Nancy - thanks for replying. Yes I totally agree with you about the tours for Istanbul. They included places and activities that seemed do-able on our own since Istanbul seems to be a city that is easy to navigate through.

The 4 that I mentioned in my post were the ones that really interested me and I know those are the main "MUST DOs" for Turkey. But our concern was the cost - it seemed high. I guess I am comparing it to other places we have visited in Europe and never paid tour prices like that. Its usually museums, free site-seeing since it is mostly architechture. These tours I mentioned are coming out to $400 total (for 2 of us) which seemed high to me.

So I was hoping to be able to book them with local tour operators and see if it really was a savings at the end of the day - or if it was more of a headache to research out reputable operators. In that case, we will just go with Gate1.

luvtravelin -- Our tour didn't include your second listed tour (Half-day Perge, Aspendos, etc.) but the other three we did do and I wouldn't have missed them. If you do the dinner, be careful to not eat too much at the beginning -- it is a ton of food before you're finished! Hope you have a good trip.

luvtravelin: I know I have read of driver/guides here on Fodor's who people have used in Cappadocia so check that out. But, I think it would be a pain to arrange your own for such an overall hurried trip. I know my sister finally just paid for the optionals on a recent trip to Europe after checking costs of doing it herself. All very expensive like yours. But, at least taking them leaves you free to enjoy and not worry about pickups and whether you'll get a good tour.

I meant to mention in my earlier post that you need to be careful when using a taxi in Istanbul. Be sure to ask the driver how much the cost is to go from here to there. When leaving from the hotel, the hotel desk will give you the cost. I say this because I got very ripped off by not asking for a price which should have been approx. $10 (last year's price) and wound up costing triple or more. Plus he didn't take us to the exact location (too much traffic to get there, he said). What is one to do? Argue with someone who hardly speaks English?? I know we were stupid but.....Having said this I'm sure most taxi drivers are honest but......

Hi all,

I was so pleased with my Gate 1 tour of Israel I would definitely travel with them again. I am considering Turkey for later this year and after reading this thread I am looking at Gate 1 Turkey tours. The tours are indeed quite reasonable, except the transfers to/from the airport are terribly expensive!! Great advice about asking the fare before getting into a taxi, but what about safety? I hate taxis, but I hate the cost of Gate 1's transfers even more.

Kristinelaine - yes the 1/2 day perge tour was actually our least favorite. 1 - because it is only 1/2 day and costs just as much as the full day tours. 2 - haven't heard too much on this board about seeing perge. So we decided to leave that one out and see if we are in the mood to see it - we can always get their by public transportation and it would be cheaper than the $50 it would cost for the 2 of us.

Nancy - yes that is 1 good thing about sticking with the optionals with the tour company since we would stay around our group of people that we are familiar with - and as you mentioned no issues with pick up, etc. And in this case it seems that local turkish operators are charging just as much - so I dont think Gate1 is marking up the costs.

P_M - fortunately our tour says that all transfers are included so maybe your tour was different. There are also a lot of tours included as part of the package - while some are extra. We had taken Smartours to Thailand and found that they provided a lot more included tours as part of the package than Gate1. But then their base prices are more - so I think it all balances out at the end.

luvtravlin, transfers are only included if you purchase the airfare as part of the package. I never do that because I can always find cheaper air on my own, or I'll use frequent flyer miles.

Sorry for the delay in replying, work has been keeping me busy.

As someone else said the Perge trip wasn't on our trip, but if it had ben I would have gone. I am a museum person so that would have been worth it for me.

Ephesus and House of Virgin Mary and Cappadocia are totally worth it.

Dinner and Whirling Dervishes is some what subjective. You'll spend at least $20 on dinner if you eat out any way. If you have any interest in Sufism, Melvina, or enjoy spiritual experiences it was very, very interesting. If those types of experience bore you then skip it and just enjoy dinner on your own.

I'll put my 2cents in on Istanbul. I did do a pair of the tours in Istanbul and was pleased that I did. Our guide is fantastic so hearing his description, background and insight was TOTALLY worth the excurtion price. It also covered the entrance tickets and transportation. If I remember correctly Topkapi, Agia Sophia and the Underground Cistern are 10 YTL each. Depending on where you hotel is you can walk from that area back to the hotel, and in fact you will walk by the Grand Bazar.

The difference with the Bosphourus Cruise is that you have the whole boat to the group and you don't make stops which the other boats do. It is a matter of where you want to spend your time.

I think the price of the excursions are actually fair. Especially when you consider the ticket costs to the places and the transportation.