Turkey: Istanbul, Cappadocia, Pamukkale & Ephesus Small Group Tour

5.00

(8 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

We rolled our suitcases out of the airport in Istanbul, blinking at the city lights and the sound of car horns that never really stop. Our guide, Emre, was waiting with a sign (my name spelled right — always a small win) and a grin that made us feel like we’d landed in the right place. The drive into Sultanahmet was a blur of minarets and kebab smoke drifting through the window. I remember thinking: this is going to be busy, but in a good way.

The next morning started with strong coffee and simit before we set off for the Hippodrome. Emre told stories about chariot races while pigeons strutted around our feet — I tried to picture the crowds centuries ago. Hagia Sophia was quieter than I expected inside; you need your phone for the audio guide now (I forgot my headphones, so had to buy some at the door). The Blue Mosque glowed blue-grey in the morning light, and then suddenly we were lost in the Grand Bazaar’s maze — carpets underfoot, gold everywhere, someone offering apple tea every few steps. It smelled like leather and spices mixed together.

Flying to Cappadocia felt like jumping into another world. The fairy chimneys looked unreal up close — soft stone under your palm if you touch it (I did). We ducked into Kaymakli Underground City where it was cool and dry, almost silent except for our footsteps echoing. Lunch in Avanos meant pottery plates and bread still warm from the oven. Sometimes I just stopped talking to listen: wind over Pigeon Valley or kids laughing near Uchisar Castle. There’s something about seeing those cave churches at Göreme that sticks with you — maybe it’s how old everything feels.

Pamukkale was bright white even on a cloudy day; walking barefoot on those terraces is stranger than you’d think (kind of squeaky underfoot). At night we soaked in thermal pools until my fingers wrinkled up. Ephesus was last — marble streets shining after rain, stray cats weaving between columns. Our guide recited stories about Artemis Temple and Mary’s House while I tried not to trip over uneven stones because I kept looking up instead of down. So yeah, by the end I was tired but also sort of full — not just from food but from all these layers of history pressing close together.