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This tour takes you to the highlights of Turkey capital, Ankara and then to the legendary Hittite capital Hattusas (Yazilikaya & Alacahoyuk). 4 days are allocated to taste the amazing beauty of Cappadocia and then it takes you to the center of Whirling Dervishes and the old capital of Seljuklians: Konya.
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive at Ankara Airport and meet our driver and guide. After checking in to the hotel, we start the city tour in Ankara with a visit to Anatolian Civilizations Museum which was named as the European Museum of the year 1997. After having lunch at a local restaurant in the old castle of Ankara we visit Ataturk's Mausoleum. After this, we drive back to hotel. Overnight: Ankara.
Day 2: After breakfast we depart for Hatussas (Yozgat/Bogazkale) which was the capital city of the Hittites. After 3 hours drive, arrive at Yazilikaya. Visit the sights around Yazilikaya then drive to Hattusas that is 2km away from Yazilikaya. We have lunch at a local restaurant in Bogazkale. After lunch, drive to Alacahoyuk to visit the monumental graves of kingdom family of Hittites. After visiting the museum in Alacahoyuk, drive to Cappadocia. Overnight at a high quality cave hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 3: Meet our guide and driver at your hotel and start discovering Cappadocia's unique landscape; first stop at Devrent (Pink Valley). Then we head on to Zelve Open Air Museum which is one of the first inhabited and last abandoned villages of Cappadocia. Before lunch, stop at Pasabag and wandering through the vineyards of Fairy Chimneys village. We have lunch at a local restaurant in Avanos where has been the centre of terra - cotta art since 3000 BC. In the afternoon, we visit the world wide famous Open Air Museum of Goreme to witness the living art of Christian & Byzantine history on cave churches. We end the day climbing up to Uchisar fortress, the highest point of Cappadocia. Overnight at a high quality cave hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 4: In the morning, visit Mustafapasa (Sinassos), an ancient Greek town with its spectacular old Greek houses, very fine examples of late Greek settlements and architecture. Keslik Monastery, near Cemil village, hides its frescoes behind a very thin smoke layer, which we can only see by torchlight. We have lunch in Soganli, an Open Air Museum in a wild natural setting near a typical Cappadocian village with its different style rock-cut churches and paintings. Villages in the valleys, surrounded by the “table top” mountains, are spectacular. The Medrese (today a library), a Theological School from Seljuk Turks in Taskinpasa is the witness of an early and rich Turkish settlement in the village. After lunch, we walk for about 5km in one of the most attractive valleys of Cappadocia: Pigeon Valley, with its spectacular pigeon nests carved into the rocks. Overnight at a high quality cave hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 5: In the morning, descend into the centre of the earth in the Underground city of Kaymakli, one of the largest and the deepest of the 40 others in Cappadocia; walking in Ihlara Canyon, a “mirage” in the Steps of Anatolia up to Belisirma village, the ancient Peristrema: “Valley of the Sky” along the Melendiz River. Rock-cut churches, spread across a wild plantation, surprise you with their successfully painted representations from the Bible. We have lunch in Belisirma at a local restaurant by the river. Visit to the Caravanserai of Agzikarahan, a very fine example of the Turkish Seljuk art, built in early 13th century on the legendary Silk Road for the accommodation of the traders and their camels. Overnight at a high quality cave hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 6: In the morning, we walk for about 5km in one of the most attractive valleys of Cappadocia: Red Valley, with its fabulous volcanic rock formations. It is in the heart of Cappadocia but away from the tourist crowd. Rock-cut hermit churches with frescoes and paintings fit with the valley’s meditative atmosphere, remained intact since the beginning. We have lunch at a local restaurant in Cappadocia. After lunch, we drive to Hacibektas and visit its museum which was an Islamic monastery dating back to the 13th century. Haci Bektas Veli, the founder of the influential Bektasi sect of dervishes and the leader of an Islamic philosophy and social class in the 13th century. Then we drive back to our hotel. Overnight at a high quality cave hotel in Cappadocia.
Day 7: After breakfast we check out from the hotel and drive to Konya (former Seljuk Turkish capital). We have lunch at a local restaurant to taste the delicious food of Konya. After lunch visit the Mevlana Museum. Mevlana, known as Celaleddin Rumi, was the leader of the whirling dervishes in the 13th century. Then head on to Karatay Museum, a 13th century Seljuk theological school, and visit the Alaaddin Mosque. Overnight: Konya.
Day 8: In the morning, after breakfast and checking out, we drive to Konya Airport for the morning flight to Istanbul.
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1 Pax
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2 Pax
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3 Pax
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4 Pax
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5 Pax
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6 Pax
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2390 USD
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1920 USD
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1685 USD
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1560 USD
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1465 USD
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* The prices above are per person and on private basis.
** Single Supplement: USD 385
** 0-2 Child: Free
** 2-12 Child Reduction: 50 %
** Student Reduction: 10 %
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- BB accommodation at the best available hotels at each region
- A la carte lunches & dinners (excluding drinks)
- Air conditioned minivan on tours & transfers
- Professional licensed tour guide
- Admission fees to the museums and sights (including the Dark Church)
- Tax
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TURKEY TOURS
