Trabzon to Mount Ararat: Göbekli Tepe Eastern Turkey Tour

Twelve days tracing 12,000 years across four civilizations and three climate zones

This 12-day tour of Eastern Turkey departs from Trabzon and traces the region's layered history across the Black Sea coast, Lake Van, the Armenian highlands and the Mesopotamian plains. You visit Sumela Monastery clinging to a cliff face, the ruined medieval city of Ani, Mount Ararat, the Urartian fortresses of Van, the colossal statues atop Mount Nemrut, and Göbekli Tepe: the world's oldest known religious structures at 11,000 years old. The tour includes two domestic flights, all breakfasts and dinners, lunch most days, entry to every museum and archaeological site, and transport in an air-conditioned vehicle with an English-speaking guide.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1: Trabzon and Sumela Monastery visit

• Fly from Istanbul to Trabzon
• Visit Hagia Sophia Museum
• Travel to Sumela Monastery in Altindere National Park
• Drive to Artvin via Rize and Hopa

Day 2: Georgian Valley and Erzurum tour

• Drive to Ishan Church via Artvin
• Stop at Bocka Dam and Coruh Valley
• Visit Tortum Waterfall and picnic
• Arrive Erzurum and visit Yakutiye Medrese
• Walk around Yakutiye and see local life

Day 3: Erzurum city and Ani ruins

• Tour Erzurum city center and historical sites
• Travel to Kars
• Visit Ani medieval city ruins

Day 4: Mount Ararat and Dogubeyazit

• Drive around western edge of Mount Ararat
• Visit Ishak Pasha Palace in Dogubeyazit
• Stop at Muradiye waterfall for refreshments

Day 5: Akdamar Island and Van castles

• Visit Armenian Church of the Holy Cross on Akdamar Island
• Travel to Hosap and visit Hosap Castle
• Visit Van Fortress and ruins of Tushpa
• See Cavustepe Urartian palace and fortress

Day 6: Lake Van and Nemrut crater

• Drive along southern shore of Lake Van to Tatvan
• Stop for refreshments in Tatvan
• Picnic lunch at Mount Nemrut crater lakes
• Visit historic tombstones in Ahlat

Day 7: Hasankeyf and Mardin tour

• Drive via Bitlis Gorge to Hasankeyf
• Visit caves and medieval ruins in Hasankeyf
• Explore Mardin's historical architecture
• Visit Saffron Monastery

Day 8: Diyarbakir city tour

• Visit Diyarbakır Fortress and main gates
• See Great Mosque of Diyarbakır
• Tour Meryem Ana Church and 10 Arches Bridge
• Visit Hasan Pasha Hani Ottoman Han

Day 9: Mount Nemrut and Commagene tombs

• Ferry over Euphrates to Narlice Village
• Travel to Mount Nemrut summit
• Climb to Tumulus of Antiochos
• Watch sunset from Nemrut summit

Day 10: Sanliurfa and Gobekli Tepe visit

• Visit archaeological dig at Gobekli Tepe
• Tour Holy Pools of Abraham and Prophet Abraham's cave
• Visit Bazaar and Gumruk Han in Urfa
• Explore Şanlıurfa Museum

Day 11: Gaziantep and Zeugma Museum

• Travel to Gaziantep
• Visit Zeugma Mosaic Museum
• Leisure time in Gaziantep old town and citadel

Day 12: Transfer to Gaziantep Airport

• Transfer to Gaziantep Airport after breakfast

The Experience

Trabzon sits on the Turkish Black Sea coast, and the tour starts there after you fly in from Istanbul. Your guide meets you at the airport and takes you straight to Hagia Sophia, a 14th-century Byzantine church overlooking the water, then up into Altindere National Park to Sumela Monastery: a seven-story structure built into a 1,200-foot cliff face that has housed monks since the 4th century. From the coast you drive inland through tea plantations and Georgian valleys, stopping at Tortum Waterfall, the tallest in Turkey, where you walk down to its base. The route then climbs toward the high plateaus of Eastern Anatolia, passing through landscapes that shift from green valleys to stark mountain terrain.

The middle days center on the great historical sites. You reach Ani, the ruined capital of a medieval Armenian kingdom that in the 10th century rivaled any city in Europe for size and splendor: its churches, cathedral shell, citadel and defensive walls still stand largely intact. From there you travel south toward Mount Ararat, stopping at Ishak Pasha Palace, a 17th-century structure blending Seljuk, Ottoman, Georgian and Armenian architecture built on the empire's remote edge. Lake Van dominates the next stretch: you take a boat to Akdamar Island to see the 10th-century Church of the Holy Cross, then visit Hosap Castle, built in 1643 on the Silk Road, and Van Fortress, an Urartian stronghold from the 9th century BC. Mount Nemrut comes next. You drive to the crater at 3,050 meters and picnic by two crater lakes, one cold and one heated by thermal springs.

The final days move south and west through Mesopotamia. You pass through Hasankeyf on the Tigris, visiting Byzantine caves and medieval ruins, then reach Mardin, a limestone city built into a hillside that functions as an open-air museum. Diyarbakır follows, where you see the fortress with the widest and longest defensive walls in the world after the Great Wall of China, and the Great Mosque, considered the fifth holiest site in Islam. Mount Nemrut in Adiyaman province comes next: a different Nemrut from the crater lake, this one a funerary monument at 2,150 meters where colossal statues of gods stand at the peak and you watch the sunset from the summit. Göbekli Tepe, near Şanlıurfa, is the final archaeological stop: an active dig site revealing the world's oldest religious structures, dating to 11,000–13,000 years old and predating pottery, writing and the pyramids. The tour ends in Gaziantep, famous for its mosaics from the submerged city of Zeugma and its regional cuisine, before transfer to the airport.

What’s included

• Two domestic flights (Istanbul to Trabzon, Gaziantep back to Istanbul).
• all breakfasts and dinners.
• lunch on most days.
• entry to every museum and archaeological site including Sumela Monastery, Ani, Akdamar Island church, Van Fortress, Mount Nemrut, Göbekli Tepe and the Zeugma Mosaic Museum.
• air-conditioned vehicle throughout.
• English-speaking guide for all 12 days.
• hotel accommodations in 4- and 5-star properties.
• all state and local taxes.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearbyNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by ALKANS TOUR

Is this one for you?This is a guided tour with a fixed itinerary and schedule, so you travel with a group and move through each site with your guide rather than exploring independently. Choose it if you want the historical and archaeological context explained as you go and prefer not to arrange transport, hotels and museum logistics yourself. The 12-day span lets you cover ground that would take much longer to piece together on your own, and the guide's knowledge of the region shapes how you understand what you are seeing.

Traveler reviews

4.72★★★★★★★★★★

29 verified traveler reviews

5 ★25

4 ★2

3 ★1

2 ★0

1 ★1

Read all the reviews ›

Top questions

What is Sumela Monastery and why does it hang from a cliff?

Sumela Monastery is a seven-story structure built into the side of a 1,200-foot cliff in Altindere National Park, about an hour from Trabzon. It has been a monastic site since the 4th century AD and became renowned partly because of its dramatic location and the ascetic principles of early Christian monasticism. The cliff setting itself made it a place of spiritual retreat and protection.

Can I see Mount Ararat on this tour?

Yes. The tour travels south and skirts around the western edge of Mount Ararat, which stands at 5,137 meters (16,854 feet). You also visit Ishak Pasha Palace near Dogubeyazit, located in the shadow of the mountain, which gives you views of it and context for its biblical and historical significance in the region.

What makes Göbekli Tepe different from other archaeological sites on the tour?

Göbekli Tepe is an active archaeological dig near Şanlıurfa that reveals the world's oldest known religious structures, dating to 11,000–13,000 years old. It predates pottery, writing, Stonehenge and the pyramids, and represents a major shift in understanding early human civilization. The site is not widely known but is considered one of the most important archaeological excavations currently underway anywhere.

Are the two domestic flights included in the tour price?

Yes. The tour includes two domestic flights: one from Istanbul to Trabzon at the start and one from Gaziantep back to Istanbul at the end. Both are included in the tour price along with all ground transport.

What meals are provided during the 12 days?

All breakfasts and dinners are included throughout the tour. Lunch is included on most days. The tour also stops in Gaziantep, known for its regional cuisine and food traditions influenced by Ogus Turks and neighboring Syria, where you have leisure time to explore the local food scene.

Do I need to be very fit to do this tour?

The tour involves moderate physical activity. You walk to the base of Tortum Waterfall, climb to the summit of Mount Nemrut at 2,150 meters to watch the sunset, and explore archaeological sites and fortress ruins on foot. The itinerary is not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health, but those with at least a moderate level of fitness can manage the pace.