# Private 7-Day Istanbul, Cappadocia & Ephesus Tour
Canonical: https://turkeyvia.com/tours/istanbul-cappadocia-ephesus-7-day-tour
Updated: 2026-10-25

## Key facts
- Price: From €1619 per person (based on 2 travellers)
- Tour type: Private tour (only your party, your own guide and vehicle)
- Duration: 7 Days
- Included: Flights, hotels & guided days included.
- Pickup / meeting point: Istanbul Airport pickup included. Your driver will meet you at arrivals.
- Payment: Reserve online with a 40% deposit by card (at least the cost of the flights), the balance in cash on arrival.
- Cancellation: Cancellation charges from 25% · see the schedule

## Overview
Explore Istanbul, Cappadocia and Ephesus over 7 days with private guides and vehicles, domestic flights and six hotel nights. Start at Istanbul Airport and visit the Old City, Cappadocia and Ephesus. Day 1 is arrival in Istanbul; day 2 covers the Old City. On day 3 you fly to Cappadocia for the Red Tour and stay at a cave hotel, then take the Green Tour on day 4 and return to the same hotel. Day 5 is a flight to İzmir and a free afternoon in Kuşadası. Day 6 visits Ephesus before an evening flight to Istanbul, where you spend the final night; day 7 is departure. Hagia Sophia’s upper gallery and Topkapı Palace with the Harem are not included. The Ihlara Valley walk is about 3.5–4 km. Workshop stops are part of the programme: day 3 pottery and carpet; day 4 onyx and leather; day 6 carpet. Visits are about 30–45 minutes, with no obligation to buy.

## Highlights
- Walk through the Hippodrome and see the Blue Mosque
- Visit Paşabağ, Zelve and Devrent Valley
- Walk Ihlara Valley and explore Kaymaklı
- See Ephesus and the House of the Virgin Mary
- Visit carpet, onyx and leather workshops; no obligation to buy

## Itinerary
### Arrival at Istanbul Airport, Private Transfer

Your private tour begins at Istanbul Airport (IST), where you land on your own international flight. Once you have cleared passport control and collected your bags, your private driver meets you in the arrivals hall and drives you to your hotel on the historic peninsula. No sightseeing is planned today, which leaves room to rest after the journey or take a first stroll towards Sultanahmet. Your private guide collects you from the hotel tomorrow morning for the Old City day. Stops: Evening at Sultanahmet Square.

### Old City with Your Own Guide: Hippodrome to Bazaar

With a private licensed guide, you trace fifteen centuries of Istanbul on foot across the Sultanahmet district. The day starts at the Hippodrome, where Byzantine crowds once watched chariot races, and continues to the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, the former cathedral of Emperor Justinian. After an included lunch, Topkapı Palace shows how the Ottoman court lived, and the Grand Bazaar closes the day. Your guide orders the visits around opening hours and prayer times. Tickets for Hagia Sophia's upper gallery and for Topkapı Palace with the Harem are not included in this tour. Stops: Hippodrome and its monuments, Blue Mosque (Sultan Ahmed Mosque), Hagia Sophia upper gallery, Topkapı Palace and the Harem, Grand Bazaar.

### Fly from Istanbul to Cappadocia for a private Red Tour

After two nights in Istanbul, your private driver takes you from the hotel to the airport early for the morning flight to Cappadocia. Your guide meets you at Kayseri or Nevşehir with a TurkeyVia sign, and the private Red Tour begins from there. Where Istanbul was domes and minarets, today is volcanic landscape: Devrent Valley, the monk chimneys of Paşabağ, the pottery town of Avanos and the cave village of Zelve. A carpet workshop is also on the route. You check in at your cave hotel in the late afternoon. Stops: Devrent Valley, Paşabağ (Monks Valley), Avanos pottery workshop, Zelve Open-Air Museum, Carpet Weaving Education Center (about 30–45 min).

### Kaymaklı, Ihlara and Selime on a private Green Tour

A slower morning: breakfast at the hotel, then your guide collects you between 09:30 and 10:20 for the private Green Tour. It is the longest route in Cappadocia, about 9 hours with roughly 2¾ hours of driving, and having your own vehicle makes those drives easier. Go below ground in Kaymaklı, walk the Ihlara canyon at your pace, have lunch beside the river at Belisırma and explore the cliff monastery of Selime. The onyx and leather workshops come late in the afternoon. You return to the same cave hotel for a second night. Stops: Esentepe panorama, Kaymaklı Underground City, Ihlara Valley walk, Selime Monastery, Onyx workshop (about 30–45 min), Leather workshop (about 30–45 min).

### Fly to İzmir and a Free Afternoon in Kuşadası

After breakfast at your cave hotel, a private transfer takes you to the airport (Kayseri or Nevşehir) for the flight west to İzmir. Your driver meets you at İzmir Adnan Menderes Airport and follows the motorway south to Kuşadası, a drive of a little over an hour. The rest of the day is yours: walk the marina, cross the causeway to Pigeon Island with its small fortress, or relax at your hotel. Lunch and dinner are not included today, so ask your driver for a restaurant tip. Stops: Free time in Kuşadası.

### İsa Bey Mosque, Ephesus and a Flight to Istanbul

Your private guide collects you and your luggage from your Kuşadası hotel for a day built around Ephesus. You start in Selçuk at the İsa Bey Mosque, then walk through the ancient city; tickets for Ephesus and the House of the Virgin Mary are included, as is lunch in Selçuk. Afterwards you visit a carpet weaving center, the House of the Virgin Mary and the Temple of Artemis. Your driver then takes you to İzmir Airport for the evening flight back to Istanbul, where a private driver meets you and takes you to your hotel for the final night. Stops: İsa Bey Mosque, Selçuk, Ephesus, Carpet Weaving Education Center (about 30–45 min), House of the Virgin Mary, Temple of Artemis.

### Departure: Private Transfer to Istanbul Airport

Your seven days end in Istanbul, the city where they began. After breakfast at the hotel, the time until your transfer is free; how much of it you have depends on your international flight. Check out, ask the hotel whether it can hold your bags, and use the morning for a last walk or a coffee near Sultanahmet. At the agreed time your private driver collects you from the hotel lobby and takes you to Istanbul Airport. Lunch is not included today. Stops: Free morning in the old city.

## Included
- Private licensed English-speaking guide
- Private sightseeing transport, all Istanbul airport–hotel transfers (including the domestic flight days), return Cappadocia airport–hotel transfers, and return İzmir Airport–Kuşadası transfers
- Entrance tickets: Paşabağ and Zelve (one ticket), Ihlara Valley and Selime, Kaymaklı Underground City, Ephesus, House of the Virgin Mary
- Lunch on day 2 in Istanbul, days 3 and 4 in Cappadocia and day 6 in Selçuk
- 3 nights in Istanbul: central 3★ hotel, double room with breakfast
- 2 nights in Cappadocia: Celestial Cave Hotel or similar, double room with breakfast
- 1 night in Kusadasi: Ephesus Centrum Hotel or similar, double room with breakfast
- Flight Istanbul → Cappadocia on day 3 (economy class; checked bag as per the ticket fare)
- Flight Cappadocia → Izmir on day 5 (economy class; checked bag as per the ticket fare)
- Flight Izmir → Istanbul on day 6 (economy class; checked bag as per the ticket fare)

## Not included
- Tips (optional)
- Personal purchases
- Drinks with meals
- Dinner
- Lunch on days 1, 5 and 7
- Entrance tickets: Hagia Sophia (upper gallery), Topkapı Palace incl. Harem

## Good to know
- Workshop stops: a carpet weaving centre, a leather workshop, an onyx workshop and a pottery workshop. Part of the programme, no obligation to buy.
- Domestic flights are economy class. Your baggage allowance follows the ticket fare, and we confirm it with your tickets.
- Travel with the passport you booked with: airlines check the name on the ticket against it.
- Wear comfortable walking shoes: the valleys and rock-cut sites have uneven ground and steps, and the underground city has low, narrow passages.
- Bring a hat and sunscreen in summer and a warm layer in spring, autumn and winter: mornings in Cappadocia are cool, and the underground city stays cool all year.
- Vegetarian, vegan or other dietary needs at lunch: tell us when you book and we let the restaurant know.
- Mobility needs or travelling with small children? Tell us before you book, and we tell you honestly which parts of the day suit you.
- We send your final programme, hotel names and pickup times before departure, and you can reach us on WhatsApp during the trip.

## FAQ
### Who meets me at Istanbul Airport on the 7-day private tour?

Your private driver waits in the IST arrivals hall with a TurkeyVia sign after you clear customs, then takes you to your hotel. The meeting time follows the flight details you send us. If you land at Sabiha Gökçen or want another airport transfer, it can be arranged through our /airport-transfers page.

### Can I use my own domestic flights on the 7-day private tour?

Yes. Remove the domestic flights option when booking and we meet you at the airport or your hotel instead, with the meeting time confirmed with your booking. The default flights are Istanbul to Cappadocia, Cappadocia to İzmir and İzmir back to Istanbul, all in economy class.

### Which entrance tickets are not included in the 7-day private tour?

Hagia Sophia's upper gallery and Topkapı Palace with the Harem are not included; you buy those tickets at the sites on your Istanbul day. Paşabağ and Zelve (one ticket), Ihlara Valley with Selime, Kaymaklı Underground City, Ephesus and the House of the Virgin Mary are included.

### What should I wear on the Istanbul, Cappadocia and Ephesus days?

For mosques, cover shoulders and knees; women need a headscarf, and shoes come off inside. Bring flat shoes with grip for Cappadocia's valleys and the worn marble of Ephesus, a layer for the cooler underground city, and sun protection for the open sites.

### Does the 7-day private tour include workshop visits?

Yes: an Avanos pottery workshop and a carpet workshop on day 3 in Cappadocia, onyx and leather workshops on day 4, and a carpet workshop on day 6 near Ephesus. Each lasts about 30–45 minutes, there is no obligation to buy, and your guide may shorten a stop when time is tight.

### Which lunches come with the 7-day private tour?

Lunch is included on day 2 in Istanbul, days 3 and 4 in Cappadocia and day 6 in Selçuk; dinners and drinks are not. Breakfast is served at every hotel. Tell us about vegetarian, allergy or other dietary needs when booking so each lunch can be arranged.

## Book
Book on the tour page: https://turkeyvia.com/tours/istanbul-cappadocia-ephesus-7-day-tour. Questions: WhatsApp +90 507 357 58 94