5 Days Cappadocia Pamukkale Didym Milet Priene Ephesus Tour by Plane

Day 1:Cappadocia

Start by driving through the valleys of Cappadocia and make your first stop at Devrent Valley to see the unique fairytale like chimneys. Proceed to the incredible Zelve Open Air Museum, where three canyons meet in one valley.

Lunch in Avanos: the center of terra cotta art-work since 3000 BC and see a demonstration of this art in a pottery workshop.
After a lunch we will proceed to visit the incredible Goreme Open Air Museum, with its rock carved churches and Christian settlements date back hundreds of years. Visit also the Pigeon Valley, so named after the hundreds of little windows carved into the rocks which are an attractive spot for pigeons to build their nests. End the day in the best way possible: observing the Panoramic View from Uchisar Castle.

Day 2: Cappadocia

Start by entering the Kaymakli Underground City, one of the most interesting underground settlements in Cappadocia. Proceed to Soganli Valley, an Open Air Museum in a natural setting near a typical Cappadocian village with its unique Rock-Cut churches and frescoes.

Lunch and visit Sahinefendi a newly discovered mosaic house. Continue to Keslik Monastery near Cemil, which hides its frescoes behind a very thin smoke layer which we can only see by torch light. Our tour finishes with a visit to Mustafapasa (Sinasos), an old Greek town with its spectacular old Greek houses; very fine examples of late Greek settlements and architecture.

After the tour ends you will be transferred to bus station to take an overnight bus to Pamukkale at about 21:00 (duration 10 hours).

Day 3: Pamukkale

After checking in a having the breakfast at the hotel, your driver will take you to the Pamukkale tour starting point.
Pamukkale is an extraordinary natural wonder. The full of calcium waters rise from the ground at a temperature of 35 C and tumble down the mountain from a height of 100 meters, forming a myriad of pools. Cream-colored stalactites are formed as the water overflows from the pools, creating a breathtaking sight unequalled in the world.
As if this splendid view wasn’t enough, there was also a Roman city built on top of this natural marvel: the City of Hierapolis. You can visit its ruins and see: the basilica, the impressive theatre, Roman Bath and Necropolis.

After the tour, our local agency will transfer you to the bus station and you will take a short distance bus to Selcuk, where you will spend the night.

Day 4: Didyma/Miletus/Priene

Didyma
The word Didyma meant “twin” and it refers to the twins Apollo and Artemis, sons of Zeus and Leto. The Temple of Didyma, also known as the Didymaion, has a long history. İt has been said that the Didymaion was constructed before Greek colonization (10th century BC). In ancient times, pilgrims walked 20 km along the Sacred Way from Miletus to Didyma’s sanctuary to participate in the annual spring festival, the Didymeia.

Miletus
Miletus, an ancient city located near the present Akkoy at the mouth of the Buyuk Menderes River, owed its importance due to its position on trade routes. It was one of the largest cities in Anatolia with a population of between 80,000 and 100,000. Highly prosperous, it was the home to some of the best thinkers of 6th century BC: philosophers Anaximander, Anaximenes, and Thales, the town planner Hippodamus and architect Isidorus.

Priene
The ancient harbor city of Priene changed its location when the silt of the Meander River threatened to bury it. Now it is nearly 16 km from the sea. The original place of the city has never been found but it was probably a peninsula with two harbors. Priene was laid out on a Hippodamian system and contained many famous examples of Hellenistic art and architecture. All the streets intersect at right angles. Remaining small with about 5 thousand inhabitants and never having of great political significance, it shared the same history as the other Ionian cities.

Once again you will spend the night in Selcuk or Kusadasi

Day 5: Ephesus

Temple of Artemis
The temple of Artemis is known as one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. The Temple served as a form to worship Artemis, a Greek goddess – twin of Apollo, who replaced the Titan Selene as Goddess of the Moon.

Ephesus
Ephesus is the best-preserved Roman city in the Mediterranean region, and one of Turkey’s top sights. After almost 150 years of excavation, the city’s recovered structures have made Ephesus Europe’s most complete classical metropolis.
Explore the ruins of Ephesus while strolling past the Celsus Library, the Temple of Hadrian, the Trajan Fountain and the Great Theater.

The House of Virgin Mary
Legend says that the Virgin Mary lived her last days in a small stone cottage, located in Ephesus. Mary, accompanied by John the Apostle, came to Ephesus at the end of her life. In 1967, Pope Paul VI declared the site authentic and each year a traditional service is held for the pilgrims.

After the tour ends, your driver will take you to Izmir’s airport for an evening flight to Istanbul. Upon arrival, at Istanbul’s airport, our staff will await you with a sign with your name and transfer you to your hotel.