• May, 9th
• June, 20th
• September, 26th

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Overnight: at The Central Palace Hotel in Istanbul (see hotel's pictures: exterior , guest room)

This morning we will continue to explore Cappadocia.  First we will visit the remarkable underground city of Kaymaklı. Beginning in the second century AD, as successive armies swept across Asia Minor, the residents of Cappadocia created uniquely defensible communities by digging approximately eight stories down into the volcanic tufa stone.

This morning we will check-out and visit a local carpet workshop, where you will have a chance to learn about all aspects of this traditional Turkish craft, from silkworm cultivation, to spinning, dyeing and the traditional patterns and weaving techniques.

After this we will depart for the town of Beysehir via Konya.  On the way we will see Seljuk Caravanserai – Sultan Hani.  Built between 1232-36, this caravanserai was the largest and most magnificent in Anatolia.

Upon arrival in Konya (ancient Iconium), one of the oldest cities in Anatolia, you will have lunch on your own at a local restaurant.

Overnight:  village house (a scene from the village: a typical village house)
Included meals: B, D

Overnight:  at Divan Talya Hotel in Antalya (see hotel's pictures: exterior , guest room)
Included meals: B, D

After lunch at near-by restaurant, you will continue to Fethiye and arrive there in the late afternoon.  The city of Fethiye, which is located southeast of the Gulf of Fethiye, has an important marina and overlooks a beautiful bay strewn with islands.  Above the town, called Telmessos in antiquity, are numerous Lycian rock tombs, reproducing the facades of ancient buildings and cut into the cliff face.

At the harbor of Fethiye we will embark on a gulet (traditional Turkish yacht, cabin charter) and meet your captain, crew and fellow passengers.  Over a welcome cocktail, the captain will give a briefing on safety and life on board.  After dinner on board, we will stay overnight either in Fethiye’s harbor or in a near-by cove.

Our next stop will be Kayakoy, a Greek ‘ghost town’.  The village of about 600 houses that was once inhabited by Anatolian Greeks.  During the 1920s the entire population moved to Greece after the Turkish war of independence.
Today’s lunch and dinner will be on board.

Today we will first anchor near the Yassica Isles, which arouse interest because of their mysterious appearance.  These islands are traditionally favored by yachts, and after lunch here, we will continue to Bedri Rahmi Cove. One of the most important coves of the Fethiye Gulf is the inlet of Bedri Rahmi.  Bedri Rahmi Eyüpoğlu was one of the first blue voyagers and painted a fish on a rock behind a fountain here, in the year 1973.  The inlet was then named after him.

You can see the painted fish and behind it, a Lycian rock tomb hidden at the back of the trees.  There are many Lycian rock tombs besides this one in the area.  We will stay overnight in this area.

In the morning we will sail to Agalimani Cove.  From here, a 30-minute hike takes us to ancient Lydea. Off-the-beaten path and rarely visited, Lydea features sarcophagi, temple walls, cisterns, Corinthian columns and inscribed tablets from the Roman and Byzantine periods. Next, we will approach Cleopatra’s Baths - another exquisite setting with thick pine woods right down to the water's edge.  Half submerged monastery ruins attract the curious.  

The place is also called Ruin Bay.  Legendary Cleopatra is said to have come here twice, once with Julius Caesar and once with Marc Anthony.  He, Anthony, was en route to Actium. She, Cleopatra, came for the scenery.

After breakfast, our yacht will depart for Ekincik Bay, some distance to the south east of Marmaris.  The inlet of Ekincik is a tranquil paradise of lush green forests where you can lose all sense of time.  Among the most beautiful spots along the coast this is a favorite stop for seafarers.
Here, a riverboat will take you to Caunos in the Dalyan Delta.  The delta, with a long, golden sandy beach at its mouth, is a nature-conservation area and a refuge for sea-turtles (caretta) and blue crabs.

At a bend of the river, high on the cliff face above the fascinating ancient harbor-city of Caunos, magnificent tombs were carved into the rock.  Further up river you can have a sulphur mud bath in the river, supposedly very cleansing for your skin.

In the early evening we will arrive in the harbor of Marmaris.  Marmaris Bay resembles a calm lake and offers ideal mooring for yachts.  The center of yachting on the Lycian coast, Marmaris sits at the head of an almost landlocked bay surrounded by high, pine-clad hills. The shopping bazaars and restaurants form the backbone of this traditional Turkish seaside town, while yachts of all shapes and sizes adorn the marina, which is said to be the best in the eastern Mediterranean.

This will be your last overnight on board, and in the evening you may choose to enjoy a colorful nightlife of Marmaris on your own.

After breakfast on board it will the time to say goodbye to the captain and crew and depart from Marmaris to Kusadasi.  During this transfer we will enjoy picturesque views of Mediterranean nature and have lunch en route.  In the afternoon we will reach Kusadasi.  Kusadasi, which means “Bird Island” is set in a superb gulf and is known for its sparkling water, broad sandy beaches and large marina with the capacity for 600 boats.

Here we will stay for the next 2 nights at the Kismet Hotel.  This very special hotel is located on a peninsula that protrudes into the Aegean Sea like a cruise-ship, with guests are at the center of it all - delightful, year-round sun, gentle breezes, proud pines and swaying palms, colorful spring and summer flowers and the unmistakable perfume of white jasmine. All rooms have balconies and views of the sea.

After an early breakfast, we will depart for a full day sightseeing tour of the  Ephesus area.  We will first visit the Ephesus ancient site. 
Today Ephesus is perhaps the world’s best-preserved ancient city and its ruins attract visitors from across the globe.  In Roman times, Ephesus was the provincial capital of Asia, with a population of some 250,000 at the height of its glory. 

The most significant relic of the site is the immense amphitheater that holds 24,000 people and is still used today. We will walk along the Sacred Way, where the rich once lived and an ingenious water and sewer system was constructed beneath paving stones of marble; see the Temple of Hadrian, a Corinthian-style building with the head of Medusa on the porch to keep away evil spirits; and the Library of Celsius, which held 12,000 ancient scrolls which were stored in niches around the walls.

From here we will drive to Sirince village where we will have lunch on our own.  This pretty old Orthodox village was once named Cirkince ("ugly"). Indeed its habitants gave it this name on purpose as they did not want to be bothered by strangers.  Still after years, visitors understood that the village was not ugly at all and called it Sirince ("pretty"). Today the village is a perfect synthesis of Turkish and Greek culture: all the typical Greek houses, though they kept their original outside characteristics, have received the local layout inside

The most beautiful specimens are open to visitors.  After lunch we will have some time to stroll through this village and to socialize with the locals.  All the narrow streets of the village belong to the women, selling handcrafts of all kinds, olive oil, and home-made wine.

Our last visit will be to the House of the Virgin Mary.  Officially declared a shrine by the Roman Catholic Church in 1896, it has since become a popular place of pilgrimage. The chapel is built on the foundation of the house where the Virgin Mary is believed to have lived.
In the early evening we will return to Kusadasi for an evening at leisure.

This morning after breakfast we will check-out from the hotel, and drive from Kusadasi to the Pergamum ancient site.  Pergamum was an ancient city founded by colonists on the Aegean coast of Anatolia at the site of the present-day city of Bergama. Fertile, self-contained and easily defended, it provided the perfect setting for the maintenance of a city-state. 

Pergamum, once one of the richest small kingdoms in the Middle East, contained one of the world’s largest collections of books.  Much of Pergamum has been lovingly restored; it is now considered one of the primary ancient sites in Turkey.You will visit the magnificent Acropolis, which contains the ruins of Pergamum’s acclaimed 200,000-volume library, so large it challenged the world’s greatest library in Alexandria.  In fact, the Egyptians were so afraid that Pergamum would attract scholars away from Alexandria that they cut off the area’s supply of papyrus, forcing the invention of “pergamen” (Latin for parchment), made from animal hides rather than papyrus reed. Along with the library, the Acropolis also boasts a great theater seating 10,000 and the marble-columned Temple of Trojan.  Below the theater lie the ruins of the Temple of Dionysus along with the Altar of Zeus, in a marvelous setting shaded by evergreen trees.

Next you will visit the Asclepieum – a sanctuary and a healing center built in the name of the god of healing, Asclepius. The healing center, Asclepieum, had been something very similar to a modern natural-healing clinic. Patients were given exercises, drugs, herbal remedies, or could take the honey cure, drink waters from the springs, etc.

Aristotle, who stayed in Assos for three years, gave philosophy lectures to King Hermias. Later on, with the help of another philosopher Xenokrates, he turned Assos into a scientific and cultural center.
In the early evening we will arrive at the Nazlihan Hotel.  The Nazlihan Boutique Hotel has a magnificent location on an antique seaport and was renovated while maintaining its façade, that of a 19th century acorn storage house.  Here we will have an included dinner and stay overnight.

After the breakfast we will leave Assos and drive to ancient Troy, once believed to exist only in Homer’s epic poem. Discovered by Heinric Schliemann in the 1870s, the site has since been excavated and now reveals remnants of nine civilizations dating back 5,000 years.  After visiting Troy we will continue to the shore of Dardanelles Strait, and have lunch on our own en route.

After crossing the Strait we will drive to the battlefields of Gallipoli, where in 1915 Allied troops faced the Turkish army led by Lieutenant-Colonel Mustafa Kemal, also known as Ataturk, the man who later became the leader of modern Turkey. Huge numbers of casualties were suffered here, and you can pay your respects to those who gave their lives as you visit several of the Allied Cemeteries.

Next we will continue to Istanbul, arriving in the early evening.  We will check-in at the Novotel for a last overnight.

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4 participants

6 participants

$ 6.905,00

$ 4.335,00

$ 3.565,00

$ 3.030,00