Hi!
My wife and I are planning a one week trip to Turkey, in late March. Can anyone give me some good ideas for an itinerary? I know, I need more time, but right now we don't have it.
I would like to see as much as possible, without jumping from hotel to hotel night after night.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks!
PS: Also, any suggestions for good hotels in Istanbul would be appreciated.
Hi Nick,
I would recommend santa sophia hotel in istanbul, We stayed there and i realy enjoyed stay there. Its also very close to old istanbul and other tourist attractions, like : Hagia sophia museum , topkapı palace, blue mosque grand bazaar, hippodromme, etc...
We found a tour company through our friend's that had traveled to istanbul and cappadocia last year. The tour company name was ; adavegas travel ( www.adavegastravel.com ) they organized all our itinerary of 10 days and they did not disapoint.
Istanbul is a fantastic magical city, I hope you will have a great time in Turkey.
yux
For plenty of ideas that you can copy, see the tour itinerary for Rick's 7-day Istanbul tour.
You can fly cheaply from Istanbul to Izmir (near to Ephesus, but you can stay at Selcuk) or from Istanbul to Kayseri or Nevsehir (for Cappadocia, where there may be snow); see www.skyscanner.com.
I think your itinerary will be dictated to some extent on what you like to do on vacation. However, here are a couple of basic ideas for one week. 1). You could easily spend half of your time in Istanbul and the other half on the western coast. There are inexpensive flights to Izmir and Bodrum. There are plenty of sights and beaches in both directions from those towns. 2). You could spend half of your time in Istanbul and the rest visiting Cappadocia. There is an airport in Kayseri. 3). You could split your time between Istanbul and Ankara. One planning note for you - I think it takes about 4 days to see all of the marquee sites in Istanbul.
For Istanbul hotels: I like the Empress Zoe and Blue House in Istanbul. One caveat - it has been a few years since I've stayed in either.
One last suggestion - pick up a copy of the Lonely Planet Turkey guide. It has information on just about any spot you might want to see.
Have fun!
Hi Nick,
This might be tight with only a week, but Maybe spend 2 days in Istanbul, night bus to Cappadocia stay 2 days, night bus to Pamukkale to see travertine pools & Hieropolis (only need half a day, arrive in morning, leave same day), take a bus out the same day to Selcuk/Ephesus and then back up to Istanbul.
It's a quick Itinerary. If you're not interested in wasting time on bus travel, then possibly skip Cappadocia.
Whatever you do though, try to schedule night buses, and spend only half a day in Pamukkale. It's gorgeous but doesn't require a lot of time.
How do you get from Istanbul to Cappadocia? I will be in Turkey for 13 days in July with hubby and 2 elementary aged kids. I'm thinking 5 days in Istanbul but am unsure of how to get around the country.
Would appreciate any tips!
Thanks,
Natalie
