- Tour code
TURADV02
- Start
Istanbul
- End
Istanbul
- Min. age
16 years old
- Group size
Max 6-16 travellers
- Trip style
Classic
- Trip pace
Active
- Language
English
Few countries carry as many layers of history as Türkiye, and this eight-day loop from Istanbul works through them in order: the World War I battlefields of Gallipoli, the ruins of Troy, the marble streets of Ephesus, the Anatolian city of Konya and the rock valleys of Cappadocia.
Along the way you'll visit a women's handicraft cooperative in Ayvalık, learn to shape and bake Turkish pide in Selçuk, walk the old Kemeraltı Bazaar in Izmir and board a night train inland. In Cappadocia you'll hike among the fairy chimneys, go underground at Kaymaklı and share a home-cooked dinner with a local family.
A private vehicle covers the road sections, a domestic flight brings the group back to Istanbul on Day 7, and your Soca Islands Host looks after the timings, tickets and guides throughout. Groups are small, from 6 to 16 travelers.
Evenings are mostly yours, with optional group dinners in Istanbul and Cappadocia for anyone who'd like company, and there's free time in Cappadocia and on the last day in Istanbul to explore at your own pace.
Why This Journey
Gallipoli, Troy, Ephesus and Cappadocia sit hundreds of kilometers apart, and linking them independently means buses, ferries, guides and tickets at every stop. This trip strings them together in one week, with local guides at the main sites and the overnight train doing double duty as transport and accommodation.
It suits travelers who want to understand the places they're standing in rather than tick them off, and who like the mix of guided history and hands-on moments: kneading dough in Selçuk, sitting at a family's table in Cappadocia, and finding your own café in Istanbul on the final afternoon.
Where You'll Stay
Istanbul (Days 1 and 7): Hotel Amira Istanbul, in Sultanahmet. Çanakkale (Day 2): Akol Hotel, on the Dardanelles seafront. Selçuk (Day 3): Hotel Kalehan, below Ayasoluk Hill. Cappadocia (Days 5 and 6): Kelebek Special Cave Hotel & Spa, a cave hotel in Göreme. Proposed accommodation (or similar), subject to confirmation. Night 4 is spent aboard an overnight train. Rooms are based on two people sharing a double room with two beds.
Getting There
International Flights Not Included. International airfare to and from the destination is not included in the package price. Travelers are responsible for arranging their own flights and ensuring their arrival and departure align with the trip itinerary. Fly into and out of Istanbul Airport (IST); arrival and departure airport transfers are included. Please share your confirmed flight details with Soca Islands so we can coordinate applicable arrival and departure arrangements.
What you will see and do
Gallipoli, Troy, Ephesus and underground Kaymakli
Cappadocia's fairy chimneys and panoramic lookouts
Bazaars, street food and dinner with a local family
What's included
All activities mentioned on the itinerary
Accommodations in double rooms
Experienced Soca Islands Host with you throughout the trip
One farewell group activity when possible
Max 16 travellers per group
Arrival and departure airport transfers
Group transportation
What's excluded
- International flights (travellers arrange their own)
- Travel insurance (required)
- Lunches and dinners not listed in the itinerary
- Optional group dinners
- Single room supplement (single rooms on request, subject to availability)
- Extra hotel nights before or after the trip
Group itinerary
Arrive in Istanbul whenever your flight lands; your airport transfer takes you to the hotel in Sultanahmet, where the old city's mosques and palaces are a short walk away.
This evening you meet your Soca Islands Host and the rest of the group for a trip briefing. Afterwards, join the optional group dinner if you like, then take an after-dark walk to see the great monuments of the old city lit up.
Leave Istanbul this morning and travel west to the Gallipoli Peninsula. A guided tour covers ANZAC Cove, Lone Pine and the war cemeteries of the 1915 campaign, where the quiet coastline makes the scale of what happened here all the more striking.
Cross to Çanakkale for the night, a relaxed harbor town on the Dardanelles. The waterfront promenade is a good place for an evening walk and a glass of tea.
Walk through the layered ruins of Troy, where archaeologists have uncovered nine cities built one on top of another, and where Homer set the Iliad.
Heading south down the Aegean coast, you'll stop in Ayvalık to visit a local women's handicraft cooperative and see the work being made. The day ends in the small town of Selçuk, the gateway to Ephesus.
Explore Ephesus, once one of the largest cities of the Roman world, then see what remains of the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Back in Selçuk, you'll learn how Turkish pide flatbread is shaped and baked, then sit down to eat your handiwork for lunch.
Later the group moves on to Izmir, where a short walk introduces the old Kemeraltı Bazaar. Tonight you sleep aboard a train rolling inland across Anatolia.
Step off the train in Konya, where the morning starts with breakfast in a neighborhood eatery, followed by the Mevlana Museum, resting place of the 13th-century poet and mystic Rumi.
A private vehicle then takes you on across the plateau to Cappadocia. After check-in, catch sunset from a lookout near the hotel, and join the optional group dinner if you like.
Hike through valleys of fairy chimneys, stopping at lookouts for photos, then head underground into the Kaymaklı underground city, a warren of tunnels and rooms carved out of the soft rock centuries ago.
The afternoon is free to rest or explore Göreme. In the evening, a local family welcomes the group into their home for dinner and conversation.
After an early breakfast, fly back to Istanbul. The rest of the day is free for street food, café stops or one more neighborhood, perhaps a ferry across the Bosphorus or a wander through the Grand Bazaar.
If you'd like company on your last night, there's an optional dinner with the group.
Your trip ends after breakfast today, and you're free to leave at any time; your departure airport transfer is included.
If your flight is later in the day, there may be time for a final walk around Sultanahmet before you go.
Accommodations
Here's a glimpse of the hotels we selected for this adventure.
Hotel Amira Istanbul
A boutique hotel on a quiet lane in Sultanahmet, in the historic peninsula of Istanbul. The Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and the Hippodrome are a short walk uphill, and the Little Hagia Sophia neighborhood around it has small cafés and local restaurants.
Rooms are decorated with Ottoman-inspired textiles and woodwork, and the rooftop terrace looks over the Sea of Marmara. Staff are known for their personal service, which makes it an easy base for arriving and departing on different flights.
Rooms are 25 m² (269 ft²).
Hotel websiteAkol Hotel
A hotel on the Kordonboyu seafront in the center of Çanakkale, looking straight across the Dardanelles. The harbor, the clock tower and the town's cafés and fish restaurants are a short walk along the waterfront.
Many rooms have balconies facing the strait, and there is an outdoor pool, a rooftop bar and Turkish and seafood restaurants on site. It is a practical stop between Gallipoli and Troy, with easy coach access on the seafront road.
Hotel websiteHotel Kalehan
A garden hotel on Atatürk Caddesi in Selçuk, below the medieval fortress on Ayasoluk Hill and a short walk from the town center. The ruins of Ephesus are about 4 km away.
Rooms are set around a flower-filled courtyard with a swimming pool, and the rate includes a Turkish buffet breakfast with local olives, yogurt and fruit. It is a quiet, comfortable place to rest after a day of ruins.
Hotel websiteKelebek Special Cave Hotel & Spa
A family-run cave hotel on the hillside above Göreme village in Cappadocia, with rooms carved into the soft volcanic rock and fairy chimneys. Its terraces look across to Uçhisar and the valleys, and on most mornings the hot-air balloons drift past at sunrise.
There are 37 rooms and suites, an outdoor pool, a hamam and sauna, and a restaurant on site, and the village center is a short walk downhill.
Hotel websiteRooms
You'll stay at Trip Hotel.
- Included
Shared double
Shared with the person you book with, or a fellow traveller of the same sex.
- +$617 per person
Single room
A room to yourself, subject to availability.
Room prices are per person for the Apr 9, 2027 departure and can differ on other dates. You choose your room when you book.
Tour FAQS
Fly into and out of Istanbul Airport (IST).
Proposed accommodation (or similar), subject to confirmation: Hotel Amira Istanbul in Istanbul, Akol Hotel in Çanakkale, Hotel Kalehan in Selçuk and Kelebek Special Cave Hotel & Spa in Göreme, Cappadocia. Night 4 is spent on an overnight train.
International Flights Not Included. International airfare to and from the destination is not included in the package price. Travelers are responsible for arranging their own flights and ensuring their arrival and departure align with the trip itinerary. Please share your confirmed flight details with Soca Islands so we can coordinate applicable arrival and departure arrangements.
Yes. Arrival and departure airport transfers in Istanbul are included. Please share your confirmed flight details with Soca Islands so we can coordinate applicable arrival and departure arrangements.
7 breakfasts, 1 lunch and 1 dinner: breakfast on Days 2 to 8, the pide lunch in Selçuk on Day 4 and dinner with a local family in Cappadocia on Day 6. Other meals, including the optional group dinners, are at your own cost.
Extra nights can be requested, subject to hotel availability; contact our Customer Experience team for a quote.
There are no scheduled activities on the final day, so feel free to book your departure at your own convenience.
We recommend arriving before 3 pm on Day 1 to make it in time for the welcome event. But don’t worry no matter when you land, we’ll have an airport transfer ready for you.
Please Refer to your government’s travel advice or consult your local consulate. Remember, passport and visa requirements can change, so make sure to stay updated.
Excluding alcohol, we suggest budgeting around USD $40.00 per day for extras.
While we’re not medical professionals, we want to help you prepare for a safe and healthy adventure. Here are some tips:
- Consult with a healthcare professional: Schedule an appointment with your travel nurse or doctor at least eight weeks before your adventure to get any necessary vaccines or medications.
- Up-to-date medical advice:
- US residents: Check the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
- UK residents: Visit the NHS Fit For Travel website.
- Australian residents: Refer to the Smart Traveler Health website.
3. Government travel advice:
- US residents: Consult the US Department of State Travel Advice.
- UK residents: Check the FCDO Travel Advice.
- Australian residents: Visit the Smart Traveler website.
4. Medication tips: If you take prescription medication, bring enough to last the entire trip, plus a few extra days in case of delays. Carry a copy of your prescription in case you need to visit a clinic abroad.
We hope this helps you prepare for a safe and enjoyable adventure.
Please keep in mind that our itinerary, activities, and hotels might change. These adjustments could happen with little notice due to factors like availability, weather conditions, seasonal shifts, or other circumstances beyond our control. Rest assured, we always aim to minimise any impact on your experience. Occasionally, we may tweak the itinerary to try out fresh ideas and keep the adventure exciting.
We believe solo travelers shouldn’t have to pay extra to explore the world. That’s why our group trips are designed around shared accommodation and do not include a single supplement. Solo travelers joining our group trips are paired in twin or multi-share rooms with another traveler of the same sex for the duration of the trip.
Some of our Independent trips are structured differently. For these itineraries, solo travelers will need to book at the single occupancy rate.
Tips are not included in the cost of this tour. Remember, tipping is entirely at your discretion and based on what you feel comfortable with.
Would you like to learn more or customise our Highlights of Türkiye trip?
Have questions about accommodations, accessibility, group preferences, or dietary needs? Complete the form below and our team will get back to you shortly.
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