs.
Next visit to the Blue Mosque, another of the world's most important religious buildings. Built in the 16th century the mosque is unique for it's 6 minarets and it's celestial interior decorated with the famous blue Iznik tiles.
The Hippodrome, scene of chariot races. Although little remains of the great stadium which, in its hey day, is thought to have held 100'000 people, the Obelisk of Theodosius, the Serpentine Column and the Column of Constantine are highlights. Then explore the Basilica Cistern, a vast underground water depot constructed to meet the needs of the Palace of Constantinople.
LUNCH break will be held at an authentic restaurant serving Turkish Cuisine.
AFTERNOON TOUR starts with the magnificent Dolmabahce Palace which was the new resident of Ottoman Sultans after Topkapi Palace. Dolmabahce Palace built between the years 1843 and 1856 under the order of the Empire's 31st sultan, Sultan Abdülmecid, at a cost of five million Ottoman gold pounds, the equivalent of 35 tons of gold. Fourteen tons of gold in the form of gold leaf were used to gild the ceilings of the palace. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founding leader of this modern republic, used the palace as a presidential house in summers and enacted some of this most important works here. Atatürk spent his last days and died here on 10 November 1938.
The world's largest Bohemian crystal chandelier is in the center hall. The chandelier has 750 lamps and weighs 4.5 tons. Dolmabahçe has the largest collection of Bohemian and Baccarat crystal chandeliers in the world, and one of the great staircases has bannisters of Baccarat crystal.
DINNER will be held at a famous restaurant with fascinating view of Istanbul nightlife…
ACCOMODATION at Hilton Istanbul
Day 2 - November 19, 2009 Thursday
MORNING TOUR starts with the grand Topkapi Palace with its impressive treasury, exquisite harem, attractive courtyards and pavilions housing huge collections of antiquities, Topkapi Palace offers a true insight into the heart of the Ottoman Empire. When Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror took Istanbul in 1453, he first ordered the construction of a new palace for this new Ottoman capital, on a site in the district of Beyazit where Istanbul University stands today. But before long, he changed his mind and had a number of buildings constructed on the headland to the southeast. This was to become the palace later known as Topkapi. Tha Palace was the residence of Ottoman Sultan's from the 15th to the 19th century, until the reign of Abdulmecid I (1839-1860)who abandoned Topkapi for a new palace (Dolmabahce) on the Bosphorus. Topkapi Palace is a huge location embracing the parts with different functions.
Harem is another world… Imagine the rooms occupied by the black eunuchs, concubines, the sultan's mother and the sultan himself. The most fascinating aspect of the Harem was the cloak of secrecy over life here. Virtually none of its inhabitants had the freedom to go out at will, and equally almost no one from the outside world was ever admitted. Sexuality is the principal theme on which the architecture is based, the sultan and his concubines and consort. Between these two poles of a single man and many women, were the sexless eunuchs who were guardians of the concubines, but themselves virtual prisoners. Of course the young princes lived in part of the Harem, and after puberty they too were provided with concubines. But their public existence was confined to the shadowy one of "potential sultans". Extending over 6720 square meters, it consists of three to five story buildings, totaling 259 rooms, 46 toilets, 12 storage rooms for non-food items. 8 baths, 8 entry halls, a hospital, 2 dormitories, 4 kitchens, six food store rooms, and one swimming pool. In addition, a School for Princes was annexed, and in the basement were located the harem prisons.
LUNCH break will be held at a famous seafood restaurant.
SUNSET ON THE BOSPHORUS: After lunch we embark on a boat tour along the Bosphorus waterway separating Europe and Asia. This is a relaxing way to take in some major landmarks including the magnificent seaside palaces, pavillions and waterfront villas of Istanbul. The Bosphorus Suspension Bridges are two of the world's largest suspension bridges, all alongside passing fishing boats, yachts, huge cargo ships and tankers. The Rumeli Fortress, built by Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror in 1452 prior to the conquest of Constantinople. You will see the bridge between the two continents and you will feel this is a place where civilizations meet.
DINNER: You are invited to diner at the waterfront Boshporus residence of Hon. Mr. and Mrs. Eken.
Day 3 - November 20, 2009 Friday
MORNING TOUR starts with Eyup Mosque & District, the name comes from Abu Ayyub al-Ansari, the companion and the standart bearer of the Prophet Muhammed. His resting place was venerated during the Byzantine times but after the Latin Rampage through Istanbul in the Fourth Cruscade fell into an unkempt state, along with many other Byzantine holy places. Coffee break at Cafe of Pierre Loti. The café takes its name from a regular visitor from years ago, Pierre Loti, the French author who was very fond of İstanbul and wrote as he sat in this cafe while enjoying the view.
We will drive along the Walls of Constantinople which are a series of sone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great to the present day. With numerous additions and modifications during their history, they are one the greatest and most complex fortification systems ever built.
Chora Church (Kariye), is considered to be one of the most beautifull examples of a Byzantine Church. Chora Church was originally built outside the walss of the Constantinople, to the South of the Golden Horn. Its full name was the Church of the Holy Saviour in the Country. The original church on this site was built in the early 5th century.
LUNCH will be held at a famous restaurant in the locatian.
AND SHOPPING TIME: After lunch you are able to shop in Grand Bazaar (or Covered Bazaar, Turkish is Kapalıçarşı) is one of the largest covered markets in the world with more than 58 streets, over 1,200 shops, and has between 250,000 and 400,000 visitors daily. It is well known for its jewelry, pottery, spice, and carpet shops. Many of the stalls in the bazaar are grouped by type of goods, with special areas for leather coats, gold jewelry and the like.
Tour continiues to discover the beauties of Istanbul, with a visit to the colourful 17th century Spice Bazaar and its surroundings. The narrow streets lined with shops here beautifully emphasize the atmosphere of old Istanbul. What a joy it is to smell the fresh coffee, herbs and spices, to see the dazzling mixture of nuts, dried fruits, a thousand varieties of Turkish delights and all being sold as they have been for hundreds of years. Walking through the main Eminonu square you pass the prominent New Mosque, although completed in 1663, it is newer than the other major mosques, hence the name. Feeding the pidgeons is must.
FAREWELL… Transfer to the hotel or airports
Price: 430 Euro Per Person
Included Services: Transfers from airport to hotel; city transfers; lunches; dinner; entrance fees; professional guidance.
Please contact us for details.
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