first trip to turkey

I highly recommend the Rick Steves Best of Turkey tour. I took it back in 1991 and it was excellent... the guide was fantastic and the itinerary was great. Everyone who I have met who has taken this tour raves about it. If you are not interested in an organized tour, I would look at the itinerary listed for this tour and add a little more time in some of the locations as it will probably take you a bit longer to get between places. The RS tour is very efficient.

We are in the process of planning a Turkey trip and have found that the country is much bigger than we thought. And the transportation infrastructure isn't as robust as it is in most of western Europe. I would suggest dropping several nights from Istanbul and dropping at least one city, probably Antalya.

Are you flying directly to Turkey from Canada? If so, it's a nine hour time difference from Vancouver, so you need to think about jet lag for a day or two in planning your trip. Istanbul is a remarkable city, well worth the time you've planned, especially if that's where you begin your trip. If it were me, I'd eliminate Bodrum--it's mainly interesting if you enjoy nightclubbing and a European-tourist beach scene. I don't but many do--if this sounds appealing, it may be a nice break from the culture shock of Istanbul.

Izmir isn't a particularly attractive base from which to see Ephesus--the old city was destroyed in the aftermath of WWI, so it's a modern city with expensive modern hotels. Selcuk, a small town closer to Ephesus, is a much better base with several cheap but charming pension hotels. Ankara isn't worth 2 nights--the museum of Anatolian culture is terrific, but only worth a few hours and the Ataturk's Mausoleum is worth a visit but again only a short one. (more next)

Ankara is also low on charming accommodations. The only small boutique hotel that I know of is the Angora House.

Your itinerary takes you over a lot of territory. I'd think about flying from Istanbul to Izmir (a 45 minute plane ride compared to 8 hours on busses or trains) and to Ankara, Antalya, and Cappadocia. There are several discount airlines offering very inexpensive fares--Onur Air, Atlasjet, and others. The only problem is that almost all flights route you through Istanbul, so it's hard to get from place to place without backtracking. The busses are cheap, comfortable, and ubiquitous throughout Turkey. Trains are more expensive, less reliable, slower, and don't go everywhere. But the overnight train between Ankara and Istanbul is a neat way to travel, and reasonably priced, even with a private sleeping car. You can reserve at a travel agent once you get to Istanbul--you'll find loads of travel agents in Sultanahmet, assuming you're staying there. Have fun planning!!

Wow thanks. This gives alot more to think about. think I am going to take this back to the drawing board.

But I do not want to skimp on Istanbul if I have to I would rather drop something from the list.
Selcuk sounds like a good option insteasd of Izmir.