Istanbul, Cappadocia, Ephesus & Antalya Tour – 10 Days, 3 Flights
Overview
Istanbul, Cappadocia, Ephesus & Antalya Tour – 10 Days, 3 Flights
This 10-day package covers the essentials of Turkey without wasting days on logistics. It opens in the old city of Istanbul, moves on to the strange valleys of Cappadocia, traces Roman history at Ephesus and finishes with time to relax on the Mediterranean in Antalya. Everything is booked ahead, from hotels and domestic flights to transfers, guided sightseeing and entrance fees, so the trip flows easily from one region to the next.
In Istanbul you see the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia and take a Bosphorus cruise. Two guided days in Cappadocia then cover the northern sights of Pasabag and Zelve and, in the south, Rose Valley and an underground city. A free day in Kusadasi comes before the Ephesus day, which also includes the Temple of Artemis and the House of the Virgin Mary. The trip then ends on the coast with no backtracking.
You stay three nights in Istanbul, two each in Cappadocia, Kusadasi and Antalya, and 8 breakfasts and 5 lunches are included. Departures are daily, with no minimum number of travellers.
Tour Info
Itinerary
Day 1 – Arrival in Istanbul
Transfers: included.
Once your plane lands, our airport team meets you at Sabiha Gokcen Airport (SAW) or Istanbul Airport (IST), based on your flight details. You are then driven to your Istanbul hotel to check in and rest after the journey.
Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 2 – Morning Old City Tour: Hagia Sophia to the Grand Bazaar
Meals: breakfast and lunch. Transfers: included. Free time: yes.
08:30 – Hotel pickup and drive to Sultanahmet.
- Hagia Sophia: Completed in 537 AD, it held religious authority under two empires and still towers over Istanbul's skyline. Byzantine mosaics and Ottoman calligraphy share its huge interior, making it one of the most layered historic buildings anywhere. Step inside and you see at once how Istanbul became a meeting point of civilisations.
- Blue Mosque: Its nickname comes from the 20,000 Iznik tiles, all painted by hand, that line the walls inside the Sultan Ahmed Mosque, while six slim minarets shape the outline that frames Sultanahmet Square. It is still a working mosque, which gives it a living cultural side that purely archaeological sites lack.
- Hippodrome of Constantinople: This was the civic and sporting centre of Byzantine Constantinople, where up to 100,000 spectators watched chariot races and ceremonies. The Serpent Column, the Column of Constantine and the Egyptian obelisk still stand where they were placed, linking the square to its origins in the 4th century.
- Grand Bazaar (Free Time): Istanbul's commercial hub since 1461 has more than 4,000 shops along 61 covered streets. Beyond the spice and carpet stalls, the maze-like building itself is worth exploring slowly. With free time here you can shop as you please before meeting the group again.
12:45 – The half-day city tour finishes at the Grand Bazaar, followed by the drive back to your hotel.
Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 3 – Afternoon Bosphorus Cruise
Meals: breakfast. Transfers: included.
The morning is free.
13:30 – Pickup at your hotel and drive to the pier on the Bosphorus.
On board, you sail between Europe and Asia, passing Ottoman palaces and waterside neighbourhoods.
16:00 – The cruise ends and you are driven back to the hotel.
Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 4 – Early Flight to Cappadocia and the North Cappadocia Tour
Meals: lunch. Transfers: included.
04:00 – Hotel pickup and drive to the airport (both the pickup time and the airport can change).
06:40 – Istanbul–Cappadocia flight (the departure time can change).
08:00 – Landing at Cappadocia Airport (the arrival airport and time depend on availability). Our team meets you and drives you to the start of the North Cappadocia tour.
- Devrent Valley (Pink Valley): On this open plateau, volcanic erosion over millions of years has shaped rock columns into clear animal outlines. Your guide shows you the well-known camel and challenges you to find the dolphin and the seal among the columns.
- Pasabag Open Air Museum: For geology, Pasabag shows one of Cappadocia's key erosion processes in a single view: complete chimneys, half-worn chimneys and eroded stumps stand side by side, like an accidental textbook of how volcanic rock forms.
- Avanos Pottery Workshop: The Kizilirmak, which you can see from Avanos, is Turkey's longest river. It rises in the eastern highlands and flows west across Anatolia to the Black Sea, and on its way through Cappadocia it left the red clay that made Avanos a pottery town, a link that continues today.
- Goreme Panoramic View: Unusually for the Red Tour, the guide here lets you explore the viewpoint on your own instead of giving a talk. The landscape needs no explanation, and quiet looking gives you a different kind of experience.
- Zelve Open Air Museum: The village began as a Byzantine Christian monastic community, and its first carved rooms were chapels and cells for hermits. Over the centuries it became a mixed village where Muslim and Christian families lived in neighbouring cave quarters, and both faiths left their mark on its religious buildings.
- Uchisar Castle (exterior view): From the viewing spot, dozens of carved openings are visible in the rock, each a deliberate choice of where to put a room, a storeroom or a pigeon house. Centuries of such decisions are what make the outside of the castle so rich to look at.
17:00 – End of the Cappadocia tour and transfer to your hotel.
Overnight in Cappadocia.
Day 5 – South Cappadocia: Red Valley to the Underground City
Meals: breakfast and lunch. Transfers: included.
Optional early-morning add-ons: a hot air balloon flight, the most booked activity in Cappadocia and rated number one for its sunrise views, or a balloon watching tour that takes you to the best viewpoints for sunrise photos. Either can be added at the best available price when you book.
10:00 – Hotel pickup and drive to the southern tour area.
- Red Valley: Eruptions millions of years ago covered Cappadocia in thick layers of ash, and in Red Valley wind and rain carved them into their most dramatic shapes. Follow the trail between tall orange and rust-coloured pillars and it is clear why few landscapes in the region are photographed more.
- Rose Valley (Gulludere Valley): A surprising number of fruit trees line the lower trail, left from orchards that valley families farmed for centuries beside their cliff homes. In late summer ripe fruit drops onto the path, and the smell of apricots and grapes blends with the dry, mineral scent of the rock.
- Cavusin Village: Less than five minutes by car from both Goreme and Rose Valley, Cavusin is a natural halfway stop between the busiest heritage sites. Being on the Yellow Tour route brings it a steady flow of visitors, yet it is never as busy as the well-known open air museums.
- Pigeon Valley: Throughout the Middle Ages, farming in Cappadocia relied on dovecotes like these, and their density here shows how important this canyon was to the local farm economy. Researchers map past farming settlements across the valleys by plotting where the carved pigeon houses are.
- Underground City: This was no simple bunker but a working community, with rooms cut for sleeping, storing food, making wine, keeping animals and worship. A small chapel on one of the lower levels shows that people kept up their religious life even while hiding underground from invaders.
17:00 – End of the guided program and return to your Cappadocia hotel.
Overnight in Cappadocia.
Day 6 – Flight to Izmir and a Free Day in Kusadasi
Meals: breakfast. Transfers: included. Free time: yes.
After breakfast you are taken to the airport for the flight from Cappadocia to Izmir. When no direct flight is available, we book a connection through Istanbul (the departure time can change).
At Izmir Airport (arrival time depends on availability) our team meets you and drives you to your Kusadasi/Selcuk hotel. The rest of the day is yours to explore.
Ideas for free time: the marina and old town bazaar, Ladies Beach, or a quick trip out to Sirince village.
Overnight in Kusadasi/Selcuk.
Day 7 – Ephesus, the House of Virgin Mary and the Temple of Artemis
Meals: breakfast and lunch. Transfers: included.
08:30 – Hotel pickup and drive to the ancient city.
- Ephesus Ancient City: The Roman baths offer a rare view of how public hygiene worked at city scale two thousand years ago. Underground systems heated the large vaulted halls, and each room offered a different temperature. Seeing the engineering behind an ordinary bathhouse changes how you look at Roman skill for the rest of the day.
- House of Virgin Mary: The whole Ephesus valley lies below Bulbul Mountain, and the road up to the house runs through dense forest with an ancient feel of its own. Small and plain, the chapel was built on the remains of an older building, and that simplicity is part of its power: nothing distracts from its spiritual purpose.
- Temple of Artemis: Near Selcuk a single column stands for a wonder that every ancient travel writer ranked above the Colosseum. Realising how completely it vanished, though it was meant to last forever, gives a strange kind of historical vertigo, and few sites teach that lesson so well. Most visitors leave a little quieter than they came.
17:00 – End of the guided program and drive back to your Kusadasi/Selcuk hotel.
Overnight in Kusadasi/Selcuk.
Day 8 – Flight to Antalya and a Free Afternoon
Meals: breakfast. Transfers: included. Free time: yes.
After breakfast you transfer to the airport for the flight from Izmir to Antalya. There is usually a direct service; if it is not running that season, we book a connection through Istanbul (the departure time can change).
When you land in Antalya (landing time depends on availability), our team meets you and takes you to your hotel. The rest of the day is free.
Ideas for free time: the Duden waterfalls, a beach day at Lara or Konyaalti, or the old harbour and lanes of Kaleici.
Overnight in Antalya.
Day 9 – Free Day on the Antalya Coast
Meals: breakfast. Free time: all day.
The whole day is yours. You could take a boat ride below the coastal cliffs, visit the Antalya Museum or watch the sunset at Hidirlik Tower.
Overnight in Antalya.
Day 10 – Departure from Antalya
Meals: breakfast.
Tour services finish after breakfast at your hotel. You check out at the hotel's standard time, and this is where your trip ends.
Inclusions & Exclusions
- ✓9 nights accommodation: 3 nights in Istanbul, 2 in Cappadocia, 2 in Kusadasi, and 2 in Antalya
- ✓8 breakfasts and 5 lunches according to the itinerary
- ✓Domestic flight tickets with 15 kg check-in + 8 kg cabin baggage per person
- ✓Airport, hotel, and tour transfers throughout the route
- ✓Guided touring in Istanbul, Cappadocia, and Ephesus
- ✓Entrance fees listed in the itinerary
- ✓All local transportation and service charges
- ✕Personal expenses
- ✕Drinks at lunches
- ✕Dinners
- ✕Optional tours and coastal add-ons in Antalya
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Istanbul, Cappadocia, Ephesus and Antalya in 10 days: the key facts
This 10-day, 9-night group tour starts in Istanbul and ends on the Mediterranean coast in Antalya, with three domestic flights in between and no backtracking. You get three nights in Istanbul with a morning old city tour and an afternoon Bosphorus cruise, two nights in Cappadocia with a north and a south valley tour, two nights in Kusadasi/Selcuk with a free day and an Ephesus day, and two nights in Antalya that are free. Pamukkale is not part of this route.
It suits travellers who want the main sights plus real rest days, and who plan to fly home from Antalya. Departures are daily with no minimum group size. The price is from $1,402 per person.
| Quick facts | |
|---|---|
| Length | 10 days / 9 nights |
| Route | Istanbul - Cappadocia - Kusadasi/Ephesus - Antalya |
| Style | Group tour |
| Start / end | Airport pick-up at Istanbul Airport or Sabiha Gokcen on Day 1 / check-out after breakfast in Antalya on Day 10 |
| Included | 9 hotel nights, 8 breakfasts and 5 lunches (as stated), domestic flights (15 kg + 8 kg), transfers, guided touring in Istanbul, Cappadocia and Ephesus, listed entrance fees |
| Extra | Dinners, drinks at lunch, Antalya tours and coastal add-ons, balloon, personal expenses |
How do the three domestic flights work?
On Day 4 you are picked up at 04:00 for a 06:40 flight from Istanbul, landing in Cappadocia at about 08:00 and going straight to the north tour. On Day 6 you fly from Cappadocia to Izmir; when there is no direct flight, the page says the connection goes through Istanbul. On Day 8 you fly from Izmir to Antalya, usually direct, or again via Istanbul if the direct service is not running that season. Each flight includes 15 kg of checked luggage and 8 kg of cabin luggage. Times and airports can change, and we confirm them for your dates.
Does Day 10 include a transfer to Antalya Airport?
The page is not clear. The inclusions list airport transfers throughout the route, but Day 10 only says that tour services finish after breakfast and that you check out at the hotel's standard time. Ask us to confirm in writing whether a transfer to Antalya Airport is included on the last day. Plan your flight home from Antalya, or tell us if you need to return to Istanbul instead. Our Antalya guide helps if you want to add nights on the coast.
How many lunches are included?
The inclusions say 8 breakfasts and 5 lunches. In the day-by-day plan we count lunch on Days 2, 4, 5 and 7, which is four. Ask us to confirm in writing which days include lunch. The 8 breakfasts match the plan: Day 4 has no hotel breakfast because of the 04:00 airport pick-up. Dinners and drinks at lunch are not included anywhere, so budget for evening meals in all four places.
What do we see in Istanbul?
Day 2 is a half-day tour from 08:30 to about 12:45: Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, the Hippodrome and free time in the Grand Bazaar, then a drive back to the hotel. Day 3 has a free morning and a Bosphorus cruise from 13:30 to 16:00, sailing between Europe and Asia. Ask us whether the Hagia Sophia ticket is part of the listed entrance fees. Our Hagia Sophia ticket guide has more on tickets.
How hard are the Cappadocia days?
Day 4 is the longest: an early flight, then Devrent Valley, Pasabag, an Avanos pottery workshop, the Goreme viewpoint, Zelve and Uchisar Castle from outside, finishing at 17:00. Day 5 starts at 10:00 with Red Valley, Rose Valley, Cavusin, Pigeon Valley and an underground city, again until 17:00. Expect walking on dirt paths, uneven ground at Zelve and steps underground, so wear trainers. Lunch is included both days. See our Cappadocia guide and Red Valley and Rose Valley.
Is the hot air balloon included?
No. On the morning of Day 5 you can add a hot air balloon flight or a balloon watching tour at sunrise, booked at the best available price when you reserve. Because the south tour pick-up is at 10:00, there is time to fly and return to the hotel first. Flights only go ahead when the civil aviation office allows them, and wind can cancel a morning, and with Day 6 being a travel day there is no clear backup. Our balloon price guide compares the options.
What is the Ephesus day like?
Day 6 afternoon is free in Kusadasi/Selcuk, with ideas such as the marina, Ladies Beach or Sirince village. Day 7 runs from 08:30 to 17:00 with lunch: the ancient city of Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary on Bulbul Mountain and the single standing column of the Temple of Artemis. Ephesus is mostly open-air marble and stone, so bring a hat, water and good shoes. Read about Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary and hotels in Kusadasi.
Can we add Pamukkale or Antalya tours?
The two Antalya days are free, and optional Antalya tours are not in the price. Two day trips you could add are the Perge, Aspendos and Side day tour or the old city and Duden waterfalls boat trip. If you also want Pamukkale, compare the 10-day tour with Pamukkale and Antalya from $1,605 per person. Other routes are on our multi-city packages page.
How do we book this package?
Use the booking form on this page to choose your start date and number of guests, and send your international arrival and departure flight details. You can also message us on WhatsApp at +90 545 307 67 88. We check the three domestic flights and the hotels for your dates, answer the lunch and Day 10 transfer questions above, and send the full plan in writing before you make any payment. Get Turkey Tours is a TÜRSAB-licensed agency (A-15751).
Frequently Asked Questions
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