Istanbul and Cappadocia: 5-day sightseeing tour
Days: 5Flight included
About the programme
This trip is two completely different moods in one country. First Istanbul: a city where imperial history stands right next to everyday life, where in one day you can see palace halls, ancient temples and crowded squares, and between them — simply walk the streets and look. The rhythm of the first day is set by the arrival itself: you are met, brought to the hotel, and then the time belongs to you.
Then the route goes to Cappadocia. There everything is different: not city crowds, but open spaces, rocks of whimsical shapes, valleys that change from one stop to the next. Two days of excursions — red and green — are arranged differently: one is more about shapes and crafts, the other about height and depth, about viewpoints and underground labyrinths, where you descend for an extra fee.
The trip will suit those who want to see both a big city and a natural landscape in a short time, while not turning everything into a race. Between busy days there are breathers: breakfasts at the hotel, free time, calm transfers.
Some of the experiences in the program are available for a separate fee or optionally — for example, dinner at a fish restaurant with a view of the Bosphorus, a boat ride along the Golden Horn and the Bosphorus, entrance tickets to museums and lunches. The flight to Istanbul is included in the program, and the internal flight between Istanbul and Cappadocia is for an extra fee. Overnight stays are in Istanbul and in Cappadocia. The day-by-day program is described for 5 days and 4 nights; depending on the airline, a date may last 6 days and 5 nights — the length of each date is indicated in the dates table.
Day-by-day itinerary
Day 1
Arrival in Istanbul, meeting with a sign and transfer to the hotel — check-in is possible, but not guaranteed immediately. Then free time, and this is the first day when the city does not yet reveal itself through an excursion, but simply turns out to be nearby. Optionally and for an extra fee, you can have dinner at a fish restaurant with a view of the Bosphorus, with transfer from the hotel and back.
Day 2
The main impression of the day is Istanbul as a layered pie of history: the palace chambers of Topkapi, the ancient church of Hagia Irene, the mosques of Sultanahmet and Hagia Sophia, which is shown from the outside, as well as the Little Hagia Sophia, the Hippodrome and the Hurrem Sultan Hammam (also from the outside). Between the sites — lunch. For an extra fee, a boat ride along the Golden Horn and the Bosphorus is offered: this is already another view of the city, from the water.
Day 3
After breakfast and the flight to Cappadocia, the red tour begins — a day about terrain and crafts. For an additional fee, the Monks Valley is available, also in the program are the Love Valley, the Imagination Valley and the Open-Air Museum. Lunch at your own expense, and among the stops — a pottery workshop in Avanos and the ancient city of Charushin, after which transfer to the hotel.
Day 4
The green tour is the most packed day of the trip: the viewpoint in Goreme and Uchhisar Castle give height, and the underground city of Kaymakli, available for an extra fee, gives depth. Also in the program are the Pigeon Valley and Ortahisar Fortress, lunch at your own expense, a monastery-hospital and a tasting of Turkish sweets. Then the flight to Istanbul, meeting with a sign and transfer to the hotel.
Day 5
The last day without excursions: breakfast at the hotel and free time to breathe out and get ready. Then the flight home according to schedule.
Dates and prices
| Departure date | Departure city | Days | Places | Price | Leave a request |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atyrau | 6 | On request | checking | Leave a request |