Beaches of Turkey · 15-Day Tour

Arrive at Istanbul Airport and meet the assistant at gate 9. Transfer to the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast before departure for the Sultanahmet tour. Visit Topkapı Palace, where the Ottoman sultans lived, with beautiful rooms and gardens. The 86-carat Spoonmaker's Diamond is among the largest diamonds in the world. Then visit Hagia Sophia, whose dome was the largest in the Christian world for 900 years. It was a church, then a museum and is now a mosque. Lunch at a local restaurant.

Visit the Roman Hippodrome, dating to Emperor Septimius Severus in 203 and serving as the city's centre until the Republic. The Blue Mosque, the city's most visited mosque, has an impressive collection of İznik tiles. Sultan Ahmet commissioned it as a counterpart to Hagia Sophia. Finish with shopping at the Grand Bazaar. Overnight accommodation.

Breakfast box and an early departure for Ankara. Arrive in the capital of the modern Republic of Turkey and take a panoramic city tour with a stop at Atatürk's Mausoleum. Continue towards Cappadocia, stopping at Salt Lake on the way. Arrival at the hotel, dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Optional tour: Hot-air balloon ride to enjoy a wonderful panorama in one of the world's most beautiful regions.

Breakfast at the hotel. Visit Özkonak Underground City, built by Christian communities seeking protection from the Romans. Lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon, visit Göreme Open-Air Museum, with chapels and houses carved into the rock and decorated with tenth-century frescoes, some depicting Saint George, who was born in the region. Visit a traditional shop known for carpets handmade using an ancient technique. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Optional tour: Folk-dance show in a typical cave, with a limited quantity of local drinks.

Breakfast at the hotel and panoramic visits to Avcılar and Güvercinlik valleys. Appreciate the fairy chimneys that give Cappadocia its distinctive landscape. Lunch at a local restaurant. Visit the old village of Uçhisar at Cappadocia's highest point. In the afternoon, visit a shop selling jewellery and stones characteristic of Cappadocia. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel and departure for Pamukkale. Stop at a clothing outlet on the way. Then visit the ancient city of Hierapolis and the Cotton Castle, a natural wonder with remarkable limestone formations and white natural pools. Arrival at the hotel, dinner and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel. A free day to enjoy the thermal pools. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel and departure to visit the ruins of Ephesus, Turkey's best-preserved ancient Greco-Roman city and the Asian capital of the Roman Empire. See the magnificent Library of Celsus, Marble Street and the theatre with capacity for 25,000 people, where Saint Paul addressed his followers.

Visit the House of the Virgin Mary, a Christian religious site near Ephesus, seven kilometres from Selçuk. According to tradition, John the Evangelist brought the Virgin Mary here after Christ's crucifixion, escaping persecution in Jerusalem, and she remained here until her blessed Assumption. There will also be time to visit a leather outlet; the region is known for the quality of its leather goods. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel. A free day to enjoy this wonderful city. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel and departure for Bodrum. Arrival in Bodrum, dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel. A free day to enjoy this wonderful city. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel. A free day to enjoy this wonderful city. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel. A free day to enjoy this wonderful city. Dinner at the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast at the hotel. Transfer to the airport for the domestic Bodrum–Istanbul flight. Arrival in Istanbul, transfer to the hotel, rest and overnight accommodation.

Optional excursion: Bosphorus cruise. Breakfast at the hotel and a visit to the Mosque of Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent. Continue to the Egyptian Bazaar, also known as the Spice Bazaar, the second-largest and second-oldest bazaar in Istanbul. Shop for spices, dried fruit, sweets, saffron, tea and caviar. Then take a Bosphorus cruise on a regular ferry along the strait separating Asia and Europe.

There will be opportunities to photograph the area's natural beauty, Ottoman palaces and waterfront mansions featured in Turkish television dramas. Also see Ortaköy's square and cafés, Mecidiye Mosque and the suspension bridges connecting the two continents. Continue to Beyoğlu to visit Galata Tower, north of the Golden Horn. This attractive landmark is 650 years old and 67 metres high, with a fabulous view. Return to the hotel and overnight accommodation.

Breakfast; depending on the departure time, a breakfast box may be provided. Transfer to the airport for the return flight. End of services.