Itinerary

1. 1

   Day 1 — Arrival in Istanbul and transfer to the hotel

   After you land at Istanbul Airport, a Solandra representative meets you at the first exit door and takes you to your hotel. There is no sightseeing and no meal on this day. The night is in Istanbul.

2. 2

   Day 2 — Old City tour on foot (breakfast and lunch included)

   Visited sights: Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi Palace, the Hippodrome, the Obelisk of Theodosius, and the Grand Bazaar. After breakfast the guide picks you up from the hotel for a full day in the Old City on foot. You see the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, Topkapi Palace, once home to the Ottoman sultans, the Hippodrome, and the Obelisk of Theodosius. The Hippodrome is where the crowds of old Constantinople gathered; the obelisks are still standing. The last stop is the Grand Bazaar, the large covered market at the heart of the old city. There is time to walk it. At the end of the tour you are taken back to your hotel. The night is in Istanbul.

3. 3

   Day 3 — Flight to Cappadocia and the northern tour (lunch included)

   Visited sights: Devrent Valley, Pasabag (Monk’s Valley), Avanos, Goreme, and the Open Air Museum. Breakfast on this day is not in the package. You are picked up very early and taken to the airport for the flight to Cappadocia. The flight lasts about an hour and is in the package. On arrival a Solandra representative meets you at the first exit door, holding a sign with your name. The day covers Devrent Valley and its chimneys, Pasabag, Avanos, the Goreme valley, and the Open Air Museum, where churches and early Christian dwellings cut from the soft rock are still standing. After the tour you are taken to your hotel. The night is in Cappadocia.

4. 4

   Day 4 — Southern Cappadocia and the flight back to Istanbul (breakfast and lunch included)

   Visited sights: Red and Rose Valley, Gulludere Valley, Cavusin Village, Kaymakli or Ozkonak Underground City, Ortahisar, Uchisar Castle, Pigeon Valley, and Three Beauties Valley. After breakfast the guide picks you up and the southern tour begins. In Red and Rose Valley the rock colour changes through the day, and there is a short walk in Gulludere Valley. In old Greek Cavusin you visit the houses and churches linked with Saint John the Baptist and Nikephoros Phokas. In the afternoon you see Kaymakli or Ozkonak, one of the widest underground cities in Cappadocia, used by people sheltering from raids and disaster. Uchisar Castle is the highest point of the region and the place for a panorama of Cappadocia. Pigeon Valley looks back at the castle, and pigeons still live in the dovecotes. The last stop is Three Beauties Valley, known for its vineyards and the view. At the end of the day you fly from Cappadocia Airport back to Istanbul. That flight is in the package. You are met at the first exit door and taken to your hotel. The night is in Istanbul.

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• 13 days, 12 nightsGet a quote

  Package departing from Istanbul.

Important notes

• Departure is guaranteed every day. The tour starts in Istanbul and ends in Hurghada.
• On arrival in Istanbul you are met at the first exit door. In Cappadocia you are met at the first exit door with a sign showing your name. The same first-exit meeting applies on the return to Istanbul.
• Day 1 has no meals. Day 2 includes breakfast and lunch. Day 3 includes lunch only; breakfast is not in the package. Day 4 includes breakfast and lunch. Day 5 includes breakfast only.
• Day 6 includes breakfast and lunch. Days 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12 include breakfast, lunch and dinner.
• The day 13 heading also lists lunch and dinner. The text only describes breakfast and the transfer to the airport.
• The 12 nights are 3 hotel nights in Istanbul, 1 in Cappadocia, 2 in Cairo, 3 on the Nile cruise, and 3 in Hurghada.
• The Istanbul–Cappadocia, Cappadocia–Istanbul and Cairo–Aswan flights are domestic and are in the package. A baggage allowance is not written in the text.
• The Istanbul–Cairo flight and the flight home from Hurghada are not in the package. You are taken to the airport 4 hours before the Cairo flight. Check-in is yours.
• On day 10 you check out of the cruise. After Karnak and the Valley of the Kings you go to Hurghada by road.
• A particular tomb in the Valley of the Kings can need a separate ticket. Optional tours and those extra tickets are not in the package.
• Days 11 and 12 in Hurghada have no schedule. The meals on those days are still as written.