The unexpected treat of our trip. We booked a private excursion through Celsus Travel to Ephesus. House of Mary was very lovely. The ruins at Ephesus are inspiring. So much is intact including the roads themselves, that as you wander around, you really get a sense of walking through an ancient city, not just stopping to look at ruins. You are absorbed into the surroundings. Our visit ...
Been to Ephesus so stayed in Izmir. Spent a lot of time in the Bazaar. Rode the on again off bus to see the sights. If you haven't been to Ephesus it is a must see. ...
This port was wonderful. We walked along the sea front where they have many beautiful parks. There were many fishermen along the sea wall and the breeze from the ocean was fresh and clear. We walked to the center of town and walked along the streets and absolutely no one bothered us or tried to sell us anything. We felt safe and didn't worry too much about having our pockets picked or ...
Turkey was surprisingly the best stop this time. No civil unrest. Turkey isn't really feeling the economic woes due to its non-participation with the euro. On this stop, I recommend the official tour if you go to Ephesus. We ran into a few people who took a cab and lost a lot of time.
The port is nice, the shops and restaurants are right across the street and when they're open, they face ...
A real surprise packet given we knew nothing about Izmir before the cruise. A city of 3 million, it is very clean and surprisingly cosmopolitin. We caught a hop on hop off bus from the port for 10 euros - but get in early, they only go every half hour and first tickets sell fast meaning you could have to wait for 30 or even 60 minutes to get a bus. They strictly count the tickets sold and change ...
For this tour we used Ephesus tours. Our guide was Banu Akin. She was very knowledgeable and we were never rushed. For those reading this make sure no matter what company you use to do the "Terrace Houses" at Ephesus. This is not to be missed, they are the homes of the super rich of the day with indoor hot and cold running water, saunas, and even an indoor bathroom. A must see trust me it is worth ...
From Izmir we visited Ephesus, St John's and The House of the Virgin Mary. There were moments when we felt we were on our own, and others when we saw the thousand people who were also visiting that day. A stunning place, full of atmosphere and history ...
The port was switched from Kusadasi to Izmir a few weeks before the departure, resulting in our being much further away from Ephesus. We had booked a tour with Ephesus Deluxe and were able to change the port. The communication with this company was very good but, unfortunately, the guide we were assigned was very disappointing. She had neither personality nor an adequate knowledge of the sight. I ...
