We will be on a cruise ship in November '07 and docked for an overnight visit to Istanbul as well as Ephesus for a day.

I would like to ask if anyone that has been to either of these places could advise as to what we should see. I know that in Istanbul the Hagia Sophia is closed on one day (Mondays) we will be in port and Topkapi is closed on Tuesdays. In order to visit both places, we will have to split our tour into 2 days. We could do a full-day tour on Tuesday and a 1/2 day afternoon tour the day we arrive in port.
What else should be see?

Ephesus, it seems like there is a lot to see there also. Is a full-day tour advisable or can we see everything in a 4-5 hr. tour?

Can anyone recommend any tour groups for these 2 port stops?

Thanks so much.

Mary

We will be on a cruise in June which docks for Ephesus so when we return I will maybe have more info for you,as we intend doing a tour.

The Grand Bazaar in Istanbul shouldn't be missed...

Enjoy!

We will be heading out to Turkey ( including Istanbul and Ephesus) any day now, so I will also have more information soon and will be blogging our experience with lots of pictures that might help you.

I have been told that Ephesus is best to see VERY early in the morning as it is extremely crowded by 10 am , altho it might be better in November ( than it was for my friend in early May who had this experience). You can get a guide there I hear and in summer they are often professors in the summer.


There are also some agencies that you can google ( most in Selcuk nearby) which have tour guides for Ephesus. I have been told by many that you do not need a tour guide for Istanbul, but it is nice to have one for Ephesus.

There is a great Turkey planner website that might be useful to you ( google...I am in cyber with bad keyboard). Most guide books that cover Turkey will list the best things to see.

It seems everyone who has been there loves it, so enjoy!!

We just returned from a cruise that also included an overnight stop in Istanbul and one day at Kusadasi. Here's what we did and what I'd do differently:

We decided to spend the night off the ship. You certainly don't have to -- I just wanted to feel like I'd really spent time in the city. I'd do it again, but really the ship is quite close to the heart of the city so it's not necessary.

We docked at 1:00 in Istanbul. I thought there may be a delay getting off the ship because the Turkish authorities had to board and do some paperwork and landing cards had to be delivered to every cabin. I was wrong -- we were cleared to disembark almost immediately. If you want to be ahead of the excursion groups to leave the ship, be ready to go right at 1.

After a *lot* of thought and discussion between the four of us travelling together we decided to go on our own for the first day and hire a private guide + transfer for the second day (NOT through the ship which was crazy expensive).

We left the ship, walked out of the port and were immediately assailed by beggars, touts and assorted "salesmen" while we withdrew our cash from the ATM. (Which by the way is at the exit of the port, turn left and it's there on your left.) We didn't have our bearings and weren't sure which way to go to get on the tram to take us into Sultanhamet but a backpacker pointed us in the right direction (which is to continue past the ATM. A few blocks down is the tram stop. You buy tokens at the booth and use them to cross into the tram waiting area.

We took the tram (crowded but air conditioned) two stops to the Spice Bazaar which was incredible. But if your time is really limited and you plan to go to the Grand Bazaar, you could skip it as it is very similar.

Then we took a taxi to our hotel. Mind you, we've been to 20+ countries on nine trips now, and should know better, but we got totally taken. He charged us 20 lira and dropped us in a random spot nowhere near our hotel. He indicated hat it was a short walk down the street and pulled away. If you take a taxi, make sure you are *at* your destination or consult a map to ensure you are close (some areas are legitimately pedestrian only) before you pay.

We checked into our Hotel, the Dersaadet, which was staffed by very friendly and helpful employees.

We walked then to Hagia Sophia, not to be missed, the Basilica Cisterns, also amazing, and the Grand Bazaar, another incredible highlight. Then we walked back to our hotel to deposit our packages and took a taxi (that our hotel called for us) to the Beyoglu district for dinner at a "meyhane." This taxi was less than 10 lira for twice the distance.

After dinner we hailed a taxi and directed him to take us the the Blue Mosque -- this way we knew he couldn't trick us. From here we were a 5 minute walk form our hotel but my companions were hesitant bout walking the dark streets. (I didn't feel unsafe at all - maybe a matter of perspective).

In hindsight, given how much time we lost looking for our way and trying to find the hotel, I would hire the guide for the entire time. It is really quite reasonable.

The next morning we met our guide and he walked with us to the Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace. I can't imagine not visiting these two sites. I was very displeased though, that the guide cut our Topkapi visit short to take us to a ceramic shop (sales pitch )

Then the driver picked us up and drove us back to the ship.

I feel like we saw a lot in such a short time but it would have been less stressful with a guide the entire time. I would not have considered a ship tour -- I very much want to do what *I* want to do and hate being in a crowd following the leader.

Here's a photo journal of our visit to Istanbul

In Kusadasi we booked a guide and driver for the entire day. We visited Ephesus (took about 2 hours), had a leisurely lunch, went to a museum, visited St John's Basilica and went to a small village to find a spoonmaker my friend had read about. We easily fit all this in and had a little time in port for some tasks (like calling home). Here's the photos from that day.

This can in no way be considered slow travel but I know now we want to return to Turkey, especially Istanbul.

I'll be glad to answer any questions.

Yay Dana. It might not have been slow travel, but you know what? You got the feel of the city, which I think ESPECIALLY for Istanbul is really important the first time around. It is such an intense place, just getting your bearings can be so hard. My girlfriend, who lives in Bacasir (a suburb west of the city center) has a driver (a very interesting, semi normal part of upper middle class life in Turkey, along with household help), and he drove us to everything and home from everything -- all the places you experienced. What was hard for me to get my brain around was the Occidental/Oriental nature of the city, at once so European and at the same time so utterly foreign to me, that my senses were often fully overwhelmed.

In any event, you had a great taste of something exotic and that is a wonderful thing. I am happy for you.

Ephesus does need a guide. A fair bit of walking involved between sites. It is crowded and in summer is very hot. Take the trip as early as possible.

Awesome reports everyone! We will be in Istanbul for an overnight at the end of November so I have been researching what to do for those 2 days. I am looking into tour guides as I feel we will be able to maximize our time there by doing tours and seeing the most well-recommended sights.

We will also be visiting Ephesus and I will be looking for a tour guide there also. Can you recommend what to see in either of these two places? I have heard that we should not miss the Terrace Houses there.

We are really looking forward to our visit to these ports.

Thanks so much for any advice.

Mary

Was at Ephesus in May. Depending on how long your in port consider hiring driver\tour guide for day and seeing some of the other great sites around the general area. Its fairly cheap we did an all day tour for 79e each and got to Ephesus in mid-afternoon after all the tour buss's had gone there were a grand total of 16 others there. A guide is a must and don't miss the terraced houses.
If you want information on who I used contact me.

Hello Mary,
I am living in Istanbul, the ship dock is very close to my office. If you have time then I will be happy to meet.
If there is anything I can help with I would love to.

have a great journey.
Banu

Can anyone recommend a guide for Kusadasi? We would like to go to Ephesus, the temple of ARtemis, Terrace House and possible Sincre for wine tasting and olive oil tasting

You can easily get one through your hotel. I would avoid Kusadasi if you can as it is way overbuilt and a tourist trap.

There is sooooo much to see in this Ephesus area that I would give yourself at least a week.We stayed a little over a week and could have stayed longer.


We found Selcuk to be an ideal place to base and loved the beautiful, charmimg Kalehan


Ephesus alone can take an entire day and make sure you go on a day that no cruise ships will be there to avoid the crowds.

We were there in high season, got there before it opened and had the place to our selves for some time.

It is very special to have the place to yourself ( not to mention nice to have photos without crowds). We used the one of my daughter playing violin there in the belly dance costume she bought in nearby Sirince, in this years xmas card.

Another highlight was the time to talk to grad students who were doing archeological work there.

You also do not want to miss the archeology museum which goes hand in hand with Ephesus. It will take at least another half day and you have not seen Ephesus if you miss all the details in the museum.

Much of it is extraordinary precious things from the Terrace houses ( wealthy Romans) and my daughter looooved the gladiator exhibit which was very interesting to us all.

Sirince is lovely but again I would make sure that you go at a time when there are not tourist buses. We made sure we did and I can not even imagine how a crowd would ruin this tiny village and its charms.

If you have time, I highly recommend Pumukkale and Aphrodisias which is a day trip away ( although an overnight would probably be better). They are both amazing.

Hope that helps and I would be glad to answer any questions that I can. There are even more exciting daytrips, but I do not know how long that you have & did not want to overwhelm.

Allow as much time as you can for Turkey. It is a fantastic area to visit!!

Thank you for your tips, although we are going to be ones on a cruise ship. It seems if we get there early then we should at least be ahead of the crowds. I would love to go to Sincrene for wine tasting and olive oil. I hear there is a market on Wednesday.

Being that we are not staying in a hotel could someone recommend a tour guide?

I used:
mehmet@sammystravel.com
He has canned as well as do it yourself tours.
Service was excellent, driver great, willing to stop where we wanted etc.

JoanneH,

Thank you we are corresponding with Sammys travel now. They seems do be very flexible. Good to hear that you had a good time with them..Thank you