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"We
want to see Ephesus, Pamukkale and Cappadocia,
but we only have five days (after
attending a conference in Istanbul).
What's the best way to do it?" asked
two female travelers from California,
one of them in her 70s.
"We're
relatively adventurous travelers," they
said. "We don't do dangerous
things, but neither do we need hand-holding."
In
a private
consultation, I proposed
a five-day driving itinerary:
fly from Istanbul to Izmir,
pick up a
rental
car, see Ephesus, Aphrodisias and Pamukkale, then drive east through
Turkey's lake country to Konya and
Cappadocia, then fly back to Istanbul.
(If
you don't want to make the long
drive on Day
3, you can fly from
Izmir to Kayseri (for Cappadocia),
but then you miss the lake country
and Konya.
Here's
the alternative 5-day fly-drive itinerary.)
(You can also do this tour in the
opposite direction from
Cappadocia via Pamukkale to Ephesus. More...)
If
you want to do the drive, make
reservations as early as possible
for the services
you'll need. (Here are good
Turkish travel agents who
can make all the arrangements for
you if you'd rather not worry about
them, and here's my list of recommended licensed
private guides.)
YOUR
RESERVATIONS:
1.
Flights on Day
1 from Istanbul to Izmir,
and on Day 5 from Kayseri to Istanbul.
2. Rental
car from Izmir's Adnan
Menderes Airport,
on Day 1,
to be returned in Ürgüp, Cappadocia,
in late afternoon on Day
5.
3.
Hotels for
Days 1 through 4 (unless you'd
rather make these reservations
yourself.)
4. Hot-air
balloon flight reservation
in Cappadocia (if
you want this adventure). Reserve
your places for the morning
of Day 5. More...
5.
Turkish Airlines shuttle bus reservation from Cappadocia to Kayseri's Erkilet
Airport for your flight
to Istanbul.
Hint: Argeus
Tourism & Travel is
an official ticket agency for Turkish
Airlines as well as for Anadolu
Jet, AtlasJet, Onur
Air, Pegasus
Airlines, and Sun
Express, and also operates
the Turkish
Airlines shuttle
buses between Cappadocia and Kayseri's
Erkilet Airport.
Also, Argeus (based
in Ürgüp, Cappadocia)
has good relationshs
with car rental
companies, and many hotels,
and so is particularly well
positioned to make all of the reservations
you'll
need for this itinerary. More...
YOUR ITINERARY:
Day
1 - Monday: Fly Istanbul-Izmir,
Drive to Selçuk/Ephesus
Morning
flight from Istanbul to Izmir (ADB),
arrive by noon or earlier; lunch
snack at the airport, or carry a
picnic
lunch,
or stave off hunger until you arrive
in Selçuk.
Pick up your reserved rental
car at the airport
and drive to Selçuk (62
km/39 miles, 1-1/4 hours), the town
next to Ephesus, or
Şirince,
the beautiful hill village
nearby. Here's
how to do the drive.
Arrive
in Selçuk or
Şirince by
14:30 or 15:00 (2:30 or 3 pm), check
in at your hotel
(here are suggestions).
Visit Ephesus
Museum, Saint
John Basilica, Isa
Bey Mosque (all in the
center of Selçuk). Dinner and overnight.
Day
2 - Tuesday: Ephesus, Drive to
Aphrodisias & Pamukkale
In
the morning, explore the ruins
of Ephesus (2 to 3 hours),
then drive to Aphrodisias (143
km/89 miles, 2 hours); lunch either
before leaving Selçuk or
at Aphrodisias. Tour the ruins of Aphrodisias (1-1/2
to 2 hours), drive to Pamukkale (123
km/76 miles, 1-1/2 hours), arriving
before dark. Settle in at a hotel
in Pamukkale Town or Karahayıt.
Day
3 - Wednesday: Pamukkale, Eğirdir,
Beyşehir, Konya
After
lunch, drive from Pamukkale through Turkey's
lake country stopping at
Eğirdir for lunch,
and in Beyşehir to
see the Eşrefoğlu Moque, then arriving
in Konya (450
km, 280 miles, 7 hours).
The Hotel Rumi and Hotel
Balıkçılar have the
best locations: right across the
street from the Mevlana
Museum in the city center.
The Balıkçılar is one of the few
hotels to serve alcoholic beverages
in this conservative Muslim city. Here
are more Konya hotel choices.
Day
4 - Thursday: Konya, Silk Road,
Ihlara Valley, Underground Cities, Cappadocia
In
the morning, visit the whirling dervish Mevlana
Museum and
other Seljuk
Turkish monuments (1200s) on
and around Konya's Alaettin
Hill (2
to 3 hours), then drive east along
the ancient Silk
Road to Sultanhanı (110
km, 68 miles, 1-1/2 hours) for a
brief look at the grandest of Seljuk
Turkish caravanserais (built
in 1229), and lunch.
Continue
through Aksaray (42
km, 26 miles, 40 minutes). If you
want to explore the Ihlara
(Peristrema) Valley,
turn right (south) 11 km east of
Aksaray for Selime, Belisırma and
Ihlara (23 km).
Spend
an hour or two at Ihlara,
then head east to Derinkuyu to
see its underground
city, though if you don't watch
your time carefully on this day you
may arrive after it is closed for
the day (17:00/5 pm).
From
Derinkuyu drive north to Nevşehir,
then east to Ürgüp,
Göreme or Uçhisar,
and your Cappadocia
hotel.
Day
5 - Friday: Cappadocia, Fly Kayseri-Istanbul
Rise
before dawn for your hot-air
balloon flight (if you've
reserved this thrill-of-a-lifetime
experience). You'll be back at your
hotel in time for breakfast.
Visit
the Göreme
Open Air Museum in the
morning (no guide necessary; 2
to 3 hours).
Then drive to the nearby Zelve
Valley, Avanos
and/or Uçhisar,
exploring Cappadocia until it's
time to turn in your rental car.
You
could drive to the Kayseri
or Nevşehir airport and turn
in your rental car there, saving
yourself the cost of the airport
shuttle bus, but
I don't recommend driving
to the airport.
You'll have to leave earlier, take
the chance
of getting lost (the route can be
confusing), and deal with Turkish
city traffic in Kayseri, probably
at rush hour, and maybe in the dark.
Better to take the shuttle,
believe me.
Fly to Istanbul and
settle in at your hotel there.
If this seems like too much driving,
look at my 5-Day
Fly-Drive Itinerary.
5-Day Drive Cappadocia—>Ephesus
5-Day
Fly-Drive Itinerary:
Ephesus, Pamukkale & Cappadocia
Getting from Pamukkale to Cappadocia
Getting from Istanbul to Cappadocia
1
to 5 Days in Turkey
6
to 10 Days in Turkey
16
to 23 Days in Turkey
24
to 30+ Days in Turkey
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