Istanbul & Cappadocia: 10-Day Turkey Tour Troy Ephesus

Ten Days Across Turkey: From Istanbul's Mosques to Cappadocia's Stone Towers

You spend ten days moving through Turkey's major historical sites and landscapes — from Istanbul's mosques and palaces through the Gallipoli Battlefields, Troy, Ephesus, and Pamukkale's thermal pools, ending in Cappadocia's underground cities and fairy chimneys. The tour includes nine nights in boutique hotels, all entrance fees, transport in a private vehicle, and a professional guide who stays with your group the entire time, so you never repeat an introduction or lose the thread of the story. You return to Istanbul for your departure transfer, having seen the country without arranging a single detail yourself.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Arrival and free time in Istanbul

• Transfer to hotel
• Free time to explore Istanbul

Day 2 — Istanbul Old City sightseeing

• Breakfast at hotel
• Visit Blue Mosque
• Tour St Sophia Museum
• Explore Topkapi Palace
• See the Hippodrome
• Optional Bosphorus cruise

Day 3 — Gallipoli WW1 Battlefields tour

• Breakfast at hotel
• Visit Lone Pine Memorial
• See Chunuk Bair Memorial
• Explore ANZAC Cove and The Nek
• Visit Johnston's Jolly and trenches

Day 4 — Troy and Behramkale village visit

• Depart Çanakkale
• Explore ancient Troy city
• Visit Troy Museum
• Tour Behramkale village
• Travel to Kuşadası

Day 5 — Ephesus and cultural experiences

• Guided tour of Ephesus
• Visit Temple of Artemis site
• Explore Ephesus Archaeology Museum
• Learn carpet weaving at village

Day 6 — Pamukkale travertines and Hierapolis

• View handcrafted leather goods
• Tour Pamukkale travertines
• Visit ancient Hierapolis city
• Swim in hot springs

Day 7 — Silk Road and Konya sightseeing

• Travel Silk Road route
• Visit Sultanhani Caravansary
• Tour Mevlana Museum in Konya
• Optional Turkish folklore evening

Day 8 — Cappadocia natural and underground sites

• Visit Goreme Valley Open Air Museum
• See fairy chimneys
• Explore underground city

Day 9 — Ankara visit and return to Istanbul

• Early departure to Ankara
• Visit Anitkabir mausoleum
• Return to Istanbul

Day 10 — Departure and transfer to airport

• Breakfast at hotel
• Transfer to airport

The Experience

The scale of it hits you on day two, standing in front of Hagia Sophia after breakfast and realizing the guide has already walked you through the Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace — and there's still a Bosphorus cruise waiting in the afternoon. This 10-day tour moves deliberately but doesn't waste time. After a transfer from Istanbul airport and a night to settle, the itinerary opens with a full guided tour of the Old City, then pulls you south toward the Gallipoli Battlefields, where the WW1 memorials — Lone Pine, Chunuk Bair, ANZAC Cove — sit quietly on the peninsula. It's emotionally heavy ground, and the guide's knowledge makes the difference between walking through and understanding why you're there.

From Gallipoli, the route swings toward the Aegean. You'll spend time at Troy, the UNESCO site that's been rebuilt and reinterpreted so many times it feels less like a ruin and more like an argument frozen in stone — the award-winning Troy Museum helps settle some of it. Then comes Behramkale, a village of narrow stone streets where you can stop for Turkish tea, and Kuşadası, where you'll base yourself for two nights. Day five takes you through Ephesus with its theatre and the Temple of Artemis site, plus the Ephesus Archaeology Museum. There's also a carpet village visit, which sounds like a tourist trap until you realize how much labor goes into a single piece and why the price matters. The guide walks you through the craft without pressure to buy.

Pamukkale comes next — those white travertine terraces you've seen in photos, except you're actually walking on them and soaking in the thermal pools among Roman-era columns. The water is warm and mineral-rich, the kind of thing that feels both ancient and oddly modern. From there, the tour heads inland along the old Silk Road, stopping at Sultanhani Caravansary and the Mevlana museum in Konya before reaching Cappadocia. The landscape there is genuinely strange — fairy chimneys, underground cities carved into soft rock, the Goreme Valley Open Air Museum. You'll spend two nights in a cave hotel, which sounds gimmicky until you're actually inside one and realize it's been keeping people comfortable for centuries. An early morning drive to Ankara rounds out the cultural sites with Anitkabir, Atatürk's mausoleum, before the final return to Istanbul and your airport transfer.

What makes this work is the consistency. The same professional English-speaking guide stays with the group from day one through day ten, which means no repetition of the same introductions, no learning curve with a new voice every few days. The tour handles all logistics — accommodation at boutique hotels, entrance fees, the car ferry between continents, transport in an air-conditioned vehicle. You show up and move through Turkey without arranging anything yourself. If you want to skip the optional Bosphorus cruise or the Turkish folklore evening in Konya, you can; the itinerary doesn't force every optional add-on. Groups stay small, which matters when you're standing in front of something like Ephesus or navigating the narrow streets of Behramkale.

What’s included

• Nine nights accommodation in boutique hotels across Istanbul, Kuşadası, Pamukkale, and Cappadocia.
• all entrance fees to attractions including Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, Gallipoli Battlefields, Troy, Ephesus, Pamukkale thermal pools, Goreme Valley Open Air Museum, and Anitkabir.
• transportation in a fully air-conditioned, non-smoking vehicle for the entire 10 days.
• car ferry fees between Çanakkale and Eceabat.
• professional English-speaking tour guide from day one through departure.
• visits to the carpet village and leather goods workshop.
• access to underground cities and ancient sites throughout the itinerary.

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Fez Travel

Is this one for you?Choose this tour if you want to see Turkey's major historical and natural sites in one trip without arranging transport, hotels, entrance fees, or a guide — the fixed 10-day itinerary and included professional guide mean you move through the country at a steady pace, staying in one place long enough to absorb it before moving on.

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Top questions

What's included in the 9 nights of accommodation?

Stays at boutique hotels: Port Bosphorus Hotel in Istanbul, Ilayda Avantgarde Hotel in Kuşadası, Adem Pira Hotel in Pamukkale, and either Hanedan Cave Hotel or Dere Suites Hotel in Cappadocia. All accommodation is included in the tour price.

Is the Bosphorus cruise included?

The half-day Bosphorus cruise on day two is optional and costs extra. It's offered in the afternoon after the guided tour of the Old City.

Can I fly from Cappadocia to Istanbul instead of taking the bus?

Yes. An optional morning flight from Kayseri airport (Cappadocia) to Istanbul is available at additional cost. Contact the operator for pricing.

What language is the guide?

The tour guide is a professional English speaker who accompanies the group for all 10 days.

Is this tour suitable for families with young children?

Yes. The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels. Infants and small children can use a pram or stroller, and specialized infant seats are available in the vehicle. A child rate applies when a child shares accommodation with two paying adults.

What happens on the first and last days?

Day one: you're transferred to your hotel in Istanbul; the rest of the day is free. Day ten: after breakfast, you're transferred to the airport for your onward flight.