Türkiye, Istanbul

Heritage trails of Eastern Anatolia

Arrival in Istanbul, then domestic flight to Adana for the start of your tour.

On arrival in Adana, you will be met by our staff and transferred to your hotel.

Our tour director will brief you on the itinerary before dinner.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, you will visit the Adana Archaeological Museum.

You will then continue on to the Tas Kopru (stone bridge).

From there, you will discover the great clock tower, followed by the huge Sabanci Central Mosque.

Lunch.

At the end of the visit, you will return to your hotel in Adana.

Dinner and overnight stay.

After breakfast, you will travel to Antakya, the ancient Antioch on the Orontes.

On arrival, you will visit St Peter's Church.

Lunch

You will then discover the fascinating and colossal Museum of Mosaics and Archaeology, built in 2015.

After this visit, you will return to Adana.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, you will set off for Gaziantep.

Lunch.

On the way, you'll pay a short visit to the Gaziantep Mosaic Museum, where you can admire the fascinating discoveries from Zeugma (Euphrates Seleucia), one of the four main cities of the kingdom of Commagene in the 1st century BC.

This museum, built in 2013, is now the largest mosaic museum in the world.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, you will head for Sanliurfa, stopping en route for a private boat trip to Halfeti.

This picturesque area is famous for Rumkale, one of the most significant medieval castles, as well as the semi-submerged village of Savaşan, partially submerged when the Birecik dam was built.

Sanliurfa, formerly known as Edessa, was a key city in Upper Mesopotamia and a central region of the Fertile Crescent, linking the Mediterranean to Upper Mesopotamia.

Lunch.

On arrival, you will visit the Crusader fortress and the Halil Rahman mosque, located near the place where, according to Muslim tradition, Abraham was born.

You will finish the day with dinner and spend the night in Sanliurfa.

After breakfast, you will leave the hotel for Harran, a historic town in Upper Mesopotamia that is mentioned in Genesis.

Now famous for its beehive-shaped dwellings, Harran is a place where Abraham is said to have spent several years of his life.

Lunch

Harran was also the site of the Sin Temple, known as the first 'university' in history, and renowned in ancient times for its astrologers and scholars.

According to Genesis, this place is also associated with the Garden of Eden, through which the Pishon, Gihon, Hiddekel, and Euphrates rivers flow.

You will then return to Sanliurfa for dinner and an overnight stay.

After breakfast, you will visit Göbeklitepe, an exceptional Neolithic site located around 18 km to the north-east of the Şanlıurfa City Centre, near the village of Örencik.

Research has shown that it was a religious centre dating back over 12,000 years, making it one of the oldest and most significant archaeological sites in the world.

Lunch

After this fascinating tour, you will continue your journey to Adiyaman, where you will enjoy dinner and spend the night.

Early in the morning, after breakfast, you will set off for Mount Nemrut, where King Antiochus I of Commagene erected an impressive funerary sanctuary on the summit of the mountain.

This remarkable site is home to 16 gigantic statues, each 10 metres tall, which were dedicated to the Greco-Persian gods and the Persian ancestors of King Antiochus.

On the east and west terraces, a central courtyard is surrounded by colossal statues of lions, eagles, and divine figures.

The seated figures include immense statues of Apollo, Hermes, Zeus, and Hercules.

The highlight of this visit will be watching the sunrise over the Euphrates from the summit of Mount Nemrut, offering an unforgettable experience.

The spectacular views to the east and west help to explain why Antiochus chose this exceptional location to build his final resting place.

After this unique experience, you will continue your journey to the historic city of Diyarbakir, where you will enjoy lunch.

Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Diyarbakir.

Breakfast.

Your morning will be devoted to discovering Diyarbakir, a city with a rich historical past, having been ruled by many different civilisations over the centuries.

Lunch.

You'll visit its famous basalt walls, an example of medieval military architecture, as well as the city's ancient gates.

Other points of interest include the Ulu Mosque and the St. Mary Church, which bear witness to the city's cultural and religious diversity.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, you'll head for Mardin, a historic town perched on the southern slopes of a mountain, famous for its 1,500-year-old monasteries.

Lunch.

During your visit, you will discover several important religious sites, including the monasteries of Mor Gabriel, Mor Yakup, and Deyrul Zafaran, as well as the ancient Syriac Orthodox Patriarchate.

Dinner and overnight stay in Mardin

In the early morning, after breakfast, you'll set off towards Hasankeyf, passing through Nusaybin and Midyat, a charming medieval town featuring narrow, fortified stone houses.

Lunch on site.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, explore the houses, streets, and bazaars of Mardin's Old Town.

There will be plenty of free time for shopping and discovering historic sites.

Lunch.

The visit will include the Great Mosque and the typical stone houses of Mardin. You will also visit Mardin Castle, and will have time to sample traditional dishes in the old restaurants there.

After these visits, you will head for Diyarbakır.

Dinner and overnight stay at the hotel.

After breakfast, you will be transferred to Diyarbakır airport.

Domestic flight to Istanbul for your return flight.

This itinerary is subject to change due to technical or weather-related reasons, or other unforeseen events relating to the organisation of the trip.