This tour begins with service from the airport in Izmir; however, if you wish to begin from Istanbul, we can easily arrange your domestic flight to Izmir and the transfer from your Istanbul hotel to the airport for your flight.
DAY 1- ARRIVAL IN IZMIR
Upon arrival in Izmir, you will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel in either Kusadasi or Selcuk for overnight. If you will be arriving by sea, you will be picked up at the port of entry for transfer to your hotel. Overnight in either Kusadasi or Selcuk.
DAY 2- COMPREHENSIVE EPHESUS TOUR (Breakfast, Lunch)
Ephesus, House of Mother Mary, Temple of Atemis, Isa Bey Mosque, Selcuk Archaeological Museum
After breakfast in your hotel, you will be picked up at around 09:15 for transfer to Selcuk where you will join a small group for your full day tour of Ephesus and the surrounding sites.
Please note that if your initial arrival to Izmir is in the early morning, you will be met and directly transferred to Selcuk where you will join a small group for your full day tour of Ephesus and the surrounding sites. In this case, you will be dropped off at your hotel in either Kusadasi or Selcuk after the tour and this day would mark Day 1 of your itinerary with the remainder of your itinerary proceeding accordingly.
Tour extensively the ancient city of Ephesus. Very probably the largest archeological site in Turkey, it rises on the north slope of Mount Pion extending southward to the slope of Mount Koressos. First founded as a colony of Athens some 1000 years before Christ, it was rebuilt and fortified with city walls in the late part of the 4th century BC by Lysimachus, who had been left in charge of the city by Alexander the Great after his visit there in 334 BC. After Alexandria and Antiochia, during the Roman period, it was designated as the capital of Asia Minor. The apostle, Paul, came to Ephesus in the 1st century and it is believed to be the place from where he wrote his letter known as 1 Corinthians in the Holy Bible. Ephesus is also one of the seven churches, or communities of Christians, referred to in Revelations (Revelations 2:1-7). Explore the extensive site of this white marble ancient city and marvel at its spectacular monuments, such as the Library of Celsus, the Agora, the Odeon, the Trajan Fountain, the Domitianus Temple, the theater and the roman latrines, etc.
You will also visit the House of Mother Mary, located on the top of Bulbul Dag (the Mount of the Nightingale), seven kilometers south of the ancient city of Ephesus. Here the Blessed Virgin is said to have lived her last years on earth having been brought to the area under the care of St John, who also lived and preached here. It was reconstructed on the foundations unearthed in 1891 by Lazarist Fathers following the detailed description given to them by an infirmed German woman who claimed to have been shown this neighborhood in visions that she had of the Virgin Mother. Soon after, this place began to attract interest and is visited today by pilgrims from all over the world. Pope John XXIII visited this shrine many times during his stay as the Apostolic Delegate in Turkey while Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II came here as pilgrims in 1967 and 1979 respectively.
The tour will make a stop to see what remains of the Temple of Artemis. This famous temple is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and is also known as Artemission. It was first built in the lonian style during 560-550 BC by the Lydian King, Croesus. After being burned down in 356 BC, it was rebuilt on the same foundations, its height extended by 3 meters. This temple, which is also famous for its marble statues, is 55x115 meters in dimension and was the largest of all the ancient temples. It was discovered during excavations that were undertaken by the British Museum, in 1869-1874 under the supervision of J.T. Wood and in 1904-1905 under David G. Hogart. Many of the ruins were taken to the museum in England.
Isa Bey Mosque will be on the tour's itinerary. It is one of the most important architectural works of the Turkish Aydin Emirate, who ruled in western Anatolia from 1308 until 1426. This mosque was conceived and constructed in 1374 by Aydinoglu Isa Bey (1360-1390) in his administrative capital of Selcuk, near Ephesus. It is the second example of twin minaret mosques in Anatolia from the period of pre-Ottoman principalities and is larger than most of the mosques built during the same time period. Its architect was Ali bin Mushimish, from Damascus. Repairs were made in 1934 and the mosque was fully restored later in the second half of twentieth century.
The tour will finally visit the Selcuk Archaeological Museum, which houses some important artifacts from around the region including a famous statue of Artemis and an exquisite marble statue of a boy riding a dolphin.
After the tour, you will be returned to your hotel for overnight. (B,L)
DAY 3- TOUR THE ANCIENT CITY OF PERGAMON (Breakfast, Lunch)
After breakfast in your hotel, you will be picked up for departure to the Greco-Roman City of Pergamon.
Artifacts have been found at the Pergamon archaeological site that date back to the time of the Hittites. There were early Greek settlements and later Persian domination; though, the city apparently did not blossom until the Hellenistic period. Built upon a steep hilltop 1000 feet above the plains below where the rivers Cetius and Selinus join to create the Caicus River, the Kingdom of Pergamon was founded in the 3rd century BC by Philetarios, a commander who served under Lysimachos. The kingdom faced repeated skirmishes with the invading Gauls and, later, in allegiance to Rome, it fought and defeated the Seleucids. It thrived, nonetheless, as a center of culture and learning throughout the Hellenistc period, especially under the Attalid dynasty, when many of the building projects that you will see remains of today were undertaken. It was during this time that the famous Charta Pergamenta, the first sheepskin parchment, was developed. The library at Pergamon, built and founded by Eumenes II, rivaled that of the day’s foremost library in Alexandria and, out of jealousy, the Egyptian King, Ptolemy, banned the export of papyrus inspiring the invention of the new writing material. It is necessary to make note of the Asclepieion, a spa and center for healing and for the study of medicine established in Pergamon at the beginning of the 4th century BC and renowned throughout the Roman world. When Pergamon came under the control of the Romans in 133 BC, it continued to be an important center for culture and medicine, though not so much for politics as Ephesus became the regional capital.
Though Pergamon was a major center of pagan worship and not conducive to Christian life, the church there was well established by the end of the 1st century. It was severely challenged, however, by the activities of the pagan community and this struggle is what lies at the heart of the Book of Revelation’s message to the church at Pergamon. The Lord commends the congregation for its obedience, devotion and faithfulness in the face of the persecution, flagrant heathenism and impiety that was being practiced all around them in this city of temple worship and ritual sacrifice (Revelation 2:13). They are then condemned for loosely interpreting doctrine, compromising their morals and allowing themselves to be misled in order to satisfy their carnal desires and their worldly aspirations (Revelation 2:14,15). If they do not recognize the error of their ways and right themselves, they will face perdition; if they do prevail, they will receive sustenance from the Lord, blessings and more of the grace that is already working within them to allow them the capacity for faith (Revelation 2:16,17).
Among the many ruins at this sprawling site, you will have the opportunity to see the incredible theater that is set into a steep hillside, the famous library, the Temple of Trajan, the baths, the acropolis and more. The Asclepieion, where the famous medical researcher and physician, Galen, studied is located a few kilometers south of the acropolis. Though the impressive Zeus Altar has been removed to the Pergamon Museum in Berlin, its foundations remain to be seen lying in the shade of large trees. What remains of Pergamon is quite extensive and well presented.
After suitable perusing of the ruins at Pergamon, you will be returned to your hotel for overnight. (B,L)
DAY 4- PRIENE, MILETUS, DIDYMA ANCIENT CITIES TOUR (Breakfast, Lunch)
You will be picked up from your hotel at around 08:45 for your full day guided tour of three Greco-Roman cities. Priene, Miletus and Didyma.
Priene, an important trading port of the Ionian League of Greek settlements, was first established in the 11th century BC upon cliffs rising to almost 400 meters above the Aegean Sea. In those days the city overlooked the sea, which has since receded so that the ruins now sit somewhat inland. By the end of the 7th century BC, the Ionian cities were ruled by the Lydians, which lasted until the armies of the Persian King Cyrus defeated those of the Lydian King Croesus in the middle of the 6th century BC. At that time, most of what is today modern Turkey fell under the dominion of the Persians and remained so until conquest by Alexander the Great. It was he who ushered in a period of flourishing under the Hellenistic system and he who, in 334 BC, commissioned the construction of Priene's Temple of Athena. Democracy thrived in Priene and, as evidenced by the ruins we see today, it was a wealthy city. What remains of this ancient city is quite extensive and in relatively good condition. The ruins are scattered among the local species of evergreen tree and set upon a hillside offering an expansive view of the plains below. The site is quite pleasant.
Miletus was also a wealthy and successful port city in classical antiquity and during later Roman times as well. It is considered to have been the most powerful of what were the twelve Ionian cities and is known to have greatly influenced the intellectual and philosophical development of the Aegean region. There is archaeological evidence at Miletus of human settlements that date as far back as the Neolithic Age and its recorded history begins with the Hittites around 1320 BC. It is believed that the apostle, Paul, visited Miletus on more than one occasion. In the Acts of the Apostles, Miletus is mentioned as the place where Paul met with the Ephesian elders in the year 57 (Acts 20:15-38). Much remains of the ancient city. Among what you will see is the quite large and well preserved theater, the baths, one of two marble lion statues that used to guard the Lion Harbor, the Harbor gateway and the Delphinion, which was the main temple at Miletus and dedicated to Apollo Delphinios, protector of ships and harbors. The Delphinion leads onto to the processional Sacred Way, which was the pilgrim route traveled upon to reach the Temple of Apollo at Didyma.
The tour breaks for lunch, usually near the temple ruins at Didyma.
Didyma is most famous for its massive Temple of Apollo and its status as a place of pilgrimage. The oracle of Apollo, received at the temple, was highly credible to those who sought its counsel during the archaic period and greatly relied upon by distinguished kings such as Croesus and Alexander. This temple at Didyma had importance comparable to and certainly only second to that which is located at Delphi in Greece. Didyma was considered divine as far back as the 10th century BC, probably because of the existence there of a fresh water spring directly upon which the Temple of Apollo was constructed. The temple has been carefully rebuilt and what remains today is quite impressive.
DAY 5- PAMUKKALE AND HIERAPOLIS TOUR (Breakfast, Lunch)
Pamukkale Mineral Pools, Ancient City of Hierapolis
After an early breakfast and checkout from your hotel, you will be transferred in a comfortable new model minibus to Pamukkale where you will begin your guided tour of the mineral springs and the ancient city.
In Pamukkale, which means Cotton Castle in Turkish, you will see one of the natural wonders of the world, travertine terraces of hot spring pools, which have been formed by deposits of calcium carbonate. The area has been declared a World Heritage Site and is not open for bathing; however, during our break for lunch there may be an opportunity to bathe in a hot spring originating from the same waters but separate from the Heritage Site. After lunch, you will be taken to visit the ancient ruins of the City of Hierapolis. Founded in the second century BC by the king of Pergamum and ceded to Rome a few decades later in 133 BC, its thermal pools were revered by the ancients as sacred baths. The city was a thriving trading center in ancient times and is mentioned in the Bible by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Colossians (Colossians 4:13). You will see the ancient city gates, baths, theater and necropolis.
DAY 6- DEPARTURE (Breakfast)
After breakfast and check out from your hotel, you will be picked up and transferred to the airport or cruise port. (B)
This will mark the end of services. Please see the details below in our Additional Information section.
Please make note of the following:
