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A Mini Tour of Turkey – two week itinerary

View of Istanbul from the Bosphoros

Istanbul from the Bosphoros

A Mini Tour of Turkey

September saw us set off for a two week tour of Turkey, a new destination for me, and one I knew little about. The more research I did the more I realised how much there is to this fascinating country. We had just two weeks and wanted to combine sightseeing, relaxation and city exploration all the while photographing and eating our way around the country. Two weeks gave us time to just scratch the surface. Here’s the itinerary for our tour of Turkey.

Goreme, Cappadocia

After flying into Istanbul we took a flight to Kayseri in the centre of the country.  We then transferred to Goreme in a region called Cappadocia in central Anatolia and stayed three nights here, the first in a ‘Fairy Chimney’ in the most charming boutique cave hotel in Goreme.  We explored the underground cave town of Derinkuyu, hiked through some incredible volcanic rock formations, had the most perfect breakfast of my life and took a dawn hot air balloon flight with around 80 other balloons. A memory I’ll always treasure.

Goreme, Cappadocia, Turkey

Rose Valley, Cappadocia

Pamukkale

The next leg of our tour of Turkey took us from Goreme to Pamukkale in Denizli. It was a pretty gruesome 8.5 hour drive by night bus but worth every bone crunching, sleep-deprived minute to see Pamukkale’s incredible Cotton Castle. The white terraces are formed from calcium carbonate which eventually hardens and forms travertine pools.  People have bathed here for thousands of years.

Hierapolis

Nearby is the archaeological town of Hierapolis with amphitheatre, necropolis, monumental gates and ancient ruins. We had one night in Pamukkale in a lovely little family run hotel. Our room that looked like a set from a 70s porn film – not that I would know! The gigantic four-poster bed swathed in burgundy sequinned drapes and bedspread needs to be seen to be believed!

Cotton Castle, Pamukkale, Turkey

Travertines, Pamukkale

Bodrum

From Pamukkale we travelled down to the coast to Bodrum – another bus journey but this time only 4.5 hours and in daylight which meant we could take in some of Turkey’s scenery en-route.  We had five nights in Bodrum and a chance to kick back and relax.  We spent our time wandering the town searching out little bars and cafes, a day on a boat and a day in the hospital.  Best laid plans…

Watching your back - Turkish Eyes

Turkish eyes – watching your back

Istanbul

From Bodrum we flew back to where we arrived; Istanbul was the destination for our last two nights.  A lot was crammed into two days. We explored The Hagia Sophia and Blue Mosque, the curiously creepy Basilica Cistern, and took a boat trip on the Bosphorus.  A morning spent at Topkapi Palace wasn’t nearly long enough and the hectic Spice Bazaar and Grand Bazaar were an assault on the senses. We dived into some delicious sweet treats while exploring Istanbul’s sweet side and enjoyed general wanderings and explorations.

Sultan Ahmed (Blue Mosque), Istanbul

Sultan Ahmed (Blue Mosque), Istanbul

Our Tour of Turkey

Here’s our route for our mini tour of Turkey. Straight lines are flights, wiggly lines are road routes.

Map of our mini Turkey Tour

Are you planning a trip to Turkey? If you have any questions or need any tips drop me a line. I’m happy to help where I can.

Roving Jay

Wednesday 7th of August 2013

Istanbul is a fabulous city isn't it. I walked and walked for miles, and we ended up taking a day boat to the Princes' Islands, just so we could sit down for a couple of hours!

Suzanne Courtney

Wednesday 7th of August 2013

I loved Istanbul - I still have lots of posts and photos to publish about the city. I could have spent a month there and it wouldn't have been long enough! Love the idea of the boat trip to Princes' Islands...

Bodrum, Bigfoot and a bit of a Barter | the travelbunny

Monday 24th of June 2013

[…] and took a coach down to the Bodrum Peninsular on the south-west coast for the third stop on our mini Turkish tour.  This was a shorter daytime journey of just 4.5 hours so we were able to see some of […]

Pictures from Pamukkale | the travelbunny

Saturday 30th of March 2013

[...] was the second stop on our mini-tour of Turkey.   From Goreme we travelled eight hours on the night bus to Dinizli and then by Dolmus to [...]

a passion and a passport

Friday 8th of March 2013

What a great itinerary! Will have to bookmark this to remember how you filled up your 2 weeks, which will most likely be the same amount of time I have! Thanks for sharing!

Göreme – Love Valley and Tree of the Evil Eye | the travelbunny

Sunday 3rd of March 2013

[...] first leg of our mini tour of Turkey in Göreme was coming to an end.  We’d floated over Cappadocia in a hot air balloon, [...]

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