13 Days Jewish Heritage Tour 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.

(Breakfast included)

Morning visit to a Jewish neighborhood, Galata. You will see the Galata Tower built by the Genoese in 1303. Visit the local synagogues, Neve Shalom and the Askenazy Synagogue. After lunch, visit the Hippodrome, a 3rd century site, where chariots raced during the Roman period. Visit the Blue Mosque, famous for its blue tiles and six minarets. Visit St. Sophia, a world heritage site built in the 6th century. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Breakfast included)

After breakfast, we will visit the Topkapi Palace, which was the residence of the Ottoman sultans, with its fabulous treasure chambers. After the lunch, Murtis Tour will take you to the Grand Spice Bazaar which is a unique atmosphere with reasonable prices for your shopping. Here you will find; Exotic Spices and Herbs, Turkish Baklava, Turkish Delights, Turkish Coffee, nuts and fruits, small souvenirs such as Ceramic Handicrafts, Evil Eyes totems, all naturel olive oil, soaps and many other goods in Souvenir Shops and stores. After the tour, transfer back to your hotel. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Breakfast included)

Visit of the Balat neighborhood where you will see the star of David appearing on building facades. Visit the 15th Ahrida and the Yanbol synagogues. Visit the Jewish home for the elderly along the Golden Horn. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Breakfast included)

You may walk to the synagogue to attend morning Shabbat services and the rest of the day is at your disposal for leisure. Dinner and overnight in Istanbul.

(Breakfast and dinner included)

Transfer from hotel to Istanbul airport. Morning flight to Kayseri and drive to Cappadocia to see the rock-cut churches and monasteries. Drive also to Pasabag and Zelve where you will enjoy the most unusual types of Fairy Chimneys and rock formations. After lunch visit the spectacular Cappadocian valleys and villages such as Uchisar, Goreme Open Air Museum and Ortahisar. Dinner and overnight in Cappadocia.

(Breakfast and dinner included)

Drive to the Ozkonak Undergorund City. Visit this amazing complex with its fascinating tunnels, dwellings and storage rooms. After Ozkonak, drive to old Sinassos (Mustafapasa) which is famous for its unrivaled houses with painted facades. After lunch at Sinassos, drive to Avanos to see the pottery makers. Dinner and overnight in Cappadocia.

(Breakfast and dinner included)

Drive to Konya, ancient Seljuk capital, with its huge monastery complex and shrine of the mystic Mevlana, inspiration of the rite of whirling dervishes. After lunch, Drive to Pamukkale. At Hierapolis (Pamukkale), enjoy the “Cotton Castles” of brilliant white calcium rock formations and hot - water travertines, where hot mineral waters emerge from the earth and cascade over cliffs. As the water-cools, the calcium precipitates and clings to the cliffs, forming snowy white travertines (waterfalls of white stone), which give credence to the name Pamukkale, meaning “cotton castle”. This enchanting place is one of the natural wonders of Asia Minor. Dinner and overnight in Pamukkale.

(Breakfast and dinner included)

After breakfast drive to Ephesus, major port city on the Aegean, was the commercial, political, and religious center of all of Asia Minor. After a lunatic completely burned, the Temple of Diana (Artemis) on the night that Alexander the Great was born in 356 B.C. the Ephesians worked for 120 years to complete a magnificent reconstructed temple, one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. The city became part of the Roman Empire in the second century B.C. As a Roman capital of Asia Minor, Ephesus boasted a population approaching 250,000 people. The Great Theatre (stadium) could seat 25,000 people. Walk the marble - paved street with grooves made by chariot wheels. See the Fountain of Trojan, the Library of Celsus and the Great Theatre. Visit the Chapel of the Virgin Mary (Double Church), where the Third Ancient Council convened. We visit The House of Virgin Mary where she spent her latest years. Dinner and overnight in Izmir.

(Breakfast and dinner included)

This morning, we visit the Senora Synagogue (when possible) and Havra Street in Izmir where Jewish immigrants settled in 1492. You'll continue on to Sardes, where you'll visit one of the important historical cities of western Anatolia, the capital of the Lydian State. Sardes has rich architectural works reflecting its magnificent past. You'll see the Temple of Artemis, the mint house where coins were made, the gold purifying center, shops, gymnasium and the synagogue which was once one of the largest in history, built first in the 4th century BC and rebuilt in the 3rd century AC to its present day after being destroyed by an earthquake. Dinner and overnight in Izmir.

(Breakfast included)

Flight to Istanbul. Arrival in Istanbul and transfer to the hotel. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Breakfast included)

Free Day in Istanbul. The city is yours to stroll around. Overnight in Istanbul.

(Breakfast included)

After breakfast, pick up from the hotel and transfer to Istanbul Airport for your flight back home. 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.