This is a suggested independent itinerary that you customize. Please select the best flights, hotels, trains, activities, transportation and number of nights in each destination to fit your needs.
This package offers an amazing combination of rich history, allowing guests to fully enjoy their visit to these three iconic cities in Turkey. Combine Istanbul (world-famous for its rich history and culture, stunning scenery, magnificent structures across the sprawling Bosphorus Strait) with Izmir (founded by the Greeks, taken over by the Romans and rebuilt by Alexander the Great) and Ankara (the capital of Turkey and one of Turkey`s most diverse tourist destinations, bustling with historical sites, such as museums and entertainment parks); travel between them by air. This is a flexible vacation package. Select your number of nights in each city, desired hotel and activities.
This 9 night sample itinerary includes:
Flight into Istanbul and out of Ankara
Hotel for 3 nights in Istanbul
Flight from Istanbul to Izmir
Hotel for 3 nights in Izmir
Flight from Izmir to Ankara
Hotel for 3 nights in Ankara
Ramadan is a month of spirituality and purification during which participants abstain from eating, drinking, and smoking. Ramadan is typically celebrated in late winter or early spring. Please verify dates before booking travel because food and entertainment services in hotels and other public places may be affected.
Istanbul is one of the truly great romantic cities. Istanbul is home to a layering of civilization on civilization, of empire built on empire. A stroll through this historic city will reveal ancient Roman hippodromes, peristyles, and aqueducts, the greatest excesses of the Byzantine Empire and the mystique and power of the Ottoman Empire. In this sprawling, continent-spanning city you can tramp the streets where crusaders and janissaries once marched; admire mosques that are the most sublime architectural expressions of Islamic piety; peer into the sultan's harem; and hunt for bargains in the Kapali Çarsi.
Recommended Stay:At least 3 nights Must See`s:
Ayasofya,Topkapi Palace, Dolmabahce Palace, the Blue Mosque, the Grand Bazaar and the Egyptian Spice Bazaar, Suleymaniye Camii, St. Savior in Chora, the New Mosque, Galata Tower, Taksim Square, the Hippodrome and so much more!
3 nights in Izmir
Surnamed the "Pearl of the Aegean", Izmir is Turkey's third largest city and second most important port. It is a superb city of palm-lined promenades, avenues and green parks set along a circular bay. The magnificent coastline abounds in vast and pristine beaches surrounded by olive groves, rocky crags and pine woods. Konak Square and Konak Street are the best points to start your visit to Izmir. One of the most impressive landmarks of Izmir harbor is the Clock Tower, a beautiful marble tower 25 meters height. Other sights are the nine synagogues, concentrated either in the traditional Jewish quarter of Karatas or in Havra Sokak (Synagogue street) in Kemeralti. The Izmir Birds Paradise in Cigli, a bird sanctuary near Karsiyaka, containing 205 species of birds, is not to be missed. Izmir is also a good starting point to explore the many sights in the region.
3 nights in Ankara
Centrally located in Anatolia, Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. It is an important commercial and cultural city. Ankara boasts a number of prestigious universities and technical colleges, as well as the largest library in the country. It is also a center for opera, ballet, jazz, and modern dance, and is home of the Presidential Symphony Orchestra, the State Theatre, and the State Opera and Ballet. The most interesting part of the city is Ulus, the old part of town. The main sight is the Kale, the fortress overlooking the city. Around town you will find a few remains of Roman times, like the Augustus temple, which became famous with historians because of the 'Monumentum Ancyranum', the legacy of emperor Augustus. Next to the temple ruin you will find the tomb of Haci Bayram and his mosque.
Apart from Russia, no other country can stake such a proud claim to bridging `the East and the West` like Turkey, which sits astride two continents. It is called the `Cradle of Civilization`, where there are more Roman archaeological sites than in all of Italy, and more ancient Greek ruins available for viewing by the public than in Greece. The history from the Greeks, Romans, Byzantines, Ottomans, and finally the modern Turkish nation are all on display here, and the Turkish vacation experience can encompass everything from being in the hustle and bustle of a metropolis, to attending a whirling dervish dance ceremony, to sunning yourself on the country`s beautiful shores, to climbing mountains and skiing at top resorts, to enjoying an iconic hot-air balloon ride over the Fairy Chimneys of Cappadocia.
Istanbul is one of the truly great romantic cities. Istanbul is home to a layering of civilization on civilization, of empire built on empire. A stroll through this historic city will reveal ancient Roman hippodromes, peristyles, and aqueducts, the greatest excesses of the Byzantine Empire and the mystique and power of the Ottoman Empire. In this sprawling, continent-spanning city you can tramp the streets where crusaders and janissaries once marched; admire mosques that are the most sublime architectural expressions of Islamic piety; peer into the sultan's harem; and hunt for bargains in the Kapali Çarsi.
Recommended Stay:At least 3 nights Must See`s:
Ayasofya,Topkapi Palace, Dolmabahce Palace, the Blue Mosque, the Grand Bazaar and the Egyptian Spice Bazaar, Suleymaniye Camii, St. Savior in Chora, the New Mosque, Galata Tower, Taksim Square, the Hippodrome and so much more!
Surnamed the "Pearl of the Aegean", Izmir is Turkey's third largest city and second most important port. It is a superb city of palm-lined promenades, avenues and green parks set along a circular bay. The magnificent coastline abounds in vast and pristine beaches surrounded by olive groves, rocky crags and pine woods. Konak Square and Konak Street are the best points to start your visit to Izmir. One of the most impressive landmarks of Izmir harbor is the Clock Tower, a beautiful marble tower 25 meters height. Other sights are the nine synagogues, concentrated either in the traditional Jewish quarter of Karatas or in Havra Sokak (Synagogue street) in Kemeralti. The Izmir Birds Paradise in Cigli, a bird sanctuary near Karsiyaka, containing 205 species of birds, is not to be missed. Izmir is also a good starting point to explore the many sights in the region.
Ankara
Centrally located in Anatolia, Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. It is an important commercial and cultural city. Ankara boasts a number of prestigious universities and technical colleges, as well as the largest library in the country. It is also a center for opera, ballet, jazz, and modern dance, and is home of the Presidential Symphony Orchestra, the State Theatre, and the State Opera and Ballet. The most interesting part of the city is Ulus, the old part of town. The main sight is the Kale, the fortress overlooking the city. Around town you will find a few remains of Roman times, like the Augustus temple, which became famous with historians because of the 'Monumentum Ancyranum', the legacy of emperor Augustus. Next to the temple ruin you will find the tomb of Haci Bayram and his mosque.
Sample Itinerary