Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Turkey Trip Itinerary for 2001

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Turkey Trip Itinerary for 2001 - Feedback, please

I’m just beginning to plan a 3-week trip to Turkey for 2001, and I have my tentative itinerary. I’d appreciate feedback/suggestions on it. My husband and I can only travel during the summer; I’ve been told that August (especially later August) may be a slight improvement over July. I can push my trip to return just after Labor Day, but not later than that. We are “independent traveller” types --and I’m the obsessive planner! I’ve never taken a cruise before, but I’m leaning toward taking a gulet cruise in Turkey since it may be the best way to travel during the summer heat. I plan to leave the States on a Monday arriving on a Tuesday. The timing is specific, because the weeklong gulet cruises are Saturday to Saturday. Days 1 - 3 -- Istanbul Days 4 - 6 -- Cappadocia (flying from Istanbul). Pick up car rental. Day 7 -- Konya. Days 8 - 10 -- Antalya (visit Termessos, Aspendos) Day 11 -- Kas This is a Friday night, and we’ll be driving the next day to Marmaris, where we will get the cruise. Is this a doable trip, especially on a Saturday, or do we need to stay closer to Marmaris? We are dropping off the car in Marmaris prior to cruise. Days 12 - 18 -- Gulet Cruise, from Marmaris (cruising south toward Fethiye). Days 19 - 20 -- Selcuk. Take bus from Marmaris to Selcuk. (visit Ephesus). Days 21 - 22. Istanbul (flying from Izmir to Istanbul). I KNOW you’ll all have different opinions! But here are a couple of my thoughts and questions: 1-- Some people have said that they liked Konya; others have said it’s not worth a stop. I’m interested in visiting a “real” town/city, where it’s not completely about tourism. It also seems to be a good place to break up the drive between Cappadocia and Antalya. 2) Instead of 3 days in Antalya, I’m also considering 2 days in Antalya and 2 days in Kas. Or, 2 days in Antalya, 1 day in Kas and 1 day closer to Marmaris. The gulet cruise stops in Fethiye, so I didn’t want to stay in that town. 3) Since we have dropped off the car prior to the cruise, I plan to take the bus from Marmaris to Selcuk. Is this possible? I’m planning on one full day to see Ephesus. I know I’m passing up seeing Didyma, Priene and Miletus; my feeling is that I can’t see everything, and I don’t want to be burdened with seeing everything and being hot and exhausted. Are any of those ruins in one of those “don’t miss” categories? 4) I plan on ending our trip with 2 days in Istanbul. My husband and I are both avid city lovers, and I think I’d like to spend as much time as I can in Istanbul. I considered staying an extra day at Selcuk to see the other sites, but I think we’d prefer the extra day in Istanbul. 5) I’ve got mixed feelings about a gulet cruise. It’s probably a good way to relax/tour and do so doing a very hot time of year; but I’m not getting to drive around some of the interesting ruins/smaller towns that I might otherwise. A week on a boat with total strangers makes me nervous, too. But I also think it might be a good-- if different-- way of experiencing the Turkish coast during the summer. I’d love to hear about your trip -- and if you were unhappy with the experience, please share that, too. 6) If it’s possible, I like to try to find something of the “real” country wherever I am. It’s one of the reasons why I like to be able to get away from some of the more popular tourist spots so I wonder if anyone has any suggestions for finding this elusive element. I’d like to balance the resort exploration of my trip with some of the more off-the-beaten-path places. Maybe it’s as simple as finding the small cafes in a town rather than fancier restaurants, but any suggestions here, too, would be most welcome!

I was on a Contiki tour of Turkey in 1998. We stopped for a couple of hours in Konya to see the main sights and have lunch and I thought that was enough. It would've been OK for me to miss it entirely, but I'm more interested in ruins personally. The Mevlana museum was good and most of the "tourists" visiting there were Turkish. Ephesus - We stayed in Selcuk and arrived at the deserted sight early. About 1/2 hour later the cruise ship excursions descended on us so be warned!I wonder if it's busy in the afternoon? Ephesus is truly amazing, but I think a half day would do for a leisurely sightsee. Maybe you could include another nearby site this day. If you decide not to take the week long gulet cruise you can do what we did. While in Antayla, we did a day cruise from nearby Kemer. It was very relaxing and included lunch and swim stops. Overall, Turkey didn't feel that touristy to me, compared to Egypt for example.

Thanks for your comments about Turkey. I'm still just beginning this process, so it's interesting to hear a variety of opinions. About Ephesus-- I don't expect that we'll spend the whole day there, either! But we won't have a car then, so we'll probably only explore the one site. My reasons for visiting Konya are more about visiting a town that is less about tourism than, I imagine, the coastal towns are. But if it's not that interesting a town, then maybe we'll just stop for a short visit. Anyone else have opinions? Paolo?

I've very little to say once after spending 2 nights in Marmaris we slowly (6 nights) drove to Istanbul, where we spent 5 nights. 5 days in Istanbul is ok. I'll pass on Cappadocia, Konya, Antalya, Kas and Fethiye (they're all marked for a 2nd trip :-) but I don't think a night in Konya will hurt you. I would be surprised if the nonstop drive from Kas to Marmaris downtown takes more than 3:45 hours. You shouldn't worry abut getting closer to Marmaris. I doubt I'll ever take such a long gulet cruise ... 4 days or so of a much slower pace would certainly be relaxing and fun. More than that would make me nervous but ... to each his own :-) I would strongly advise you to avoid a night in Marmaris if at all possible ... it's a very big city with just about no sightseeing and little charm. It has an interesting and fun bazar and`is very lively at night, though. There are also several options of water sports and boat trips but that wouldn't interest you after gulet cruise. Bodrum would be a much nicer city ... There should be no problem catching a bus up north (if not directly to Selçuk, certainly to Kusadasi). If you're good at bargaining, taxis may turn out very cheap in Turkey. I met a couple in Kusadasi that spent $50 for a 6 hour round trip to Dydima, Miletus and Priene (we were most impressed with the temple in Dydima). The next day they were going to visit it all tyhe sites in Selçuk (Ephesus, Mary's house, the Museum, Saint John's basilica, Isa Bey mosque) paying the same amount. Not having a car, you should strongly consider the taxi option. Once you're ready to post your Istanbul questions I may be of more help :-) Paulo

Thanks for your thoughts; I remember reading your comments about Marmaris, and have decided not to stay there at all. I think you're right about a weeklong cruise; I think I'd get very antsy, too. I've seen a few shorter cruises mentioned on various websites; I'm going to look into them, too. If anyone has information about shorter gulet cruises, I'd love to hear from you. Thanks for the feedback; in a few months, when I start making necessary reservations, I'm sure I'll be asking a lot more questions. Paule