This 14 day tour, starts and ends in Istanbul, Turkey.
Welcome to Istanbul! You will be transferred to your hotel and the remainder of the day is yours, free to explore.
After breakfast, you enjoy a fully guided tour of the only city to span two continents, visiting the Blue Mosque, St Sophia Museum, Topkapi Palace (including Hagia Irene) and the Hippodrome.
Cruise between two continents on the stretch of water that separates Europe from Asia in the afternoon with an optional 'Half day Bosphorus cruise'.
This morning we drive to the coastal town of Akçakoca. Its old town area, situated on a gentle hill is a well preserved neighbourhood of traditional houses of wood and firebricks, lining square-shaped blocks. We then drive to the UNESCO World Heritage-listed town of Safranbolu.
After breakfast, we start our tour from Hidirlik Hill to get a city view then discover Safranbolu's well-preserved wooden houses, Cinci Inn and Bath, old goverment building, the clock tower and the Arasta Bazaar where we will learn about the traditional handicraft shops. In the afternoon we drive to Amasra and visit the Roman castle and walls, wood-carving handicraft bazaar and the outer and inner piers of the city.
After breakfast we will drive to Kastamonu, which is one of the rare cities where you can find great examples of traditional Turkish houses. Along the way we'll stop at the crystal terrace, an unbreakable glass platform attached to a cliff edge 80 meters above the Incekaya Canyon.
This morning we head for Inebolu with its wooden houses reflecting Rum (Byzantine or Ottoman Greek) architecture, dark green nature and excellent coastline which amazes visitors.
We depart from our hotel and visit Akliman Cove, Hamsilos Bay which offers rich natural beauty with green forests, colourful flowers and small inland bays where military ships took strategic advantage of the bays' hidden location during the First World War. Lastly we visit Erfelek Waterfall where you will be able to trek through the park and find many cascading waterfalls and other beautiful natural scenes.
Today we will drive towards the Black Sea coast to Trabzon, stopping on the way for a short visit to Yason Church which stands along one of the most picturesque locations on the Black Sea coast. Then you will have great photo opportunity at Boztepe before heading to Trabzon.
Today we tour Trabzon and surrounds, visiting the breathtaking Byzantine Sumela Monastery and Uzungol, a picturesque lake surrounded by thick woods before returning back to the hotel.
Today we travel along the Black Sea coast towards Artvin before driving through the wild landscapes of Çoruh Valley. We also visit picturesque Ishan village on our way to the scenic heights of Erzurum.
This morning we visit the Seljuk monuments of Erzurum before continuing through Kars to Ani, close to the Turkish Armenian border. We continue to Dogubeyazit located at the foothill of Mount Ararat, the highest mount in Anatolia and where Noah's Ark is thought to have landed.
After breakfast we tour Ishak Pasha Palace before driving through barren landscapes of volcanic stones stopping at Muradiye Waterfalls. We continue to Van, home to Lake Van, Turkey's largest lake.
Morning drive to Çavustepe, to explore the ancient Urartian citadel before continuing to the village of Hosap. Early afternoon from the town of Gevas we take a boat excursion to Akdamar Island which is home to the 10th century Holy Cross Church.
This evening we fly back to Istanbul for our last night.
After breakfast our tour concludes and we say goodbye to our new friends before being transferred to the airport for your onward flight.
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