14 days in turkey for first timer

Posted by dayexday on 09/06/25 03:20 AM

Hello,
I plan on taking a month long trip, mid september to mid october, with the september part being in greece and the october part in turkey. Here is what i have, i will not have a car. I travel alone and generally am a "fast" traveler when i'm by myself since there is little downtime since i get bored. So i wonder how many days for istanbul given there is no relaxation (is four days too much?).

I'm also worried about transportation since it seems like Turkey is more bus transportation than the train transportation that a lot of europe has which is so convenient. Anyway, I have the itinerary below. How does it look?

I can add as many days as I want to this trip by the way so if something is worth looking into, please let me know, since the time can be added to go there. Thanks!

day 1 - Arrive in Istanbul

day 2 - Istanbul

day 3 - Istanbul

day 4 - Istanbul

day 5 - Day trip to Gallipoli? to troy?

day 5 - Istanbul – night bus to selcuk (is four days in istanbul too much?)

day 6 - Selcuk day trip to ephesus

day 7 - Day trip to pergamom?? is it worth it??

day 8 - Selcuk bus to Pamukkale and then to antalya (i read Pamukkale doesnt need more than half a day) but i
wonder about where to store my bag

day 9 - Antalya

day 10 - antalya - probably a day trip somewhere, there are a lot of options, is there one that is the clear winner?

day 11 - Antalya to cappadocia (bus?)

day 12 - cappadocia

day 13 - cappadocia

day 14 - cappadocia

day 15 - flight out

Posted by Kenko

Citizen of the World

09/06/25 04:46 AM

3494 posts

I’ve been to Istanbul several times and there’s so much to see and explore that four or five days is not too much, If you hit a heat wave, taking the ferries on the Bosporus toward the Black Sea is a great way to see even more of greater Istanbul while cooling off.

I think there are far better archaeological sites than Troy. Ephesus near Selcuk, along with the ancient cities near Antalya. are far more impressive, even if not quite as famous as Troy. In Ephesus, be sure to buy a supplemental ticket to the “Terrace Houses” which were luxurious villas of wealthy Romans. The intact frescoes and mosaics are as remarkable as the villas in Pompeii.

Airfares in Turkey are a bargain and flying saves time. So, you might want to fly from Istanbul ( The tiny Sabiha Gokcen (SAW) Airport is closer to Istanbul’s center and far more convenient for domestic flights) to Izmir and then bus to Selcuk.

Pergamon is worthwhile, although I think staying two nights in Selcuk to explore Ephesus and Selcuk’s archaeological museum—along with Selcuk’s Roman aqueducts and other ruins— will be a better use of your time. In Antalya, visit some of the ancient cities nearby ( i.e. Perge, Side, Aspendos).

Be sure to see Antalya’s archaeological museum—it’s incredible.

Stay overnight in Pamukkale because the massive ancient city of Hieropolis is adjacent to Pamukkale and can easily take 2-3 hours to explore.

I flew on a direct 1:15 flight from Antalya to Kayseri for about $50 and then took a ground transfer to Goreme. Check www.Skyscanner.com for flights. Don’t miss the underground cities of Derinkyu and Kaymakli while in Cappadocia. You can see both of them as a daytrip by taking the bus from Goreme to Nevsehir and then another bus to Derinkyu and Kaymakli.

Have fun exploring Turkey!