Asia Minor Tours

Duration: 5 Days Asia Minor Tours

Destination: Istanbul - Gallipoli - Troy - Pergamon - Ephesus - Pamukkale - Istanbul

Transportation by: Bus

Early Morning Depart from Istanbul to Gallipoli Peninsula

06:30 Very early in morning we will depart from Istanbul, drive along the northern shores of the Marmara Sea, and as soon as we arrive we will have a break for lunch.

*Gallipoli and The Dardanelles after our lunch we will stop to visit Gallipoli, a place of fierce WWI fighting between Allied forces and the Turks. At ANZAC Cove thousands lost their lives in one fateful dawn morning. We will also see other famous battle sites of World War 1 in this area, such as Lone Pine and Chunuk Bair. From here we go to a ferry and cross the Dardanelles. For World War 1 buffs, you will know the Dardanelle Straits were a strategic crossing point for the allied armies to cross from Europe to Asia Minor. Over a nine month campaign, more than half a million soldiers lost their lives in the fight to control this strait of water and nearby Gallipoli peninsula.

*Canakkale will be our final destination for today and where we will spend the evening. After dinner, you might want to stroll the harbor walk and experience the local culture. The locals buy sunflower seeds and stroll with their families, gossiping and looking at the sunset. When they reach the harbor''s end, they turn around, buy their ice cream and walk the other direction.
Overnight stay in Canakkale.

After Breakfast.

Depart from Canakkale to visit the legendary site of Troy, with its nine levels of civilization. Troy is the city of Helen and was famous in Homer’s Iliad. After lunch the tour will continue to Pergamon. We will visit the Pergamon Acropolis, where the ruins of Zeus Altar "Throne of Satan" can still be seen today.

Pergamon was a center of Roman authority and a place of persecution for Christians who denied imperial worship. The acropolis is situated high above the plain and has a unique panoramic view. The very narrow and steep theater on the hillside could seat up to 10,000 people. Parchment paper was first produced in Pergamon. We will visit the remains of the Great Library, which rivaled the one of Alexandria in Egypt, the palaces of the kings, and Temple of Trajan. Continue to Kusadasi or Selcuk and drop off at your hotel. Check in to Hotel.

Overnight in Kusadasi.

After Breakfast

Ephesus is one of the best preserved cities from Roman times. At the time St. Paul lived in Ephesus in the 60-lsquo;s AD, it was at it-rsquo;s Roman heyday with a population around 250,000. When St. Paul lived in Ephesus he would have addressed the Ephesians in the great theatre, that today impresses everyone that walks into it-rsquo;s stands. Ephesus was a great ancient city and much of it has been preserved for you to see. More than any other site, you can walk the streets, stand in the great theatre, wander in the library, look towards the hill where St. Paul was put into prison, and feel that you are walking back into the time that St. Paul lived. After being here, you will read the book of Ephesians with new eyes.
*The House of The Virgin Mary where it is believed St. Mary came to live with St. John in the last years of her life.

Overnight stay in Kusadasi.

Overnight bus to Istanbul

• Hotel pick up and Drop off
  - Istanbul, Canakkale, Selcuk or Kusadasi, Pamukkale
• Bus Tickets.
  - Pamukkale to Istanbul
• Bus station Transfers
  - Istanbul, Canakkale
• All Transportation by non-smoking & airconditioned touristical vehicle
• Hotels included breakfast.
  - Canakkale, Selcuk or Kusadasi
• Guided Gallipoli Tours
• Guided Troy Tours
• Guided Pergamon Tours
• Guided Ephesus Tours
• Guided Pamukkale Tours
• Museum Tickets
• Professional English Speaking Tours Guide
• Lunches in the tours of Asia Minor
• Local Taxes
• Service Charges.