Top Selçuk Outdoor Activities

I’ve traveled a lot, and I’ve been to Turkey before, but my last trip with Turkdmc felt like a first-time experience, from another angle, another dimension. Everything happened exactly as promised on my bespoke itinerary, no surprises, no hidden gaps. The hotels, guides, and transfers were all spot-on, and their little touches made me feel genuinely cared for. It wasn’t just a trip, it was peace of mind paired with exceptional service. I’d happily travel with them again.

I took a 4day trip with visit.bishkek to the major attractions:Issy kul lake,ala arch, canyons,gorges,yurt stay.My driver/guide Aljamal was extremely helpful, excellent driver,made sure I was comfortable,went out of her way to make my trip most memorable. She was extremely helpful in helping to recover an item I left behind in my last accommodation by contacting the owner and arranging to transporting back to my hotel in Bishkek as my last night in Kirgystan. I would definitely recommend this company.

So, first off, let me say that one of our days was spent entirely on moving from Cappadocia to Kusadasi. So, keep in mind that it is actually 4 days, not 5. Cappadocia is also a little boring and we had way too many car rides dropping off people we weren't with. However, for the price, I'd say it's pretty good. You can definitely do better if you get a private tour (not very pricey if contacting turkish travel agency directly), but for something available from Cool Destinations, it's not bad.Not going to bore you with the details, just the highlights:Cappadocia - a lot of landscapes and 4-hour per day tours or so. You will be dragged to many local stores, don't buy anything, it's horribly overpriced. Get the hot air balloon flight, it's the best. Underground city is also worth a visit, if you get the choice of underground city, ask for the biggest.Kusadasi - no tours happen here, but you will be in a hotel in the city. It's a resort city and it's absolutely charming. Plenty of good food and good drink. There's a number of relaxed shisha bars nearby. I am huge fan of the Leila cafe a couple blocks away for shisha and sunset views. And across, there is a shopping mall, check out the brand Avva for men there, absolutely the best.Ephesus - Wow! Just wow. If you're a history buff, especially. Blows Rome out of the water. Not even going to say more, just the best day.Pamukkale - Wow! Again, it's an amazing site. Our tour guide was kind enough to arrange an optional parachute ride, which flies right over the ruins and the flats. The best part of the trip for me.Tour guides change between destinations, but if you meet a Kusadasi native named Mehmet, please treat him well. He's the best!

We had a blast on this 5 day tour and found the extra day in Cappadocia worth paying for. Three days out of 5 had early pick up times (Day 1 airport transfer 4:20, Day 3 airport transfer 03:00, Day 4 Hot Air Balloon, 04:20). Hassan was our tour guide for the first two days in Pamukkale and Ephesus and was very hands on, walking with us throughout the tour whilst giving us interesting information on the sites we passed through. Usman took us around for the last two days and he gave us plenty of free time to explore the sites in Cappadocia by ourselves.There were 6 of us in the tour group and 4 stayed in Ilayda Avantgarde whilst we stayed in Hotel Derici in Kusadasi. Our Hotel (Derici) was super old and definitely not the same value as Ilayda Avantgarde which was right next door. The sound proofing was also extremely poor and we couldn't sleep on the 2nd night until 12am as there was a live outdoor concert right outside the hotel (wakeup call set at 2:30am for airport transfer). Also, both hotels do not provide duvets and only a small blanket (towel like material) was provided on the bed. We found a wool blanket in the cupboard but it looked like it hadn't been laundered so we left it.Lunches at the restaurants were average, and always remember to check the prices of the drinks before ordering as the price list isn't always readily available at the table. Remember to ask the tour guides where the free toilets are as some of the historical sites will charge 2-3TL for entry per person.

I would like to express my sincere gratitude for the most exciting trip of a lifetime the 13 Day Turkish Treasures. Our guide Yucel is what made this the most memorable trip for me and my two siblings. I've been on four Gate1 trips and the previous guides were good, but Yucel's knowledge, stories and love of his country really shined through throughout our whole trip. He was very attentive and helpful when translating was necessary. His knowledge of all the sites we visited was very impressive. I would definitely consider returning back to Turkey!

Where to start? Communication with the tour provider was amazing. WhatsApp phone app makes it easier. Guides and drivers were professional, knowledgeable and and passionate about Turkey and its history. Do a little historical research before you go. Hotels were terrific and the meals were delicious. Ballon ride - a must do. I’d go again. Highly recommend!

We were 3 generations with the youngest an 11 year old male. We all loved the experience. The sights we were taken to were the best in each area. The guides were top notch. We loved the fact that our guide in Cappadocia had actually grown up in a cave house and the experiences he was able to add. All connections to guides were and transportation were on time and easy to connect with.

Thanks to Freesia Tours for an exceptional window into the history and sites of Turkey. Mehmet and Hassan became part of the family and learning about how Turkey came to be was a fabulous world schooling opportunity for our boys. Mehmet was an encyclopedia of knowledge. Paragliding over the Terraces in Pamukkale and exploring the underground cities in Cappadocia were 2 of our favourite highlights.

We just returned from our Treasures of Anatolia Trip. The dates of the trip were December 4- 14th, 2023. While reading another review about the same trip, I was sad to hear that Exotica and Euroriente, the travel agency in Turkey were aware about the challenges with the hotel (La Quinta by Wyndham) in Istanbul where we spent the first two days and a half in Istanbul. The hotel in Istanbul, the location was terrible. Istanbul's traffic is insane, and this hotel was very far away from the historical cities in Istanbul, so it took at least an hour to get to any of the sightseeing places. We would urge Exoticca to consider a different hotel in Istanbul for this tour, as wasting several hours in traffic while on vacation is not okay. Our tour guide in Istanbul, Cem Ali, was difficult to understand, and always seemed to be disorganized and in a hurry. We learned at the last day that it was his first tour. Perhaps he was feeling insecure. Fortunate, I am able to understand Spanish and the tour guide assigned to look after the four Spanish-speaking guests was excellent and his historical explanation about each location was delivered with enthusiasm and professionalism. He made every effort to make our trip enjoyable. All his explanations were presented calmly and thoroughly. He welcomed questions, and encouraged us to engage in the discussions and conversations. We must say that Cem Ali provided us information about the next day activities using WhatsApp, which was helpful. He also provided information regarding availability of restrooms (whether we needed to pay or not), food and food choices. He did not provide any information about, distance to walk and difficulty of the walk, souvenir shops and quality of merchandise and how much to pay for things. He could have done more to help and to guide us. He was very patient with a couple that was 5–7 minutes late daily and at every stop we made. Which was annoying; after all, we all knew what time we had to be on the bus. There was no reason to be late on a daily basis. Cem Ali was not very patient or solution focused when I shared about my concerns with leaving our luggage unattended at the hotel lobby while we went on our Balloon ride. He dismissed my concerns with; "the hotel will assume the liability for any loss, but not to worry as it has never happened before." I informed him and other guests that I would not leave my luggage unattended and left my luggage inside my room. The hot air balloon ride was interesting! Ankara, Cappadocia, Ephesus, Asklepion, Troia and Bursa were all incredible and interesting. People were very friendly and I felt safe. The best part of the trip was the people we met and had fun while learning about the rich culture of Turkey. Travelling always comes with ups and downs. It is all part of the journey towards self-discovery and personal growth. Considering everything, this trip was memorable and aside from the few things mentioned, we strongly recommend it.

Things to be done better: Day 3 was a wasted day for us - we left at 0345 only to arrive in Cappadocia at midday with nothing else on our itinerary. Could have had another nice morning at our great hotel with a delightful breakfast, but instead felt rushed to leave and wasted a whole day of touring.However, our hosts/guides Rose and Mert made this tour sensational (see below)!Ephesus: Our private tour was nothing short of amazing. It happened to only be the two of us and our tour guide Rose (Gül) for the two days.On the first day, we were brought to Pamukkale, where Rose intricately described the history of the natural phenomenon while also showing us the best picture spots. We were also given plenty of time to explore on our own.The local lunch spot she brought us to gave us a great taste of culture, and delicious traditional dessert. The hotel we stayed at was AMAZING. Great breakfasts with lovely staff, plus good facilities. Our room was huge and super comfortable.On the second day, Epheus was sensational. Being a lover of ancient history, Roses knowledge on ancient history was impecable and was able to answer all our curious questions. Ephesus was Rose's favourite place in Turkey and her passion and love for her culture really showed in the tourWe also got to experience the craft of pottery from a true master (one of few in the world) and witness an astounding display of art work. They even let us get our hands dirty in clay, with his guidance ofcourse.The leather factory was good; fashion is not my area, but if you are into high end clothing you'd be in love. Just not my thing.House of virgin mary was special, being catholics this was a very spirtual and surreal experience for us.The lunch on this day was a buffet - the food was pretty average compared to the day before.Overall wonderful and our tour guide Rose deserves all the praise in the worldCapaddocia: 10/10 It was great to have a tour by not only a local but someone obsessed and passionate about his own culture and history. We got to see so many amazing places including Balloon rides: once in a lifetime experience of viewing cappadocia and all its beauty from the sky.Lovevalley: Now this wasnt part of the tour, but we wanted to go watch the sunrise with the baloons, Mert the tour guide went the extra mile to take us at 5am! I also got engaged here which was unforgetable and he helped us get amazing memories by capturing the whole thing! We were very grateful.Under ground cities: If you ask me, the ancient people of this civilisation were more talented then people of today. This was unforgettable and so cool to see how they managed to build this liveable underground city! They thought of everything: water, heating, air circulation and even animals for an alarm system!Illara valley: Beautiful hike next to a stream, extremely peaceful and serene. The rest point provided great traditional pancakes and resting by the river which waa great to rest our feet. St George's church was unique amongst the others in the valley, with the old artwork still preservedJewellery store: I personally love jewellery and it was great to see and learn about the natural stone of zultanite.Imagination valley: a beautiful view where your imagination goes wild, sort of like watching the clouds but they are rocks.Open air museum: This was very special to us being of the catholic faith, we got to see some amazing ancient churches out in the caves and see where the ancient christians had to hide.Uchisar castle: a beautiful view with a taste of pistachio coffee, and also enjoyed a jam session with Mert who showed off his talented guitar skills while we sang along.Food: Both lunches were amazing with traditional flavours and cooking, was great to be served what the locals eat and all their great flavours.Overall: Cappadocia from every angle is beautiful, so many different layers to its unique landscape, this was a view that I had never seen before or even imaginedTour guide: Mert was sensational, he took his time to explain all the history, he answered all our questions, went the extra mile and made it such an enjoyable trip for us both. Speaks English very well, along with knowing Russian and hopefully Spanish by the end of this yearThe driver was very nice and kept us safe, never felt like we were in danger. Super professional and looks like a football player - lets see if you can guess which one :pOverall: Love love love, could not recomend this highly enough, BOOK THIS TOUR and these tour guides!

We had an excellent tour of Cappadocia.The Red and Green tours were arranged by Muskara Travel Agency .Our guide for the Red tour was Mahmoud and for Green tour Emre. Both of them did a fantastic job giving us in depth information of the place and keeping the mood upbeat during the travel by their wit! The communication was excellent so was the spot selection for the tour.Loved the experience.

Went Eastwards. Solo trip from IST to Cappodocia > Antalya > Pamukkale > Selcuk > Bursa > ISTCappadocia - did the balloon ride . It was OK . The view was spectacular but I think more fun than that was waiting in the dark and watching the balloons come to life! It was beautiful. Hot air balloon ride , ticked off my listPamukkale - Cotton Castle - really touristy even though was there in Nov. Hotel was walking distance to one of the entrances and thank god I used this. The moment you enter , you take off your shoes and walk on the walk travestines , upwards. It was really fun. Water was cold at first almost numbing my feet but got warmer the higher I went. Only a family of 3 besides me doing this. It seems everyone else , busloads of tourists and those coming by car use the other entrance. Great , had the travestines all to myself till I hit the top. Skipped swimming in the pools. 130TRY and so many people in the pool! had time so arranged to go paragliding. Was fun! Spent a good amount of time in the air . Euphesus - Stayed in Selcuk and no regrets! Small , quiet town yet getting to Euphesus was breeze. Took a dolmus both ways. Euphesus was so worth it! Don't miss the terrace houses (extra 80TRY) but great way to get a glimpse into how people lived . managed to do Euphesus and Sirince on the same day.

From the moment we were collected at our hotel in Istanbul we were treated like royalty. This is by far one of the most professional tours we have ever experienced. The guides were extremely knowledgeable and exceptionally helpful and friendly. The two hotels we stayed in were superb. We were able to see some of very special places in Turkey. All in all excellent

The tour guides… they were fantastic. Guide Furkan in Kusadasi and Al in Cappadocia made our trip very memorable. Disappointed with our tour operator in Cappadocia as they were not able to get a spot for the balloon ride the next day when it was cancelled the previous day due to bad weather. Luckily for us our hotel arranged for the same and had a fantastic ride.

This tour was very well organized and we loved every part of it! Everything was seamless - transfers were on time, hotels chosen by the agency were great and the guides gave us very good tours that helped us understand better the culture around and sights we were visiting. I would recommend this tour and agency to anyone in need of a "fast" all-around Turkey by air trip that doesn't feel too stressy. One of the best things of this tour is that you sleep 2 nights in each hotel so it does not feel rushed or like you need to move on with your luggage every day. Can't comment on the balloon flight as unfortunately the days we were in Cappadoccia there were strong winds and so balloon excursions were not allowed to depart. But at least you get 2 opportunities as you stay in the same hotel for 2 nights :) However, we were refunded the proportional part very fast. Special thanks to Mehmet (the guide in Ephesus that gave us the best tour we could ask for. So detailed and interesting!), to Ali (the manager of The Capadoccia Hotel where we had the best & comfortable nights and ate the best breakfast ever) and to the TravelExperts team who made sure to keep everything comfortable for us even when the airplane companies changed our flights unexpectedly. Highly recommend, we loved Turkey!

Great tour. Very well planned and top of the line service. The company stayed in touched with us the whole time. Everything was planned to perfection. We were picked up on time every day. Two great tour guides. Sumet and Mehmet. Mehmet was amazing. He was so enthusiastic about history, that he was able to get us to enjoy every minute. The hotel (cave room) in Urgup was beautiful. A dream suite and very romantic. The Ballon ride was amazing. I will recommend this tour to anyone. Great customer service.