5 Days / 4 Nights Istanbul and Cappadocia Tour

Información

Day 1.
Arrival in Istanbul and meeting at the airport, transfer to the hotel, check- in. Leisure afternoon. Optional: Possibility of arranging Bosphorus Cruise Tour if you arrive early and time permits. It can be arranged even last minute on arrival in Istanbul. Overnight in Istanbul.

Day 2: Sultanahmet – Old Istanbul.
Meeting at the hotel reception at 9am. Visit to Topkapi Palace, which was used by the Ottoman Sultans from the 15th to 19th centuries. We will also see the impressive collection of priceless jewels, crystal, silver and porcelain, robes worn by the sultans and relics of the prophet Mohammed. After lunch break we will see the Blue Mosque, built for Sultan Ahmet I, which is a unique piece of architecture with its six minarets and features 20,000 beautiful Iznik tiles. Visit the ancient Hippodrome with Obelisk of Theodosius, Snake Pillar and German Fountain of Wilhelm II. Walk through the back streets of Old Istanbul and visit the Yerebatan underground Cistern. At the end of the tour we will have time to see the Grand Bazaar (except Sundays). Overnight in Istanbul.

Day 3: Istanbul- Cappadocia.
Pick-up from hotel 2 hours before flight departure. Take the early morning flight from Istanbul airport to Cappadocia. Arrival at the airport and meeting just outside the arrival’s gate with a sign bearing your name with your driver. Transfer to Cappadocia and starting our tour to Kaymakli Underground City, one of the most interesting underground settlements in Cappadocia. Continue to Sahinefendi ( Sobesos ) - Sobessos is newly discovered (01 May 2002) mosaic houses & Archaeological excavation site. Villages in the valleys, surrounded by the “table top” mountains, are spectacular. Continue with Keslik Monastery near Cemil, that hides it’s frescoes behind a very thin smoke layer which we can only see by torch light. Lunch break. Visit to Mustafapasa (Sinasos), an old Greek town with its spectacular old Greek houses; very fine examples of late Greek settlements and architecture. Visit to Saruhan Caravanserai, a roadside inn where travellers could rest and recover from the day’s journey. Caravanserais supported the flow of commerce, information and people across a network of trade routes of Asia, North Africa and South-Eastern Europe on the legendary Silk Road and the Spice road. Continue with panorama of the Red Valley, with its fabulous volcanic rock formations in the heart of Cappadocia but away from the tourist crowds. Overnight in Cappadocia.

Day 4: Cappadocia.
Meeting at the hotel reception at 9:30am. In the morning, begin with the lunar landscape of Cappadocia: rock formations beyond belief in Devrent valley; a journey in the past with its troglodyte houses, continue to Pasabag “fairy chimneys” where the voice of wind mixes with the “songs of fairies” near Zelve. Lunch break in Avanos, centre of terra cotta work of art since 3000 BC. and a demonstration in a traditional pottery workshop. Afternoon, visit the famous Goreme Open Air Museum and see the best examples of Byzantine art in Cappadocia in rock-cut churches with frescoes and paintings (10th to 13th century). Continue to Uchisar Rock-Castle to have a panoramic view of the valleys of Cappadocia. Overnight in Cappadocia. Day 5: Cappadocia.
Take the morning flight to Istanbul. Pick-up from hotel 2 hours before flight departure.

Meeting/pick-up point: Istanbul airport.
Duration: 5 days.
Start/opening time: according to flight arrival time.
End/closing time: return flight is at lunchtime.
Inclusions: Included: 4 nights accommodation in a 4* hotel, standard double rooms, breakfast, Istanbul – Cappadocia flight ticket (return), comfortable transportation and professional driver, professional tour guide, all parking and road taxes.
Exclusions: lunches and dinners.