Türkiye, Istanbul

Heritage trails of Eastern Anatolia

Upon arrival in Istanbul, our team will welcome guests and accompany them on to their flight to Adana. Before dinner, the tour director will present the itinerary for the trip. Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, we will visit the Adana Archaeological Museum. Next, we will visit the Stone Bridge (Taş Köprü), followed by the Great Clock Tower. After that, we will explore the Sabancı Grand Mosque. At the end of the day, we will return to our hotel in Adana.

After breakfast, we will depart for Gaziantep. On the way, we will stop briefly at the Gaziantep Mosaic Museum to see the latest finds from Zeugma (Seleucia on the Euphrates), one of the four major cities of the Kingdom of Commagene in the 1st century BC.

After breakfast, we will set off for Şanlıurfa and, en route, we will stop for a private boat trip in Halfeti. Halfeti is famous for Rumkale, one of the most important medieval citadels, as well as for the village of Savaşan, half of which was submerged during the construction of the Birecik Dam.

Şanlıurfa, formerly known as Edessa, was a city in Upper Mesopotamia. Historically, it was also an important city in the Fertile Crescent, the region stretching from the Mediterranean coast to Upper Mesopotamia. The city was conquered by the First Crusade and became the County of Edessa, one of the ‘Outremer’.

Once there, we will visit the Crusader fortress and the nearby Halil Rahman Mosque, where, according to Muslim tradition, Abraham was born. We will then enjoy our dinner and spend the night in Şanlıurfa.

After breakfast, we will leave the hotel and head to Harran. This city in Upper Mesopotamia is mentioned in Genesis (XI, 31‑32; XII, 4‑5) and is now a village famous for its beehive-shaped houses. It is here that Abraham is believed to have spent several years of his life.

Harran was also the site of the temple of Sin (also regarded as the first university), renowned in the ancient world for its astronomers and scholars. The importance of the moon and astrology/astronomy for the people of Mesopotamia is reflected in the fact that their magi studied the lunar phases in detail in an attempt to predict the future. It was probably from them that Thales of Miletus learnt how to forecast solar eclipses.

According to Genesis II, Harran is also thought to be the location of the Garden of Eden, crossed by the rivers Pishon, Gihon, Hiddekel and the Euphrates.

Dinner and overnight stay in Şanlıurfa.

After breakfast, we will visit Göbeklitepe, located 18 kilometres north-east of Şanlıurfa city centre, near the village of Örencik. The site was discovered in 1963 during a survey carried out in partnership with the universities of Istanbul and Chicago, and at the time it was identified as the "V52 Neolithic Settlement". The true significance of the site was revealed through excavations that began after 1994. These studies showed that Göbeklitepe was a ritual centre dating back 12,000 years.

Dinner and overnight stay in Adıyaman.

We will leave very early in the morning for Mount Nemrut, where King Antiochus I of Commagene had a colossal funerary sanctuary built at an altitude of 1,920 metres. Sixteen giant statues, each 10 metres high, were dedicated to the Greco-Persian gods as well as to King Antiochus’s Persian ancestors.

Each of the east and west terraces has a central courtyard surrounded by colossal statues of lions, eagles and other animals. The seated statues depict Apollo, Hermes, Zeus and Heracles. Watching the sunrise from the summit of Mount Nemrut, overlooking the River Euphrates, is an incomparable experience. The panoramic views from the east and west terraces explain why Antiochus chose this spot as his final resting place.

After this visit, we will continue on to the city of Diyarbakır.

Dinner and overnight stay at a hotel in Diyarbakır.

We will devote the morning to exploring Diyarbakır (ancient Amida), a city whose history goes back to the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni (1500 BC). Over time, many civilisations ruled this city, including the Urartians, Assyrians, Persians, Alexander the Great and the Seleucids. The Arabs later conquered the city and renamed it Diyar Bakır (land of copper).

Highlights of the visit will include the basalt city walls, one of the finest surviving examples of medieval military architecture, the four gates of the old town, the Ulu Mosque (Great Mosque) and the Church of St Mary (17th century).

After breakfast, we will set off for Mardin (the ancient Marida), which is located on the southern slope of a mountain. There, we will visit 1,500-year-old monasteries. During the excursion, we will explore Mor Gabriel, Mor Yakup and Deyrul Zafaran monasteries, as well as the former Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate.

Dinner and overnight stay in Mardin.

Early in the morning, we will set off for Hasankeyf, passing through Nusaybin and Midyat, a town with medieval charm and narrow fortified stone houses.

After breakfast, we will explore Mardin’s old town, its houses, streets and bazaars. There will be free time for shopping and for discovering the ancient historic sites. We will visit the Great Mosque as well as the beautiful stone houses that are so typical of Mardin.

We will then continue with a visit to Mardin Castle and enjoy some free time to taste traditional dishes in charming old local restaurants. After these visits, we will set off for Diyarbakır.

After breakfast, we will be transferred to Diyarbakır Airport for our domestic flight to Istanbul. On arrival in Istanbul, we will head to our hotel.

After breakfast, we will head to Istanbul Airport for our flight back home.

Please note: The itinerary of this programme is subject to change due to technical requirements or for reasons related to weather conditions or other unforeseen circumstances related to the organisation of the trip.