12 Day Greece & Turkey Heritage Discovery Tour: Athens, Delphi, Meteora & Istanbul Highlights

(Dinner included)
Arrive at Athens Airport, transfer to the hotel, and accommodation at your reserved hotel. You can explore Athens in your free time; may shop in the famous Plaka area and have a drink at the cafes nearby. Dinner and overnight in Athens. 

(Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner included)

Today, we’ll start our local Athens tour after breakfast. If we are lucky, we can see the uniformed soldiers during the changing of the guard. We will proceed with a visit to the Church of Panagia Kapnikarea, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Old Royal Palace, and Hadrian's Arch in Adrianou Street and have lunch in an authentic Greek restaurant. Later, we will visit the Acropolis of Athens located on a hill, overlooking the whole city of Athens with the first known defense walls built in the 13th century BC by the Ancient Mycenaeans.

End of the tour accommodation and dinner in Athens. 

(Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner included)

After breakfast, we will drive to Delphi, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, 185 km from Athens. Located in a magnificent area with beautiful topography, Delphi has been the sacred place and religious worship center of the Hellenic World dedicated to Apollo for centuries. In the ancient city of Delphi, we’ll see the Temple of Apollo, known as the God of the sun, music, poetry, and healing, the Athenian Treasury, the Siphnian Treasury, the Kings of Argos, Omphalos (the stone placed in the center of the earth), the Altar of the Chiots, Delphi Ancient Theater, Delphi Stadium and thousands of years old masterpieces in the Delphi Museum.

Dinner and overnight in Delphi. 

(Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner included)

Discover the wonderful Monastic Heritage of Meteora in Greece and the fascinating fairy chimneys of Cappadocia in Turkey.

We’ll depart for Kalambaka right after breakfast, and drive for about four hours. After a lunch break in a local restaurant, we’ll continue with today’s excursion in Meteora which is known as one of the sacred sites of Christianity. Meteora is made up of several monasteries built on the top of a hill around the 11th century. The reason why they picked such an isolated location, as you might have guessed, was safety concerns. They didn’t have stairway access, but a lift system made of wood and thick tethers to carry people and goods up and down. We will finish this wonderful excursion with a visit to Holy Telis (Agia Triada) and Agios Nikolaos Anapafsas monasteries. We’ll also see any other available monasteries at the time of our visit in this breathtaking atmosphere. After our visits, we’ll head for our hotel in Kalambaka.

Dinner and overnight in Kalambaka.

(Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner included)

After breakfast, we’ll travel to Thessaloniki which is 250 km from Kalambaka. On the way, the first site we will visit is Vergina; the legendary and holy graveyard of the Macedonian Kings. The tomb of King Philip II, and the father of Alexander the Great, who had a great contribution to the development of Hellenism on the Greek lands, is located here. From here, we’ll continue on our way to Thessaloniki and have a lunch break at a Greek restaurant. After lunch, we will begin our exploration of Thessaloniki with its beautiful monuments and remains as the White Tower of Thessaloniki, Aristotelous Square, St. Sophia Church, Galerius Triumphal Arch, and Byzantium Castle. During St. Paul's second and third missionary journey, he did missionary work in Thessaloniki and wrote letters to the Thessalonians.

End of the tour, dinner, and overnight in Thessaloniki. 

(Breakfast, and Dinner included)

After your breakfast, check out from the hotel and we will arrange your transfer to Thessaloniki Airport for flight to Turkey. Upon our arrival at Istanbul International Airport, your guide will meet, assist and transfer you to the hotel. Istanbul’s original name is Byzantium then Constantinople. It is a most fascinating city, which actually crosses two continents Europe and Asia. It is a city of amalgamation of bazaars, minarets, mosques, churches, palaces, and restaurants catering to every one’s taste, museums, customs and twelve million people. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Open buffet breakfast included)

After breakfast, we have Istanbul City Tour. Our first visit will be HIPPODROME. Ancient Hippodrome was the scene of chariot races, with the three monuments; the Obelisk of Theodosius, the bronze Serpentine Column and the Column of Constantine. Than we will visit SULTANAHMET IMPERIAL MOSQUE. Across from Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, it was built in the 16th century by the architect Mehmet, is known as the BLUE MOSQUE because of its magnificent interior decoration of blue Iznik tiles. Our next see will be HAGIA SOPHIA GRAND MOSQUE. The Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque, previously known as the Church of Divine Wisdom, is simply the best of its kind! Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque is the greatest surviving example of Byzantine Architecture. For 1000 years, it was once the largest church in the world, decorated with stunning 6th century golden mosaics. Today it is a mosque. You can see it from outside.  After that see TOPKAPI PALACE, the great palace of the Ottoman sultans from the 15th to the 19th centuries housing an exquisite collection of crystal, silver, and Chinese porcelain, robes worn by the sultans and their families, the famous jewels of the Imperial Treasury, miniatures, the Holy Mantle; enshrining relics of the Prophet Mohammed. You can see it from outside.    The Basilica Cistern Museum is one of the most important cultural assets where we can trace the traces of glorious Istanbul history. With its 80,000-ton water storage capacity, Yerebatan Cistern is the largest covered cistern in the city and stands out with more reclaimed supporting elements compared to other covered cisterns. Covering an area of approximately 10,000 square meters, this colossal structure has a rectangular shape with a length of 140 meters and a width of 70 meters. You can see it from outside.  After the tour, transfer back to your hotel. Dinner at Indian restaurant and Overnight in Istanbul.

If you would like to visit with entrance below sites;

Topkapi Palace Museum Entrance Fee. You pay the door price.

The Basilica Cistern Museum Entrance You pay the door price.

Please Note: Please do not forget to carry Scarf with you because of visiting to Blue Mosque & Haghia Sophia Mosque. 

(Open buffet breakfast included)

Pick up at 08:30am from the hotel and depart for the Istanbul Bosphorus Cruise and Shopping Tour. BOSPHORUS BY BOAT a traditional excursion by boat along the waterway separating Europe and Asia. The shore is lined with old wooden villas, palaces of marble, fortresses, and small fishing villages. During the excursion you will see the magnificent sights of the following attractions from your boat. See Dolmabahce Palace, and further along, the parks and imperial pavilions of Yildiz Palace. On the coastal edge of this park, is Ciragan Palace, 300 meters of its marble facade faces the shore. At Ortakoy a great variety of artists gather every Sunday to display their work along the street. Ortakoy is a symbol of tolerance with a church, a mosque and a synagogue existing side by side for centuries.

RUMELI FORTRESS Built by Mehmet the Conqueror in 1452 prior to the conquest of Istanbul was completed in only four months to control and protect the infamous Bosphorus passage. It is one of the most beautiful works of military architecture anywhere in the world. BEYLERBEYI PALAS (PALACE) The summer residence of Ottoman sultans exists in its original renovated glory featuring original antique furniture and magnificent gardens with the Harem on the Asian side of Istanbul.

BOSPHORUS BRIDGE enjoy a unique chance to step from one continent (Asia) to another (Europe)

CAMLICA HILL the highest point in Istanbul. At the top of it you can rest and admire the magnificent panorama of Istanbul and the Bosphorus from the beautiful gardens, landscaped in traditional Turkish Ottoman style. SHOPPING TOUR (after cruise) Experience the traditional silk weaving skills of Turkish women at the carpet weaving courses provided by The Ministry of National Education. You will get the opportunity to see jewellery, handcrafts centre and a modern leatherwear show. Enjoy the experience of shopping whilst gaining the knowledge of the ancient craftsmen, with Murti's Tour's local escort full of knowledge about how to haggle the streets of Istanbul. The rest of the evening is yours to explore Istanbul. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Open buffet breakfast included)

Enjoy a cruise in the Marmara Sea to Istanbul's famous Prince's Islands. This is your opportunity to see Topkapi Palace, Leander's Tower and Uskudar from the sea. Stop at Buyukada, the popular summer resort with sandy beaches and pinewood scenery, once the pleasure island of Byzantine Princes. During the Summer season, enjoy the magical atmosphere that the Island's beach resort has to offer including many optional water sporting activities. Tour the island with horse-drawn carriages before stopping for an exquisite lunch at a fish restaurant. After your tour, we will transfer you back to your hotel. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Open buffet breakfast included)

After breakfast check out from the hotel. We hope your tour was a memorable one and we look forward to seeing you in the future on another TravelShop Booking Tour. Have a safe trip back home and thanks for choosing TravelShop Booking.