Turkey

Departure from Montreal airport (P.E. Trudeau) on a flight to Istanbul.

Note: Arrival at the airport at least 3 hours before departure.

❖ Accommodation: 4* hotel / Transport: air-conditioned vehicle.

• Arrival at Istanbul airport. Welcome and transfer to hotel for check-in.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 4* hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

Departure for Bursa, former capital of the Ottoman Empire with a flamboyant past:

• Visit the Great Mosque of Bursaa masterpiece of Seljuk architecture, remarkable for its magnificent calligraphic murals, twenty domes and two minarets.
• Stroll through the city’s historic district and discover the Silk Market. This is a caravanserai converted into a gallery of stores, featuring a wide selection of silk goods. Caravanserais were once places where merchants could stop with their caravans of goods to rest and eat along the trade routes of the Near East.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 5* Hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

Departure for a day of discovery:

• Visit Sirincea picturesque village founded by the Greek community, famous for its pretty traditional wooden houses and fine local wines. Wine tasting.
• Continuation to Kusadasi. Arrival and check-in at hotel.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 5* Hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

A day dedicated to visitingEphesusan important ancient Greek city whose remains are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site:

• Visit the Grand TheatreIn ancient times, it could accommodate up to 24,000 spectators. Some concerts are still held here today. Elton John, Sting and Diana Ross have all performed here.
• Discovery of the remains of the Library of Celsus^3rd largest library in the Roman Empire, after Alexandria and Pergamon.
• Visit the Temple of Artemis which, at the time of its construction in the 6th century BC, was considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World due to its impressive size and exceptional beauty. The temple had both a cultural and religious function, serving both as a marketplace and a place of worship for the goddess Artemis, goddess of fertility, the earth, the moon and animals.
• Visit the House of the Virgin Marya place of Christian and Muslim pilgrimage. According to Assyrian Jacobite tradition, Mary was brought here by John the Evangelist after Christ’s crucifixion, fleeing persecution in Jerusalem.
• Return to hotel in Kusadasi.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast, lunch and dinner / Accommodation: 5* hotel / Transport: Air-conditioned vehicle.

A day of relaxation on the shores of the Aegean Sea.

• Aegean cruise departing from Kusadasi and discover the sunny coastline, beaches and small surrounding islands. Dinner served on board.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 5* Hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

• Visit PamukkalePamukkale, a unique place in the world, with waterfalls formed by pools of pristine white natural limestone, a magnificent geological area of natural hot springs. Pamukkale is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
• Discover the ancient city of Hierapolis and its exceptionally well-preserved Roman theater, which in its heyday could seat up to 10,000 spectators.
• Arrival and check-in at hotel.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Accommodation: 4* hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

Departure for Konya, cradle of Sufism:

• Visit tour of KonyaKonya, a city with a strong religious culture, was the first Seljuk capital in the 13th century.
• Visit the Mausoleum and the Museum in memory of the mystic poet Mevlânâ Celaleddin-i Rumifounder of Sufism. The site was originally a whirling dervish lodge.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 5* Hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

Day of discovery of the country :

• Journey to Cappadociaa region famous for its lunar landscapes and rock formations known as “fairy chimneys”.

• Arrive in the Cappadocia region and visit an underground underground city and discover ancient survival techniques.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 5* Hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

• Photo stop in the Avcilar valleywith panoramic views of the village of Göreme.
• Discover the village of Ortahisar one of the oldest troglodytic dwellings in Cappadocia.
• Visit to the village of UçhisarUçhisar, a village famous for its rock, visible for miles around, which towers over the entire Cappadocia region (1,300 m). The village is home to 20 storeys of underground galleries, once a refuge for early Christians persecuted by the Romans, then for Byzantines threatened by the Turks. Some troglodytic dwellings are still occupied.
• Stop in the vallée des Pigeonniersfamous for its dovecotes carved out of the rock. Take a short break to discover local crafts: semi-precious stone jewelry.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast and dinner / Lodging: 5* Hotel / Transportation: Air-conditioned vehicle.

• Visit the Valley of the Lovers where you’ll find the world’s largest basalt-capped fairy chimneys.
• Take a hot-air balloon or paraglider flight (optional) to discover the Cappadocian landscape in a different way, by taking part in an exceptional activity seen from the sky.
• Visit to the village of Avanosfamous for its pottery and red river.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast / Accommodation: 4* Hotel / Transport: Air-conditioned vehicle.

• Transfer to Cappadocia airport for an internal flight to Istanbul.
• Arrive in Istanbul, transfer to hotel and free time to wander the city.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast / Accommodation: 4* Hotel / Transport: Air-conditioned vehicle.

Discovering the metropolis :

• Visit the Istanbul Blue Mosquea sumptuous Muslim place of worship famous for the blue-domed ceramics that adorn its interior walls.
• Exploration of the Basilica of St. SophiaFormer seat of the Eastern Christian Church in Byzantine times (^4th to ^15th centuries), the basilica was converted into a mosque under the Ottoman Empire and now houses a museum.
• See the remains of Place de l’Hippodromean arena dating from the^2nd century, used in particular for chariot races and in use until the ^12th century.
• Visit the Topkapi PalaceTopkapi Palace, a sumptuous Ottoman-era palace that served as the principal residence of the various sultans who ruled the empire for centuries. Erected on the Golden Horn, it overlooks the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara. The palace is surrounded by 5 kilometers of ramparts and, in its heyday, could house imperial suites of up to 4,000 people.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast / Accommodation: 4* Hotel / Transport: Air-conditioned vehicle.

• Visit the Dolmabahçe Palacebuilt in the ^mid-19th century in the European style in vogue at the time, which served as the imperial residence and administrative center of the empire during the last decades before its fall. Erected in an exceptional seaside setting, Turkey’s largest palace showcases the vast wealth that once belonged to this vast empire.
• A visit to the famous spice market Istanbul’s famous spice market, for centuries the hub of the oriental spice trade. There are still many spice merchants here today, but the range of products on offer has expanded to include other foodstuffs and handicrafts.
• Cruise on the Bosphorus (duration: one and a half hours). Pass under the suspension bridge linking Europe and Asia, and see the city skyline with its typical wooden houses, numerous mosques and opulent palaces lining its banks.

❖ Meals included: Breakfast / Transport: Air-conditioned vehicle and international flight.

• Transfer to Istanbul airport and departure for Montreal.

• Istanbul: Hotel PIYA SPORT 4* (or equivalent)
• Bursa: ROYAL THERMAL Hotel 4* (or equivalent)
• Kusadasi : Hotel SIGNATURE BLUE RESORT 5* (or equivalent)
• Pamukkale: Hotel ADEMPIRA THERMAL & SPA 5* (or equivalent)
• Konya: Hotel BAYIR DIAMOND 5* (or equivalent)
• Cappadocia: Hotel MUSTAFA 5* (or equivalent)

• International return flights Istanbul – Montreal
• 1 internal flight (Cappadocia-Istanbul)
• Shuttles to and from airports
• Transportation in air-conditioned vehicle with professional driver
• All accommodations (4 and 5 stars)
• 2 meals a day (except in Istanbul, where breakfast is included)
• All activities and admissions to sites shown in red on the program and accompanied by a local guide
• Certified French-speaking local guide present with the group at all times
• Wine tasting at Sirince
• 1 Bosphorus cruise and 1 Aegean cruise
• All taxes
• 24/7 support
• Organization from A to Z

• Some meals
• Beverages
• Tips
• Personal expenses
• Optional activities

• Please note that the itinerary may change at any time for logistical reasons, but that the list of activities and visits on the program is always respected.