Duration: 15 days
Tour language: English
Guiding type: Fully Guided
Group size: 1 – 40
Tour overview
Turkey and Egypt are the ultimate destinations for families, couples and singles of all ages with a host of different and exciting activities to keep you busy, as well as a variety of cultures, histories, sights and experiences to tantalize even the youngest traveler. For those with about two weeks to experience Turkey and Egypt, this is it! We will take you to all of the must see spots in Turkey and Egypt.
Itinerary
Day 1: Istanbul – Arrival Day
Upon arrival at Istanbul International Airport, your guide will meet and assist you, then transfer you to the hotel. Istanbul, originally known as Byzantium and later Constantinople, is a truly fascinating city that spans two continents: Europe and Asia. It is a city of amalgamation, with bustling bazaars, minarets, mosques, churches, palaces, restaurants catering to every taste, as well as museums, rich customs, and a population of twelve million people. Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 2: Istanbul City Tour
(Breakfast included)
Our journey begins in Istanbul, the only city in the world situated on two continents. Today we discover the Byzantine and Ottoman treasures of Istanbul. We visit the Hippodrome and the Obelisk brought from Egypt. Next, we visit the Blue Mosque with its six minarets, followed by St. Sophia. This ancient basilica, built by Constantine the Great in the 4th century and reconstructed by Justinian in the 6th century, is one of the architectural marvels of all time.
In the afternoon, we will visit the Topkapi Palace, the residence of the Ottoman sultans, with its fabulous treasure chambers. Lunch break at 13:00. After lunch, Murtis Tour will take you to the Grand Spice Bazaar, a unique atmosphere with reasonable prices for shopping. Here you will find exotic spices and herbs, Turkish baklava, Turkish delights, Turkish coffee, nuts and fruits, small souvenirs such as ceramic handicrafts, evil eye totems, all-natural olive oil, soaps, and many other goods in souvenir shops and stores.
After the tour, transfer back to your hotel. Overnight in Istanbul.
Day 3: Istanbul Bosphorus Cruise and Shopping Tour and Domestic Flight to Kusadas
(Breakfast and Dinner included)
After breakfast, between 08:00 and 09:30, pick-ups from the hotel will be arranged. Your tour consultant will provide the final timing one day before.
Enjoy a traditional Bosphorus by Boat excursion along the waterway separating Europe and Asia. The shore is lined with old wooden villas, marble palaces, fortresses, and small fishing villages. During the cruise, you will see the magnificent Dolmabahce Palace, followed by the parks and imperial pavilions of Yildiz Palace, with Ciragan Palace on the coastal edge, its 300-meter marble facade facing the shore. At Ortakoy, a variety of artists gather every Sunday to display their work along the street. Ortakoy is a symbol of tolerance, with a church, a mosque, and a synagogue existing side by side for centuries. You will also view Rumeli Fortress, built by Mehmet the Conqueror in 1452 prior to the conquest of Istanbul, completed in only four months to control the Bosporus passage, and considered one of the most beautiful works of military architecture in the world. On the Asian side, see Beylerbeyi Palace, the summer residence of Ottoman sultans, preserved in its original renovated glory, featuring antique furniture, magnificent gardens, and the Harem.
Lunch break will be at a Turkish restaurant. After lunch, visit the Grand Covered Bazaar, a labyrinth of streets and passages with more than 4,000 shops, where each trade has its own area. Here you will find goldsmiths’ shops, carpets, Turkish arts and crafts such as hand-painted ceramic plates, hand-honed copperware, brassware and trays, water ewers, onyx-ware, and meerschaum pipes.
After the tour, transfer to Istanbul Airport for your domestic flight to Izmir. Upon arrival, transfer to your hotel in Kusadasi. Overnight in Kusadasi.
Day 4: Kusadasi – Ephesus Tour – Turkish Village Sirince
(Breakfast and Dinner included)
After breakfast at 08.30, we depart from hotel for fully guided tour of Ephesus, one of the best-preserved ancient sites in the world en-route, visiting the Temple of Artemis, Curetes street, famous Roman baths, Celsus Library, Grand theatre and House of the Virgin Mary.
Lunch break around 13.00. After the lunch, we will visit a place, which continues to perform one of the oldest arts of Turkey; a carpet-weaving center. After that, we will have a Turkish Village Tour. Sirince’s construction style today belongs to Anatolian Greeks. The houses on the slope are all original with their white paints. Sirince Village also has a fantastic reputation for making some of the best wines in Turkey – especially fruit wines. We will see the vineyards and it is time to learn how to make fruit wine with Turkish wine makers. In the evening, you will be tested about your knowledge of making fruit wine.
On the way, we will visit one of the famous leather production centers of the region, where you will have the opportunity to get a good factory rate. On this guided tour, you will avoid the constant nagging and sometimes bullying that is well known in the markets of Turkey, enabling you to enjoy the shopping experience whilst gaining the knowledge of the ancient craftsmen.
Dinner and overnight in Kusadasi.
https://pixabay.com/photos/celsus-library-oren-ephesus-antique-2670527/
Day 5: Kusadasi and Cappadocia
(Breakfast and Dinner included)
After breakfast, the day is yours till your flight time. You will be picked up from your hotel and transfer to airport for your domestic flight to Cappadocia. Upon arrival, transfer and check into your hotel. Overnight in Cappadocia.
Day 6: Cappadocia Tour
(Breakfast and Dinner included)
After breakfast, you will be picked up from your hotel at 09:30 for the second day in Cappadocia. We will drive you to Ozkonak Underground City, one of the best-preserved underground cities in Cappadocia. You will visit Red Valley (4 kms hiking), Rose Valley (visiting the churches), have lunch in Pigeon Valley, and see Ortahisar Castle. After the tour, transfer to your hotel. Overnight in Cappadocia.
Day 7: Cappadocia Tour – Goreme Open Air Museum
(Breakfast and Dinner included)
Today, after breakfast, we will get to know the Cappadocia region, a volcanic area in which the geological formation started 10 million years ago. As a result of these formations, phallic-like pillars have come to life. The beautiful horse country Katpatuka (as the Persians called her) is an unbelievable strip of land, enchanting and mysterious. Cappadocia region is also famous for its arts, including ceramics and carpets.
You will be picked up approximately 09.30 from your hotel to join our regular tour. The tour starts with Uchisar Castle, the highest point of Cappadocia. After Uchisar, you visit Goreme Open Air Museum, the heart of Cappadocia. Goreme Open Air Museum is famous for frescoes dating to the 10th century describing the life of Jesus Christ and monks. Next stop is Cavusin, an abandoned village with old cave Greek houses. After Cavusin, you go to a restaurant in Avanos to have lunch.
After lunch, you visit a pottery workshop to see how to make potteries. Then you go to Love Valley, a hidden valley with scenic formations to say the least. Despite the resemblance to manhood, these amazing rock formations are far from man-made. After Love Valley, you visit another workshop to see Cappadocian handwoven carpets and kilims. Next stop is Devrent Valley, also called Imagination Valley, where you can see natural rock formations looking like animals. Then, you head to a wine shop in Urgup for wine tasting. The last stop is Three Beauties, three beautiful fairy chimneys with their hats, which are the symbol of Cappadocia.
This tour will end approximately 18.00 and you will be returned back to your hotel. Dinner and overnight in Cappadocia.
Day 8: Istanbul – Cairo
(Breakfast included)
After breakfast, check out from the hotel and depart by international flight to Egypt. Upon arrival at Cairo International Airport, meet with your local representative and transfer to your hotel. The rest of the day is yours to explore the city, have a relaxed dinner in the hotel, and our tour will start tomorrow. Overnight in Cairo.
Day 9: Memphis – Sakkara – Pyramids of Giza Tour
(Breakfast included)
After your breakfast, pick up from your hotel and shall start our tour today. Firstly, we will drive to the countryside to visit the first capital of Egypt, Memphis. Memphis, founded around 3,100 BC, is the legendary city of Menes, the king who united Upper and Lower Egypt. Early on, Memphis was more likely a fortress from which Menes controlled the land and water routes between Upper Egypt and the Delta. Having probably originated in Upper Egypt, from Memphis he could control the conquered people of Lower Egypt. However, by the Third Dynasty, the building at Saqqara suggests that Memphis had become a sizable city.
Afterwards, we will go to Sakkara, the large necropolis of Memphis, to admire the Step Pyramid of Zoser, the first pyramid ever built. After a short stop, we will have our lunch at a typical Egyptian restaurant in the area. After lunch, we shall continue our journey and visit the three Pyramids of Giza, the oldest and largest of the three pyramids in the Giza Necropolis, bordering what is now El Giza, Egypt. Also, it is the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, and the only one to remain largely intact. Below the pyramids, you will visit the mysterious Great Sphinx and the Valley Temple of Khephren.
At the end of the tour, transfer back to your hotel. Overnight in Cairo.
Day 10: Egyptian Museum – Mohamed Ali Alabaster Mosque – Khan El Khalili Bazaars Tour
(Breakfast included)
After breakfast, we will start our tour. Today we will visit the famous Egyptian Museum of Antiquities, home to an extensive collection of ancient Egyptian antiquities. It has 120,000 items, with a representative amount on display, the remainder in storerooms. It also houses the magnificent treasures of Tutankhamen.
Then we will have our lunch break in a typical Egyptian restaurant in the area before we continue our journey today. After lunch, Murti’s Tour will lead you to visit Mohamed Ali Alabaster Mosque, located at the summit of the Citadel. This Ottoman mosque, the largest to be built in the first half of the 19th century, has an animated silhouette and twin minarets, making it the most visible mosque in Cairo. The mosque was built in memory of Tusun Pasha, Muhammad Ali’s oldest son, who died in 1816. This mosque, along with the Citadel, is one of the landmarks and tourist attractions of Cairo and is one of the first features to be seen when approaching the city from any side.
The last spot of today is the famous Khan El Khalili Bazaars, one of the most interesting bazaars in the whole Middle East. Lots of cafés, restaurants, shops, and a large number of vendors and buyers constitute a dynamic panorama of the place. Drinking Hibiscus, Karakare, Helba, or any of the various typical Egyptian beverages is a pleasant experience for visitors to get a real taste of Egypt. For smokers, there is the Shisha, or water pipe, to be tried.
At the end of the tour, transfer back to your hotel. Overnight in Cairo.
Day 11: Cairo – Aswan – 3 Nights Nile Cruise
(Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
After breakfast, we will transfer you to airport for your flight to Aswan. Upon arrival at Aswan Airport, we will arrange the transfer to the port for embarkation to the cruise ship before lunch. We will have a stop to visit Philae Temple and High Dam. Philae Temple was dismantled and reassembled on Agilika Island, about 550 meters from its original home on Philae Island, in the wake of the High Dam. The temple, dedicated to the goddess Isis, is in a beautiful setting which has been landscaped to match its original site.
Lunch and dinner will be included on board. At last, the cruise ship will sail to Kom Ombo. Dinner and overnight onboard the cruise ship.
Day 12: Kom Ombo – Edfu – Luxor – 3 Nights Nile Cruise
(Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today, after breakfast, we will have a tour to visit Kom Ombo Temple, a building unique for its “double” design, meaning that there were courts, halls, sanctuaries, and rooms duplicated for two sets of gods. Then the cruise ship will continue sailing to Edfu, the site of the Ptolemaic period. Lunch will be served on board. Upon arrival in Edfu, we will visit Horus Temple, an ancient settlement. Afterwards, we shall continue our sail to Luxor via Esna Lock. As the site of the ancient Egyptian city of Thebes, Luxor has frequently been characterized as the “world’s greatest open-air museum,” as the ruins of the temple complexes at Karnak and Luxor Temple stand within the modern city.
During your day on the cruise, there is a Galabia party, where you will be encouraged to wear Egyptian outfits and try the local Galabia. Dinner and overnight onboard the cruise ship.
Day 13: Luxor – 3 Nights Nile Cruise
(Breakfast, lunch and dinner included)
Today, after breakfast, we will arrive in Luxor and visit the West Bank of Luxor. Valley of the Kings was the royal cemetery for 62 Pharaohs. The only entrance to this place was a long narrow winding path. This was a secret place, where sentries were placed at the entrance of the valley, as well as along the top of the hills, in the hopes of discouraging tomb robbers, who had in the past plundered all royal tombs, including the treasures of the pyramids. Some thefts were probably carefully planned, but others were spur of the moment, as when an earlier tomb was accidentally discovered while cutting a new one and workmen took advantage of the opportunity. This may have happened when KV 46 was found during the cutting of KV 4 or KV 3 nearby. The tombs in the valley range from a simple pit to a tomb with over 121 chambers and corridors.
Hatshepsut Temple at Dier El Bahar is one of the most characteristic temples in the whole of Egypt, due to its design and decorations. It was built of limestone, not sandstone like most of the other funerary temples of the New Kingdom period. Colossi of Memnon are two massive stone statues of Pharaoh Amenhotep III. For the past 3400 years (since 1350 BC) they have stood in the Theban Necropolis, across the River Nile from the modern city of Luxor.
After lunch, we shall visit the East Bank of Luxor. Karnak Temple is the largest temple in the world! The complex contains a group of temples such as the Great Temple of Amon Ra, the Temple of Khonso, the Ipt Temple, the Temple of Ptah, the Temple of Montho, and the Temple of the God Osiris. A 20m high, mud brick enclosure wall surrounds all of these buildings. Luxor Temple, or the Temple of Luxor, is among the most beautiful temples in Egypt. It was known in the New Kingdom period as Ipt-Rsyt, which means the southern shrine. This was to differentiate between this temple and Karnak Temple, which was the northern house of Amon Ra.
After the tour, we will return to the cruise ship and enjoy dinner followed by a belly dancer show. Dinner and overnight onboard the cruise ship.
https://www.pexels.com/photo/ancient-temple-in-egypt-18934706/
Day 14: Luxor – Cairo Tour
(Breakfast included)
After your breakfast, which will be served on board, we will check out from the cruise and transfer you to the airport for your flight back to Cairo. Upon arrival in Cairo, transfer to your hotel and you will be given your room key. The rest of the day is at leisure for you. Enjoy your last day in Egypt, and do some shopping to buy souvenirs for your friends and family. Dinner and overnight in Cairo.
Day 15: Cairo – End of the Tour
(Breakfast included)
Today is the end of the tour, and it’s time to say goodbye. Regarding your flight departure time, we will arrange your transfer to Cairo International Airport for your international flight back home. We hope your tour was a memorable one and we would like to see you in the future on one of our tours again.
Included
Accommodation
- 2 nights’ hotel accommodation in Istanbul – Pullman Hotel or Ramada Golden Horn Hotel
- 2 nights’ hotel accommodation in Kusadasi – Comfort Ada Class or Palm In Hotel
- 3 nights’ hotel accommodation in Cappadocia – Antique House Cave or Suhan Hotel
- 4 nights’ hotel accommodation in Cairo – Oasis Hotel
- 3 nights’ accommodation on Nile Cruise – Nile Ruby Cruise
PS: If This hotel list not available at the time of your booking then we will arrange similar other hotel for your group. If you prefer a Different category hotel, there might be an additional cost
Guide
- Professional English-speaking tour guides
- Return airport transfer to Cairo International Airport
Meals
- 14 breakfasts
- 3 lunches
- 8 dinners
Transport
- Airport transfer from Istanbul Airport
- Return airport transfer to Istanbul Airport
- Arrival airport transfer from Cairo International Airport
- Transportation in a fully air-conditioned, non-smoking coach
- Return airport transfer to Cairo International Airport
Other included
- Guided Istanbul City Tour
- Guided Bosphorus Cruise
- Guided Ephesus Tour
- Guided Cappadocia Tour
- Guided Goreme Open Air Museum Tour
- Guided full day Memphis, Sakkara, Pyramids Tour
- Guided full day Museum, Citadel, Mosque and Bazaars
- Guided Aswan Tour
- Guided Kom Ombo Tour
- Guided Edfu Tour
- Guided Luxor Tour
- All entrance fees mentioned in the itinerary
Excluded
Flights
- International flights
- Domestic flight from Istanbul to Izmir
- Domestic flight from Izmir to Cappadocia
- Domestic flight from Cappadocia to Istanbul
- Domestic flight from Cairo to Aswan
- Domestic flight from Luxor to Cairo
- Please Note: Domestic flight price in TURKEY for adult travelers is approximately Euros: 50,00 for one way and for under 2 years old, approximately Euros: 20,00 as an insurance policy
Insurance
- Insurance: All types
Other not included
- City Tax
- Turkey entry visa
- Egypt Visa
- Items of a personal nature such as alcoholic drinks, cold drinks, laundry
- Any others expenses which are not mentioned at the included section.
- Hotel room taxes
- Tipping Optinal land excursion
