Southeastern Anatolia

Day Trips

Your full day excursion begins in the early morning when you’re picked up at your Antalya hotel and begin the drive to Pamukkale. After a lunch break you’ll visit the cascading snow-white terraced cliffs of this mysterious Cotton Palace. The calcite-laden waters that had created this unreal landscape come from springs located in a 200-meter high cliff that overlooks the plain. Marvel at the mineral forests, petrified waterfalls and the series of terraced basins created by these waters. At the end of the 2nd century B.C. the kings of Pergamon established the thermal spa of Hierapolis. The ruins of the baths, temples and other Greek monuments can be seen at the site. The temples were significant trade centers for ancient Hierapolis. See the Roman theater, the Apollo temple, Roman baths, fountains and the agora. After the tour, have a chance to swim in thermal pools. An additional option is to swim in Cleopatra’s Pool, for an extra fee.

Enjoy Cappadocia from above on a thrilling hot air balloon tour complete with a light breakfast and champagne celebration upon landing. Start your tour with a luxury mini-bus transfer from your hotel to the local partner's headquarters. Here you can relax and enjoy a light breakfast while the pilots choose a launch site. Then get ready to watch the crew assemble and inflate the balloon. It's the only balloon variety in the region that is silver-coated, a hallmark of quality and safety. Following a brief introduction, you'll be off to see Cappadocia from high in the air. Climb approximately 300 meters and take in panoramic views as you drift above the valleys and between rock formations. Balloons move by the wind and you'll float wherever the breeze takes you. Once back on the ground, celebrate your flight with a champagne toast and receive a commemorative flight medallion.

Visit the fascinating archeological site of Gobekli Tepe on a full-day private tour from Istanbul. Explore this 11,500-year-old hilltop sanctuary, which has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Start your day with an early morning pickup at your hotel. Transfer to the airport for a 2-hour-long flight to Sanliurfa, formerly known as Edessa. Edessa was is noted as one of the most important holy places in the world. Upon arrival at the airport in Sanliurfa, you will meet your guide that will lead to Gobekli Tepe. The discovery of Gobekli Tepe and its architecture has changed the entire known history of advanced civilizations. Archeologists believe it is the oldest religious site in the world. Explore its Neolithic collection of stone circles in this prehistoric site of worship. Learn how people built this structure 12,000 years ago using stone-age tools. Take a walk at the site of the excavation and find out recent findings. Give your feet a well-earned break by going to Sanliurfa and take some time for yourself for lunch at a local restaurant. Savor the delicious flavors of southeast Turkey. You can also spend some time shopping in the local market. After making the most of your free time, transfer to Sanliurfa airport to take a flight back to Istanbul. Be met with a representative upon landing to transfer back to your hotel.

Discover the stunning region of Pamukkale and its hot springs on a day trip from Selcuk, Kusadasi, or Izmir. Begin by meeting your driver/guide at the reception of your hotel in the morning and a transfer to Pamukkale. Explore the ancient city of Hierapolis, built on solid limestone layers formed by mineral-rich waters that flowed for millennia over a raised level plateau. See the most significant sites of the sacred city including the Theatre, the Temple of Apollo, and the Necropolis. Admire the Necropolis (Cemetery) of Hierapolis, one of the largest ancient burial sites in Anatolia. See a Roman bath, the Gate of Domitian, the main street of the ancient city, and the Byzantium Gate. Walk to the natural warm water terraces, formed by running warm water rich in calcium and temperatures of 35 Celsius all year-round. Get the chance to see the gleaming white travertine terraces of Pamukkale, located next to the ruins of Hierapolis. Enjoy optional free time to swim in Cleopatra’s Pool before ending the tour with a transfer back to your hotel.

Your experience begins as you are picked up at around 10:00AM from your hotel, before driving to the west side of the city. Antalya is surrounded by sandy beaches, soaring mountains, and picturesque waterfalls, and this tour takes in some of these most scenic spots. Ride the cable car to the top of Tünek Tepe Mountain for a magnificent view along the coast. Afterwards, visit two different waterfalls: Düden Falls and the Kursunlu Waterfall. There will be plenty of time granted at these two waterfalls for you to explore and take photos. This tour provides you with a fantastic chance to discover the local culture as well as the ordinary life style of Turkish people. At the conclusion of your experience, your driver will return you back to your accommodation.

Delight in the ancient history and spectacular natural beauty of Pamukkale on a full-day, guided tour with flights and transfers from Istanbul included. Start the day bright and early with a morning flight from Istanbul to Denizli. There you will catch a transfer to meet your professional tour guide who will uncover Pamukkale’s Greco-Roman past. Explore the hot springs in Karahayit, which have taken on an Instagram-worthy shade of red due to mineral deposits. Then head over to the Roman ruins in Hierapolis, a place twinned with Pamukkale to create a single UNESCO World Heritage site. After exploring toppled ancient columns and sacred temples, you will have the chance to swim in Cleopatra’s Antique Pool—a majestic spot purportedly frequented by the Egyptian queen for its healing powers. Take an hour for yourself to discover hidden corners of Pamukkale at your own pace before reuniting with your guide and the group for lunch. The next stop is one of the most picturesque spots in Turkey—the travertines of Pamukkale. Take a barefoot walk across these bright, white limestone terraces filled with pools of cascading water. Finally, stop by a local Onyx factory before heading back to Istanbul after an unforgettable day spent in nature and history.

After being picked up between 5:00 AM and 5:30 AM from your hotel in Istanbul, you will be driven to the airport where you will catch a flight to Denizli. Meet your private guide in Denizli and make your first visit to Pamukkale.  The beautiful white cascades of Pamukkale is well worth a trip to see eye candy of a natural site. Walk through Pamukkale and find a chance to relax in the hot waters of the ancient pool. Built just above the hot spring waters of Pamukkale, Hierapolis is a mighty ancient city and a UNESCO world heritage site. Hierapolis was built in the 2nd century B.C. by the King of Pergamon and became a Roman city. The city was famous for several important sanctuaries and also as an important trade center. Hierapolis was famous for purple dye and cloth making and it is still famous for textile products. Afterwards, drive back to Denizli airport to make your flight back to Istanbul. The Istanbul tour guide will met you at the Istanbul airport and transfer you to your hotel in Istanbul.

After a pickup from your hotel at 10 AM, hike along the Red and Rose Valley, the most breathtakingly and mysteriously beautiful valleys in the region. Conclude your hike at the Cavusin Cave Village. Here, marvel at the rock castle and troglodyte dwellings where people lived until the 20th century. Then, enjoy lunch in a local restaurant. Descend towards the center of the earth with a trip to the Underground City, one of the largest and deepest of Cappadocia’s many such settlements. Discover this underground city and its stables, cellars, storage rooms, refectories, churches, and wineries. Visit the Pigeon Valley, enjoy a spectacular view of dovecotes, see old abandoned cave homes, marvel at the old Greek houses of Uchisar, and visit Ortshisar Castle, the biggest mass of fairy chimneys in Cappadocia. Return to your hotel at the end of the tour.

Board an early morning flight from Istanbul to Pamukkale, where this day tour begins. Pamukkale, which means cotton castle, comprises a series of limestone terraces formed by the action of the hot springs that create a waterfall. The water contains a high concentration of carbonic acid and lime, and flows downhill to form stalactites, waterfalls and basins. Nearby are the ruins of Hierapolis, where the Roman baths were converted into a church during the Byzantine period. See the Roman theater and well-preserved ancient thermal baths. Bathe in the waters and visit the pool of Cleopatra (admission not included). After the tour, board a flight to return to Istanbul.

Explore the unique travertine terraces of Pamukkale (literally “Cotton Castles” in Turkish), and enjoy a full-day trip to one of Turkey’s most popular attractions. Depart Bodrum and transfer by air-conditioned coach to Pamukkale, known as the “8th Wonder of the World” to those in the know. Explore the natural landscape of limpid pools, hot springs and travertine, terraces of carbonate minerals left by flowing water. Inscribed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1988, Pamukkale attracts some 2 million visitors every year. Get a view of the terraces from the hills on the opposite side of the valley in the town of Denizli. Then, go to the ruins of the ancient Greek-Roman city of Hierapolis, built on top of the “Cotton Castles” in the 2nd century BC. See the remains of the Roman amphitheater, and visit the former Turkish Bath, now converted to an archaeological museum. Discover where Cleopatra used to swim, and the monumental tomb of the Christian apostle St. Philippe. Marvel at the Necropolis of Anatolia, filled with sarcophagi, most notably that of Marcus Aurelius Ammianos.