Turkish Delight

A 10 Day Tour of Turkey - Private Touring-Arrive Any Day
We have even included all the tips

Compare with the 34 Day Around the Mediterranean Grand Tour .
Compare with the 8 day version

Turkish Delight Sample the sights and pleasures of Turkey on this ten-day, nine-night program. We combine the highlights of classic Anatolia with an all-inclusive stay at one of the most lovely beach resorts, in Mediterranean Bodrum. It's just the right blend of the best of Turkey, with all details seen to by us. Book now! Takeoff is soon. Compare with the Jewish Heritage Edition

Add a Gulet Cruise : Start in Dalaman and on to Antalya

DAY 1 -- ISTANBUL
Tour starts daily in Istanbul. Our staff meets your flight and escorts you to your hotel.
Welcome fruit basket at your room, with our compliments.

This tour starts daily in Istanbul, yet please keep in mind that we keep the right to substitute some site based on the following: Topkapi Palace is closed on Tuesday. Ayasofia is closed on Monday. Kariye Museum is closed on Wednesdays. The Grand Bazaar is closed on Sundays.

DAY 2 -- ISTANBUL (BL)
We dive right into this fascinating city with visits to its top sights: Topkapi, the palace of the Sultans for centuries; Hagia Sophia, the greatest church in Christendom for a thousand years; the Blue Mosque, with its exquisite blue tiles; the Byzantine Hippodrome, scene of chariot races and gladiator combat; and the eerie Sunken Palace cistern beneath it. Then a drive through modern neighborhoods brings us to the ancient city walls and the Kariye Museum (Chora Church), filled with brilliant Byzantine mosaics.

Breakfast, Lunch.
Complimentary entrance tickets to the Harem's Quarter in Topkape Palace in Istanbul, when you book your tour/cruise with us. Combine this tour with your Mediterranean cruise from Venice

DAY 3 -- ISTANBUL (BL)

ISTANBUL- "Imperial Constantinople in the Belle Epoque"
(late 19th century), the exotic romance of the "Paris of the East:"

Morning walking tour : We start with our guide in Karaköy where the foreign bankers and shipping companies had their headquarters, then take the Tünel up to istiklal Caddesi; stop in the whirling dervish tekke, and walk past the various old embassy buildings (now consulates), and point out the architecture. Stop for tea (included) at the famous Pera Palace Hotel.
Walk at least as far as Galatasaray Square, and have lunch in the Çicek Pasaji (Flower Passage); then walk up to Taksim Square and be picked up for the afternoon tour.
In the afternoon the tour visit Yildiz Palace Park and the Ihlamur Kasri, a mini-palace south of Yildiz, and finish up with a visit to the Military History Museum in Harbiye in time to hear the "Mehter," or Ottoman military band (mid-afternoon).

Then go on a shopping spree at the labyrinth of the Grand Bazaar.
Breakfast, Lunch.

DAY 4 - ISTANBUL, IZMIR, KUSADASI (BL)
From your convenient lodgings, it's just a short hop back to the airport to catch the morning flight south to Izmir, on the Mediterranean coast. It will still be early when you arrive and meet up with your driver for the next few days of exploring this region, in many ways the cradle of European civilization. We'll visit the house where the Virgin Mary spent her latter years, and the ancient city of Ephesus, with its perfect Greek and Roman architecture still intact. At the Basilica of St. John, we'll see the reputed tomb of the Apostle, and gaze down upon the remains of the Temple of Artemis, a vista little changed since Biblical times. We'll conclude with a visit to the Isa Bey Mosque, a delicate masterpiece of Turkish architecture from the fourteenth century.
Lunch included at a local restaurant. We tour the centuries old Izmir Jewish neighborhoods: Tour of Beth Israel & Signora Synagogues, lively and colorful Havra & Dario Moreno Streets. Before we head for Kusadasi and Korumar or Kismet Hotel

DAY 5 -KUSADASI, PERGAMON (BL)
We'll gather after breakfast today and set out overland. Our first stop is Bergama, or Pergamon, with its magnificent and well-preserved Acropolis. Especially notable are the Temple of Dionysus and the Altar of Zeus, with magnificent friezes carved in stone, depicting mythic battles between the Greek gods and their foes in the Underworld. Then it's on to the spa of Asclepion, where the ancients took their cures in opulent surroundings. We'll take a break for lunch, then visit the Red Basilica, which was known to St. John the Divine as one of the seven churches of the Apocalypse. We'll return for the night to Kusadasi, where you'll bid farewell to your guide.

DAY 6 - KUSADASI, PRIENNE, MILETUS, DIDYMA, BODRUM (BD)
Meet your driver in the morning, and set out for Bodrum, through the fertile, rolling countryside of southern Turkey. If you wish, you may stop along the way and hike up to the ancient city of Prienne; and at the Greek ruins ruins of Miletus and the temple at Didyma for an unguided look, before you continue to your destination, the Hotel Baia or Marmara at Bodrum.

DAYS 7- 9 -BODRUM (BLD)
Luxuriating on the Mediterranean coast at the Hotel Baia ( all meals while at the Baia Hotel in Bodrum ) in Bodrum ( or similar) . Nestled along the sheltered blue waters of the bay, it's a tranquil oasis where you can participate in the full range of included activities, or simply relax away from it all. Swim at indoor and outdoor pools, or at the beach. Use any of the sporting equipment, including canoes, wind surfers, and pedal boats. The Baia also has tennis and basketball courts, and a range of organized activities every day, including beach games, and music and entertainment in the evening. Best of all, everything is included at no extra charge, including all meals in the main restaurant, soft drinks and domestic alcoholic beverages, and even snacks at the pool bar, beach, and lobby bar.

DAY 10 -BODRUM, ISTANBUL
We'll arrange to escort you from the hotel to Bodrum's airport, where you'll catch your flight for Istanbul. Depending on your onward arrangements and preferences, you may choose a 5 a.m. or 8:55 a.m. departure for the one-hour flight. Once in Istanbul, continue your homebound journey; or, if you choose, we'll be pleased to arrange further travel in Turkey.

2007 RATES (per person) in USD $

You have the choice of staying in 5 stars hotels such as Conrad Hotel
or similar , or an Ottoman Mansion style boutique hotels such as:
Arena Hotel , Blue House, Sultanahmet Sarayi or similar in Istanbul

YOUR TOUR INCLUDES

• Hotel accommodation based on superior 4 & five stars , including all taxes .
• Continental or buffet breakfast daily, plus set-menu lunch (L), dinner (D) as shown.
• Domestic flight in economy class, tax included , as per itinerary, tickets, issued & delivered in Turkey.
• Private guided sightseeing, including all admissions fees , all as per itinerary
• All transfers in Turkey on a private basis
  
• Lonely Planet guidebook .
• All tips to porters, guides, drivers etc.

Suggested Hotels: or similar

Istanbul : Conrad - Offers queen size beds & a walking distance to Bosphorus
Kusadasi : Kismet or Korumar
Bodrum : The Marmara or Baia Bodrum

Rate doesn't include :

• International air fare.
• Beverages
• Visa Fee : in cash upon arrival, or from any of the Turkish Consulates
• Trip/travel insurance
  
  
  

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