Day 1 Arrival to Istanbul and complete customs in Istanbul // Overnight in Istanbul

Please proceed to the exit gate #8 after luggage claim in Istanbul. You will find our representative waiting you with an A4 paper written ‘YOUR NAME’ and he will call the driver waiting in the parking lot to come and pick you up. Your private transfer will take around 1 hour to your hotel. Depending on your arrival time, we can arrange a tour like below;

Start your tour from Taksim Square in the morning and catch the nostalgic tram to see the Beyoglu district at a slow pace. The second oldest subway of the world awaits you in the end of Beyoglu where you will walk to the Galata Tower and Galata Bridge. After lunch in Galata Bridge, you will explore the Spice Market and take a nice Bosporus Cruise in Istanbul. Your guide and driver will drop you to your hotel in the end. 

Day 2 Walking the Old City of Istanbul // Overnight in Istanbul

The second full day in Istanbul begins with a visit to the Hippodrome - for more than 1000 years the Hippodromewas the Byzantine center for sporting and social life; including chariot races, coronations, parades and court ceremonies. After strolling around the Hippodrome area, we will visit the Blue Mosque - the Grand Mosque of the Ottomans. This is a still-functioning mosque and offers beautiful Iznik ceramic tile work inside as well as spectacular architecture inside and out. The Hagia Sophia is our next stop - regarded as one of the marvels of architecture and engineering, the Hagia Sophia is currently a museum with a rich history. Built in 537 AD it is still considered the epitome of Byzantine architecture. Before lunch we will also visit the underground Basilica Cistern which offers rows upon rows of marble columns and carved statues in this beautiful water reservoir. Enjoy your lunch with views of the Hagia Sofia. After lunch we will take a short stroll to the famous Topkapi Palace - the imperial palace of the Ottomans. After touring the palace, we will relax on the terraces of the palace overlooking the Bosporus of Istanbul and enjoy a cup of Turkish coffee before returning to your hotel.

Day 3 Dolmabahce Palace, Mosque of Suleiman & Grand Bazaar // Overnight in Istanbul

Your day will start with a stroll from the old city of Istanbul to the Golden Horn to catch a regular Bosporus cruise in between the Asian and European continents. For an hour and more, you will be floating through the real history channel. Big mansions located by the water will take you to the 19th Century of Istanbul. Your return will give amazing opportunities to take pictures of the Old City of Istanbul, once the capital of Byzantium and Ottoman empires. You will embark by the Spice market and stroll in and around the bazaar where the Spices from India were sold to the Ottoman merchants before they sailed to Europe. The spice market is now hosting several Turkish delight shops allowing you to taste various kinds of them and Turkish Viagra. Nearby the market, a hidden gem, Rustem pasha mosque, is located housing the best Ottoman tiles, making the Blue mosque jealous. Grand Bazaar, which is the oldest yet functioning covered shopping mall of the world will be visited before returning to your hotel.

Day 4 Fly to Cappadocia and Start Touring // Overnight in Cappadocia

Pick up from your Istanbul hotel in the early morning for your flight to Cappadocia. Our guide and driver will be ready at Cappadocia airport's domestic arrival gate to pick you up for your 2 days of Cappadocia escape. After drive from the airport, you will arrive at Cappadocia's poetic land, the land of beautiful horses. The first stop will be the Pigeon Valley viewpoint to see the region's surreal landscape and take amazing pictures of the Uchisar citadel. This citadel is the highest point in the Cappadocia region. After climbing on top of it, you will feel like Cappadocia's rulers once resided in Uchisar town in the ancient ages. After lunch or coffee, you will check in to your hotel for a good rest for the next day.

Day 5 OPTIONAL HOT AIR BALLOON FLIGHT & Keep Exploring the Beauties of Cappadocia // Overnight in Cappadocia

Your driver will pick you up from your hotel early in the morning around 4 AM for your hot air balloon flight experience. After having a light breakfast at the headquarters of the hot air balloon company, you will drive to the takeoff area for watching the preparations of the balloons. You will start your once in a lifetime experience and picture the best of Cappadocia from a birds eye view. After landing, you will receive your flight certificates and will be dropped back to your hotel around 7 AM for your second breakfast.

Our guide and driver will be awaiting you at the hotel at the determined time. Your first stop will be the Imagination Valley, locally called 'Devrent,' to see the region's most interesting geological formations. The next stop is the Monks Valleythat we call Pasabag... amazing formations of fairy chimneys will make you think that you are on a different planet. Before lunch, you will be visiting the Goreme Open Air Museum, a UNESCO heritage site housing late Byzantine churches carved into the volcanic rock cliffs and decorated with religious-themed frescoes by Christian monks in the late 10th century. After lunch in the world-famous Goreme village, you can enjoy a rest and a hot cup of Turkish coffee while overlooking stunning landscapes at a major viewing point in the Cappadocia region. Then a 20-minute drive will take you to another UNESCO heritage site, Kaymakli underground city. This complex tunnel and cave system in the underground will take you the ancient times, and you will be able to hear pretty well-organized Cappadocians to shelter and defense against any attack of their enemies.

Day 6 Fly to Aegean Side // Overnight in Kusadasi

Private transfer to Cappadocia airport in the morning for your Izmir flight. You will meet with our driver at the domestic arrival gate of Izmir airport and will drive to Kusadasi town for the night. 

Day 7 Ephesus Tour // Overnight in Kusadasi

Your guide will be ready to pick you up from your hotel at the desired time for the last tour of your golden triangle tour of Turkey. Your first stop will be the Temple of Artemis, just one of the World's Seven Wonders in Turkey. After a photo with only one column left from this huge structure, you will continue to the ancient city of Ephesus. Excavations are run in the city for more than the last 140 years and look like they will never be completed. Thanks to the proximity to the Aegean Sea's calm waters and the fertile lands nearby, Ephesus once became the Hellenistic world's biggest city. Enormous trade created a society of art that can be seen in the architecture of the ancient site. The

Library of Celsus, Terrace houses, The Odeon, Trajan Fountain, and Hadrian’s temple are among the best monuments to see in the ancient city, along with the magnificent theater that once overlooked the ocean. Your tour in this city will be followed by a visit to the Museum of Selcuk to see the century-old excavations' relics. After lunch in Selcuk town, you will drive up to a significant shrine of the Christian and Muslim world. The House of Virgin Mary is located on a hilltop with beautiful views of the Aegean waters and is believed to be the final resting place of the Mother of Jesus Christ. The shrine was visited by several Popes and was announced as a pilgrimage spot by Pope Leo XIII in 1896. You will drive in between the olive trees and grape wines after a visit to the Virgin's shrine and explore the village of Sirince. This old Greek village has amazing stone and wooden houses attracting tourists from all over the world, and a stroll in the village and a break in a café will make you relax before going back to your hotel.

Day 8 Fly Back Home

Private transfer to Izmir airport for your next destination, end of our services.

Please contact us for personalize the program !!!