Private guided Turkey tours
Day 01 – Drive to Bursa via Nicaea (lunch, dinner)
For our private guided Turkey tours, please contact us so you get as much information as you need.
On day 1 of the tour we will leave for Bursa. It is an old city at the foot of Mount Uludag (Olympus). It is also the first seat of the Ottomans. After taking a shortcut by crossing the Izmit Gulf by ferry, we will stop by the ruins of St. Sophia, in Nicaea. It was here that the first Ecumenical Council was held in 325 AD under Emperor Constantine to codify the faith. To this day, the Nicene Creed is the only creed of the Christian Church, common to all sects. Lunch at a local restaurant. We drive round the Iznik Lake to Bursa where we visit the ornate Mausoleum of Sultan Orhan and the Orhan Camii, the first Ottoman mosque which was erected in 1413.
Dinner and overnight in Bursa.
Day 02 Bursa – Drive to Pamukkale ( breakfast, lunch, dinner)
After an early breakfast at the hotel, we will drive to Pamukkale via Thyatira, Sardis and Philadelphia. We will pass through the modern town of Akhisar, on the site of the old Lydian city of Thyatira. This was one of the towns where Christianity spread rapidly and it was one of the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse. Lunch at a local restaurant. In our visit to Sardis, the capital of the ancient Kingdom of Lydia, we will see a Synagogue from the Roman Era, a well-preserved gymnasium, and other ruins. Are you curious when Christianity spread in Bulgaria, Sofia? Maybe you like to try one of our private Sofia tours as well.
Following the visit to Sardis we pass through Philadelphia – an ancient town rebuilt by Tiberius. Christianity took hold later than in the other towns and in the early days many Christians were martyred. Philadelphia is also mentioned in the Book of Revelation. Finally, we arrive at Pamukkale where we will see the fascinating limestone formations and cascades. Adjacent is the ancient city of Hierapolis, the home of St.Philip, the apostle.
Dinner and overnight in Pamukkale.
Day 03 Pamukkale – Drive to Kusadasi via Laodicea (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
After breakfast we will pay a visit to Laodicea, situated seven kilometres from Pamukkale and the last of the seven churches of Asia Minor. It was the last residence of Cicero and visitors can only see the ruins of an amphitheatre, the baths and nymphaeum. Also, St. John addressed it in the Book of Revelation.
We will continue to Selchuk (Ephesus) for private guided Turkey tours of the most important and largest ancient city in Asia Minor and having one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Temple of Artemis. It was the home of St. Paul for three years. Lunch at a local restaurant. We will walk down marble paved streets to the library and the theatre in which St. Paul preached to the Ephesians. We will also visit the Basilica of St. John and a mosque, partly constructed with stone from the Temple of Artemis.
Dinner and overnight in Kusadasi.
Day 4 – Private guided Turkey tours – Kusadasi – Patmos – Kusadasi (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
After breakfast, early in the morning we embark on a chartered boat for 4 hrs ride to Patmos Island, the Monastery of St John the Evangelist. There we will enjoy a wonderful view of the island. Lunch at a local restaurant. After that we will visit Grotto of the Revelation where the heavenly voice of God revealed to St John the future of humanity (Rev 1;12-21). Return to the port in the late afternoon to board our ferry back to Kusadasi. (a quick reminder that one of the golf courses in Turkey is in Kusadasi; there is one in Istanbul as well and also a private golfing tour Turkey)
Dinner and overnight in Kusadasi.
Day 05 Kusadasi – Drive to Assos via Pergamum – Canakkale (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
After breakfast we will visit Ephesus. From there we will drive North to Izmir. We will visit Smyrna which also boasted one of the Seven churches mentioned in the Apocalypse. Lunch at a local restaurant. After it, we will drive along the Aegean coastline to the hilltop city of Pergamum, another of the Seven Churches of Asia Minor. At Pergamum we will visit the steepest theatre in the ancient world, the Temple of Trajan, the podium of the Altar of Zeus and the market place (agora).
Dinner and overnight in Canakkale.
Day 06 Canakkale – Drive to Istanbul (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
In the morning, after breakfast, we will make a tour around Troy that most famous of cities, written about by Homer in the Illiad and Odyssey in the 9th century BC. Afterwards, we will cross the Dardanelles to Europe en route for Istanbul.
Dinner and overnight in Istanbul.
Day 07 Private guided Turkey tours – Full day city tour of Istanbul (breakfast, lunch, dinner)
In the morning a guided walking tour through the old city follows breakfast. First we will visit Hagia Sophia, the Byzantine Cathedral consecrated on St. Steven’s Day, on 26 December 537. Following the fall of Constantinople in 1453, it was converted into a mosque and the magnificent mosaics were painted over. Since becoming a National Museum in 1933 many of the mosaics have been uncovered and can be admired during the visit.
Next on our itinerary is Sultanahmet Camii, better known as the Blue Mosque. It was built in 1619 and is so named due to the interior decoration of 21,043 blue Iznik tiles. Lunch at a local restaurant. The Topkapi Palace, seat of the Ottoman sultans, covers a large area overlooking the Golden Horn. The tour concludes with a visit to the Grand Bazaar, a covered complex of alleyways and 4000 shops of all descriptions. We are back to European side of Istanbul which reminds me to offer you our private Balkan trip.
Dinner and overnight.
Tours Turkey
Follow Footsteps St. Paul’s
Transport needed from Plovdiv on the 10 October
or from Edirne on 11 Oct. to Gallipoli
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