Help with 16 day Itinerary in Turkey
 

I need help on whether my itinerary below is too ambitious. I am basically relying on public transportation to get everywhere and wanted to get suggestions if my itinerary is doable and if I have time to see one more city?

1 4/18/2013 Arrive to Istanbul - Take small flight to Cappadocia
2 4/19/2013 Cappadocia -
3 4/20/2013 Cappadocia
4/21/2013 Cappadocia
4 4/22/2013 Morning Bus Cappadocia to Konya
5 4/23/2013 Konya - Overnight bus to Secluk
6 4/24/2013 Secluk
7 4/25/2013 Ephesus
8 4/26/2013 Pammukale
9 4/27/2013 Go to another City? - Bodrum/Antalya
10 4/28/2013 Go to another City? - Bodrum/Antalya
11 4/29/2013 Fly or Bus to Istanbul
12 4/29/2013 Istanbul
13 4/30/2013 Istanbul
14 5/1/2013 Istanbul
15 5/2/2013 Istanbul
16 5/3/2013 Istanbul
17 5/4/2013 Depart from Istanbul

Should be a great trip!

Based on my limited experience, I think this itinerary should be doable, but beware: I haven't checked the bus schedules. I didn't visit Konya, so I don't know about your time there. Otherwise, I like your time allotments. :-)

If you do decide to add Bodrum or Antalya, you might want to re-order your destinations to make sure you've got the most efficient route.

You might find some useful information in my trip report. Just click on my name to find it.

Turkey buses are very comfortable and well organized . You can watch TV use i-net, listen music and also some snacks and drinks in bus tickets are included. Traveling by buses shouldn't
be a problem. Especially from Pamukkale is Denizli big bus station from where you can get to Bodrum or Antalya easy. If you are interested in modernized places and more lively places, go for Antalya. If you want to see smaller places, local villages, see the Turkish countryside life like lake Bafa is nature resort, go for Bodrum. Is depending what you enjoy more. anyway for trips to local villages I would suggest take a guide,very possible local people like to invite you to there house for a tea and have a chat with you :)

Thanks for the great info!

kja - Great to hear, ok I guess I need to figure out how far all these cities are from one another

Samanta- Looks like I am leaning towards Bodrum!

One more question - I am thinking it would be best to take an overnight bus from Bodrum to Istanbul. Would that be the best route or would you recommend flying?

IME, the best info about transportation options in the area can be found in the Rough Guide.

per samanta: > If you are interested in modernized places and more lively places, go for Antalya. If you want to see smaller places, local villages, see the Turkish countryside life like lake Bafa is nature resort, go for Bodrum

I'm not sure I agree with samanta. I spent a day or so in Antalya's old town (Kaleici); I did not think it particularly "modernized." It certainly wasn't as it was a century ago, but I thought it had some areas that afforded a sense of the city's history. I didn't visit Bodrum (and so really shouldn't comment), but my choice to skip it was specifically because quite a few people I know who have been there in recent years told me that it has become a largely Westernized resort filled with party hotels and overpriced and inaccurately restored historical sites. Maybe they were wrong. Too, my understanding is that Lake Bafa is outside Bodrum, and can be visited without visiting Bodrum itself. And there are many other places along this coast that could prove quite wonderful.

Maybe others can chime in.

Either way, I would encourage you to consult a good guide book or two (or more!) to help you decide what most suits your interests.

We did the same - flying on to Cappadocia after landing in Istanbul. We were tired, but it worked out great time wise. We also put all our time in Istanbul at the end and that was perfect. In those two places, your number of days is just right. A balloon flight in Cappadocia is fantastic.