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CULINARY TOUR (7 Nights / 8 Days)
Itinerary: Istanbul / Canakkale / Kusadasi |
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Package prices (per person and in USD) from: |
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2 participants |
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$ 3,715.00 |
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4 participants |
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$ 2,345.00 |
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6 participants |
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$ 1,935.00 |
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| 10 participants |
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$ 1,635.00 |
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| DAY 01 |
Arrival in Istanbul |
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Arrive at Ataturk International Airport in Istanbul. Meet your guide and enjoy a private transfer to The Central Palace Hotel. The hotel is located in the modern city center, just few minutes walk from Taksim Square and Istiklal Street. Upon arrival enjoy a welcome briefing and orientation tour of the hotel area with your guide. In the evening proceed to dinner at local restaurant, located on Istiklal Street |
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Gourmet Details:
For tonight’s dinner we will walk to from the hotel to Istiklal Street, the heart of the modern city center – the Beyoglu district. Being the center of the culinary capital of Turkey, Beyoglu is enjoying a cultural and architectural revival, boasting many chic cafés, bars, bistros and restaurants. Istiklal Street, favored by both Istanbul’s residents and guests because of its unprecedented options for wining & dining, also features many charming historical buildings.
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| We will proceed to the Haci Baba Restaurant, which opened in 1921 and preserves a wonderfully nostalgic atmosphere. The restaurant specializes in Ottoman-style meals and kebabs. After dinner there will be an informal lecture on Turkish cuisine.
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Overnight: at The Central Palace Hotel in Istanbul (see hotel's pictures: exterior, guest room)
Included meals: D |
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After breakfast at the hotel, depart for a full-day sightseeing tour of the old city. This tour includes all significant landmarks of the city: the ancient Hippodrome, Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace Complex, and the Grand Bazaar. In the late afternoon we will return to the hotel and have an evening at leisure.
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Gourmet Details:
Today’s lunch will be at Konyali Restaurant, located within the Topkapi Palace complex. This restaurant, which is run by the fourth generation of the same family, specializes in Ottoman Imperial cuisine. A total of 700 different dishes from soups to desert are created through out the year by 250 chefs in the kitchens of Konyali
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Here we will taste a cold appetizer specialty of the day (prepared in olive oil); traditional Turkish pastry with cottage cheese; kebab with smoked egg-plant puree and assortment of Turkish desserts.
Overnight: at The Central Palace Hotel in Istanbul
Included meals: B, L |
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This morning, after a late breakfast, we will transfer to the pier and embark on a public boat for a 2-hour Bosphorus Cruise. The Bosphorus is a narrow, navigable strait between Europe and Asia connecting the Black Sea to the Marmara Sea. It is about 20 miles long and varies between 0.5 and 1.5 miles in width. Along both shores are many attractions including ancient ruins, picturesque villages, wooden houses and forested areas.
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We will disembark at the sea-front quarter of Tarabya and have lunch. After lunch, we visit the Spice Market which was built as a part of the Yeni Cami complex and has since been an exciting covered market filled with the fragrant scent of spices from the Orient.
From here we will continue to the Four Seasons Hotel’s tea-garden, and then return to our hotel. The evening is at leisure. |
Gourmet Details:
We will have today’s lunch at La Mer sea-food restaurant. The restaurant is located in Tarabya, a typical Bosphorus shoreside quarter. Like most traditional sea-front areas, freshly caught fish and sea products are available throughout the year. At Le Mar we will have grilled seasonal fish and traditional side-dishes. Tea drinking is an essential part of daily life in Turkey. Almost everywhere you go you will be offered a glass of tea. Tea is prepared by brewing it in boiling water and serving it in delicate, small, clear glasses to show the deep red color and to transmit the heat to the hand. We will try Turkish tea together with freshly baked cookies in the Four Seasons Hotel’s tea-garden today. |
Overnight: at The Central Palace Hotel in Istanbul
Included meals: B, L
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Alternatively you may choose to join an optional trip to Doluca Winery, available during grape harvest season only.
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OPTIONAL PROGRAM:
In the morning – depart for a full day educational trip to Doluca Winery – the biggest wine producer in Turkey. During this visit we will have chance to learn about all aspects of wine production in Turkey. Lunch en route is included to the program. We will return to the hotel in the late afternoon. |
Note: Trip to Doluca Winery is available only during the months of August and September.
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After breakfast at the hotel, we will leave Istanbul and drive through ancient Thrace then further along the Dardanelles Strait. Before we cross the strait by ferry, we will lunch at a sea-food restaurant. We then continue to the famous site of ancient Troy. After visiting Troy, we will proceed to Tusan Hotel, located within 10 min drive from the site. Today’s dinner is at the hotel. |
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Gourmet Details:
Turkey is the country of four seas; its shores are washed by the Black, Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean Seas. Naturally, sea-food has an important place in Turkish cuisine. For today’s lunch we will taste grilled fish of the season, combined with a fresh herb salad. Lunch also includes a cup of Turkish vegetable soup and dessert. From our perfectly located restaurant we will also enjoy a beautiful view over the Dardanelles Strait. |
Overnight: at Tusan Hotel in Canakkale (see hotel's pictures:
exterior ,
guest room)
Included meals: B, L, D |
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This morning we will leave Canakkale and after a 2 hour drive reach Adatepe village. Here we will visit the museum of olive oil – first of its kind in Turkey. Then we will continue to a near-by olive processing factory and meet its owners, who will show us how olives are processed and olive oil produced. After factory visit we will drive to Bergama. As we arrive, we will stop for a lunch at a local restaurant. After lunch we will tour the ancient site of Pergamum then continue to Kusadasi. We will reach Kusadasi in the early evening and proceed to our hotel. |
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Gourmet Details:
Today’s lunch will be at a private room of Saglam restaurant in Bergama. The room is decorated with traditional craft items and has the style of a traditional Turkish house. Here we will taste various stews (meat and vegetables) from the open-buffet of the restaurant. |
Overnight: at Kismet Hotel in Kusadasi (see hotel's pictures: exterior , guest room)
Included meals: B, L |
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This morning we will depart for a full day Ephesus tour. We will visit the ancient site of Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary and The Ephesus Archeology museum in Selcuk. We will also visit Sirince village and have home-hosted lunch. Return to the hotel in the late afternoon for overnight. . |
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Gourmet Details:
After the tour of Ephesus, we will drive to Sirince village for lunch. The village is a perfect synthesis of Turkish and Greek culture as of the 1920s. After the Independence War, there was a “people exchange” between the Greeks and Turks and many typical Greek houses, though they kept their original outside characteristics, have been remodeled to local preferences on the inside. In one of those houses we will have a home-hosted lunch. |
We will savor home-made stuffed pancakes – gözleme, stew prepared in oven – güveç, and freshly baked bread. After lunch we will have some time to stroll through the village and socialize with locals. All the narrow streets of the village belong to the women, selling handcrafts of all kinds and olive oil. Another attraction of Sirince is its home-made wine.
Overnight: at Kismet Hotel in Kusadasi
Included meals: B, L |
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Today is at leisure to enjoy lovely Kusadasi on your own.
Overnight: at Kismet Hotel in Kusadasi
Included meals: B |
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Transfer to Adnan Menderes International airport in Izmir for your homebound flight via Istanbul.
Included meals: B |
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PRICES AND CONDITIONS: |
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Prices of the package starting from: (per person in double room, in USD) |
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2 participants |
4 participants |
6 participants |
10 participants |
$ 3,715.00 |
$ 2,345.00 |
$ 1,935.00 |
$ 1,635.00 |
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Price of the package includes:
• Accommodation in hotels :
- Istanbul: The Central Palace Hotel – 3 nights (see hotel's pictures: exterior , guest room)
- Canakkale: Tusan Hotel – 1 night (see hotel's pictures:
exterior , guest room)
- Kusadasi: Kismet Hotel – 3 nights (see hotel's pictures: exterior , guest room)
• Domestic flight (Izmir - Istanbul)
• 14 Meals: 7 Breakfasts, 5 lunches, and 2 dinners
• Services of a professional tour guide and his/her expenses
• Modern, A/C, comfortable minibus for land transportation, and driver’s expenses
• Admission fees to sights and museums
• Parking, portage, tipping (except guide & driver), ferry, toll road |
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Price of the package excludes:
• Airfare of international flights and the related taxes
• Bottled beverages or alcohol
• Optional gratuities to trip leaders, drivers.
• Travel insurance
• Visas, laundry, and personal items
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