Izmir Archaeological site of Ephesus Excursion Reviews

Ephesus may have been the highlight of our trip! Great tour guide (Serdar), great tour, great site.

Provider: Independent Operator

I found Ephesus to be incredible. It's amazing to walk through these ruins and see how great this city used to be.

Provider: MSC Cruises

Better ruins than Greece. Amazing site. Just unbelievable! Great Guide. Must do this if nothing else! Also if buying souvenirs for the gang back home do it here. Prices are right. Also visited a rug factory. Very good

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

We took a package tour that took us to Ephesus. It is a worthwhile excursion where they even reenact a scene from Cleopatra's life. The tour guide took us to a carpet store and also to a specialty turkish delight store. It is better to do shopping for both here rather than in the hustle and bustle of Istanbul.

Provider: Independent Operator

excellent site and worth the visit!

Provider: Independent Operator

Turkey was the reason we picked this particular itinerary -- we've always wanted to see Ephesus. We docked in Izmir, which over an hour away from Ephesus, so decided to do a ship-sponsored shore excursion. We did the "Magnificent Ephesus" shore excursion which provided a comfortable bus, an excellent tour guide, admission to Ephesus (which includes the Library of Celsus), and a stop at a traditional hand-made Turkish carpet shop; there was plenty of time to shop on this excursion. Ephesus is beautiful and it is a must see if you're going to Turkey for the first time!

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

AMAZING! Ephesus is a brilliant site to visit and they have only uncovered around 25% of the old town. We were amazed to find so many building still 'in tact' so to speak. All of the current site has been very well looked after and kept together, the history as far as the Ottomans and Romans are concerned is interesting and it is well worth a visit! Izmir is a large coastal city which we didn't explore.

Provider: MSC Cruises

Absolutely amazing, the tour of Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary, wow, what history. Ephesus really leaves you speechless.

Provider: Independent Operator

We were a party of 15, booked independently after arranging on cruise critic and unfortunately only had a half day, arriving 7.15am and needing to be back on board no later than 12.30pm. The guide was excellent indeed and gave us a detailed description of Ephesus and some information en route. The person who organised our tour specifically asked for no shopping trips to carpet or leather stores as we felt we did not have enough time and that proved the correct decision as the site is a long way from the port itself, some 1 and 1/2 hours drive. Having said that we made a bathroom stop... at a shop. No matter though, it was fine. Basically we managed a whistle stop tour of the site itself before leaving. Ephesus is an excellent archaeological site and highly recommended. Be aware though, it is a long drive from Izmir and you always run the risk of being delayed and missing your ship if you arrange to do it yourselves.

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

Another wonderful tour and again we had an archaeologist as our guide , the information she was able to provide was incredible and we spent 3 hours in the ruins of Ephesus, again we were in a nice modern air conditioned bus.

Provider: Independent Operator

We were in port from 7am to 1pm so we booked a ship's tour. We went to the ruins of Ephesus and were impressed. Our guide was good and we had headsets to hear her. Because of the limited time we felt the ship's tour was the way to go.

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

Although our experience with the Cruise line, Costa was poor, the visit to Ephesus was very interesting.

Provider: Costa Cruises

This was an excellent tour for those who have an interest in history. The 'city' of Ephesus is absolutely amazing, especially if you believe the information that on;y about 17% has been uncovered. We had an English speaking Turkish lady for our guide and she was very good. Be aware that, depending on the time of the year, it can be quite hot with little shade. Take a hat and water. Spectacular place.

Provider: Costa Cruises

We arranged for a private tour here, and were motored in a private van to Ephesus for our tour. This was well worth the money as the ruins are extremely crowded and it would have been impossible for my mother to keep up with a large group. We had the most patient and wonderful guide through the ruins, and then escaped the crowds for a wonderful lunch in Sirince. We had time to do a little bit of shopping in Sirince in the very nice very low key market and there before we got back in the van. We had time for a quick stop at the ruins of the Basilica of St. John and then headed back to port. This was a great great way to see the city. The cruise line did a great job of explaining the things we would pay out of pocket for (parking at Ephesus, our admission to Ephesus and st john) Driver stopped at an ATM so I could withdraw enough Turkish money. I only felt bad because we really didn't have the budget to give our tour driver and tour guide the tip they probably deserved.

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

Simply amazing experience and well worth the coach trip from Izmir. Our tour-guide Amy was very knowledgeable, having a degree in archeology and fantastic English. A photographer came round the site with us taking shots which were an optional purchase at the end. We bought five photos for £10 (Sterling accepted) which was a bargain!

Provider: Thomson Cruises

Really enjoyed Ephesus, quite an archaeological site.

Provider: MSC Cruises

Excelent!!!

Provider: Costa Cruises

Ephesus is ALL it's touted to be in the tour books and MORE!!! You feel as if you're in a living, breathing Roman city, and the extant architecture has been beautifully restored. We recommend ephesustours.biz as the tour company to use. Our private tour guide, Begum Gencer, was one of the best tour guides we've had anywhere... personable, intelligent, sensitive to our needs and interests, knowledgeable, and thoughtful. We were relieved not to be herded along with hundreds of others from the cruise ship. Begum knew all the ins and outs of the site and regaled us with anecdotes and history so that the time was simply just too short. We did not tour the industrial city of Izmir. It's the least attractive port city arrival on the cruise.

Provider: Independent Operator

Our tour guide Taner was fantastic-with a short port time he got us to House Of Virgin Mary and the site of Ephesus for a really informative day

Provider: Independent Operator

ONLY WAY TO GET THERE 60 EURO BUT IF THIS SORT OF THING INTERESTS YOU THEN ITS WORTH IT

Provider: MSC Cruises

Izmir - We went to Ephesus with a private tour with Ephesus Shuttle. I had asked for a guide that would be great for families. We had Mr. Bob (Babar). He was excellent!! You could tell he does this because he loves sharing the information and has a passion for his country. We had to squeeze in the Terrace Houses since we were only in port 7 - 1 but I am so glad we did because my kids loved them. He zigzagged us through the crowds of large tour groups. He also talked to us the whole way there and back about his country, people and anything we wanted to know.

Provider: Independent Operator

We booked our English language excursion through Costa primarily due to the great distance between Izmir and the ruins. However, given the excellent guide on our adventure who not only provided thorough information throughout the trip, but also kept the group moving in an efficient manner, we were very glad we booked this trip. In addition to the ruins, our guide took us to a carpet making school in the area. Yes, we are sure that the guide was given a kick back by the school with the hopes that someone would buy one of their beautiful masterpieces, but it didn't matter. Sometimes current culture is as important as ancient culture.

Provider: Costa Cruises

A must! The only negative is that it was extremely crowded - so many cruise ships in at the same time.

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

Excellent guide, informative about the area and the site as she was an archaeological graduate. Pleasant drive. Toilet and refreshment stop appreciated although coach journey was only approx one hour. Ephesus was crowded and very hot but there is a theatre and the fabulous library frontage. Really interesting. Highlight of trip. Good value as doubt that you could have obtained the same level of information otherwise. Surprise stop at a pottery - no doubt in MSC interest - but no pressure to buy and it was slightly interesting. Photographer accompanied us and did manage to take some acceptable photos that you could purchase on the ship.

Provider: MSC Cruises

Got picked up right outside the ship and driven to the Ephesus ruins in an air-conditioned van. We hooked up with a fellow cruise critic couple we met through the forums and shared the cost with them (very reasonable prices). The countryside is surprisingly beautiful on the way. The tour through the ruins was fine, but it was the ruins themselves that were amazing! I loved the Library and the amphitheater is incredible! These were my favorite ruins of the trip!

Provider: Independent Operator

Tulay was another great guide who appreciated shade, clean and free toilet and safety in visiting the ancient site with slippery marble in many spots. Fabulous tour from a passionate and professional guide who wanted everyone to be welcome in Turkey.

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

We only had a half day here, so we took the NCL Simply Ephesus tour, which spends more time exploring Ephesus and skips the terrace houses. Other buses went to a leather store afterwards but our tour spent the entire time at Ephesus and we were some of the last people back on the ship -- so we loved it!

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

Ephesus is hugely crowded, but if you like Roman ruins it's a great stop. We were very certain to take an excursion in Turkey because we were hesitant about traveling to the country. That's a personal decision for each traveler, but I did notice that the excursions were much more full at that stop.

Provider: Norwegian Cruise Line

Ali with Ephesus shuttle did an incredible job. Loved that he had a mic so everyone could hear him.

Provider: Independent Operator

The actual timings etc all ran smoothly and the excursion was made very easy. The tour guide, Murat, was absolutely fantastic. He was Turkish but spoke fluent English, and he was very knowledgeable and funny which kept us interested. Ephesus itself was incredible. I did not think I would be that interested as it's not usually my sort of thing, but it was such a wonderful big site that you can't help but me amazed.

Provider: Costa Cruises

Getting robbed by the food vendor for 50 Euro is all I remember about this. Of course you see cops everywhere in Turkey until a Turk is robbing you.

Provider: MSC Cruises

DO NOT TAKE THE SHIP EXCURSION. OK so it didn't help that, in addition to Pacifica, there was Costs Serena (i think) AND a Pullmantur ship at the port. It was gridlock from the start so we were behind schedule all day. All the buses made the same potty-break stop at the same cafe/souvenir shop at the same time. There were 10-15 busses, with probably 25-40 people on each - all trying to use the same 10-stall bathroom. They said we had 15 minutes. Seriously? 500 people? It was ridiculous. So we get to Ephesus and it's awash in people. Probably more than when the city was at it's height. The guide hustled us through in less than 90 minutes. Didn't even mention the Terrace houses. It didn't help that we had two couples trying to navigate with infants in strollers. What were they thinking? Before we even got to the ampitheater at the end, she gave us 10 minutes to look at the ampitheater, use the bathroom, get something to eat, and get back to the bus. One man blurted out "10 minutes?" incredulous. "Yes" she says "we're running late." Late to what? The tour of Ephesus was over, it was 2 o'clock. We hadn't been given any time to eat anything and the ship doesn't leave until 6. Of course the rude Spanish party kept everyone waiting on the bus for an extra 10 minutes. I didn't know who to be more annoyed at - the guide for rushing us through or the people that kept us all waiting. So where were we late to? A "rug academy" of course. Out in the middle of nowhere. Not mentioned anywhere in the excursion description. Having been to Turkey twice before, we'd seen the whole rug schtick. We bolted as quickly as we could, only to have to pass through room after room of overpriced "fine jewelry" at "discount prices". After about 4 rooms of "fine jewelry" we started getting more standard souvenir faire - which was fine. I wanted to get some Turkish Delight and inexpensive "evil eye" beads for friends back home. But since we were the first to break free, the salespeople literally pounced on us while we were barely in the door. Finally we got outside. We were starving and we had seen what looked like a little cafe outside. Turns out they had chips, soda and ice cream. That was it. By the time we were herded back on the bus, we had spent more time at the rip-off rug academy - that wasn't on the itinerary - than we had at Ephesus. I wouldn't have minded so much if we hadn't been rushed through Ephesus and not allowed any time for a bite to eat. Or if the rug demo had been somewhere where there were other options to shop or relax. We should've demanded our money back, but we were so worn out and angry we just didn't want to deal with it.

Provider: Costa Cruises