My wife and I are departing Los Angeles 19 Dec for Turkey. Would appreciate some assistance in places to visit and stay. We want to stay in Instanbul for 3-5 days(?) and then travel to Asia Minor for the rest of the trip. We enjoy eating, visiting historical sites,shopping and whatever.We will be coming back 2 Jan.

Craig

You can easily stay 5 days in Istanbul without getting bored one minute. Also, if you want some Xmas atmosphere, Istanbul would be the best place in my opinion.
Then you could go to Bursa, Pegamon, Ephesos, and mainly stay along the western, mediterranean coast line, which will guarantee you a milder climate. If you are ready to face the continental winter climate (heaps of snow and bitter cold), you could have a go at Ankara, Cappadocia, Konya, Kayseri and so many other places.
This all depends a bit on your specific interests...

Dear knappltc
If you tell me your budget I can help you. Because there are many hotels from 5 stars to Pansions and also which part of Istanbul are you going to stay? in the old city or new city, europian side or asian side. If you answer these question for me I can help.

Sinan Akdeniz
[email protected]

Well, Chritsmas atmosphere is best in Istanbul, white one in Cappadocia, Sunny one with Jingle Bells background is at southern Turkey. I lived them all and all is different.

Why not all at the same period ?

Need advice than drop few lines more...

All the best

Dear knappltc,

Contact Mehmet Ozbalci at [email protected] He is not only a tour guide but also a licensed local tour operator. He also has a web site.
Cheers.