Self-Launched Turkey: Istanbul to Cappadocia Ancient Wonders

Land at Istanbul Airport (IST) or Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) and take the Havaist airport bus or M11 metro into the city (roughly £4-7). Check into a hostel or small hotel in Sultanahmet or Sirkeci so the big sights are walkable from day one. Spend the afternoon on a gentle orientation wander: Hippodrome, the exterior of the Blue Mosque and Hagia Sophia, and a sunset çay on a rooftop. Pick up an Istanbulkart from a kiosk (about £3 card deposit plus top-up) — it works on trams, metro, ferries and buses and saves a fortune.

🚌Havaist bus or M11 metro from the airport, ~£4-7; Istanbulkart for the week

🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, Sultanahmet/Sirkeci (approx. £15-20 pp)

• →Airport transfer into Sultanahmet
• →Hippodrome & Blue Mosque exterior orientation walk
• →Sunset rooftop tea

Do the old-city classics under your own steam. Book a Topkapı Palace ticket online (~£20) and add the Harem if you like — arrive at opening to beat the queues. Then Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque and the Hippodrome on foot. In the afternoon, descend into the Basilica Cistern (~£18, worth it). Prefer a human voice over an audio guide? A half-day guided old-city walking tour via GetYourGuide runs about £30-40 and covers the same ground.

🚌On foot / T1 tram, ~£1-2

🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, Sultanahmet/Sirkeci (approx. £15-20 pp)

• →Topkapı Palace (self-guided, ~£20)
• →Hagia Sophia (~£22 entry)
• →Blue Mosque (free)
• →Basilica Cistern (~£18)
• →Optional GetYourGuide old-city walking tour (~£35)

Take an early morning bus or a short domestic flight from Istanbul to Çanakkale (bus ~£14-18, 5.5-6 hrs; flight via Pegasus/AJet ~£30-45 plus a £6 airport bus). Booking ahead on Obilet or Biletall gets you a seat with less fuss. On arrival, drop bags and join a Gallipoli battlefield day tour from Çanakkale — Anzac Cove, Lone Pine, Chunuk Bair and the Turkish memorials — operating as small-group minibus tours from about £40-55 including lunch. Alternatively, a local dolmuş to Eceabat plus a self-guided map covers the main sites for around £12.

🚌Intercity coach Istanbul–Çanakkale ~£14-18, or domestic flight ~£30-45

🛏Budget hotel or hostel in Çanakkale town (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Gallipoli battlefields small-group tour (~£45 incl. lunch)
• →Anzac Cove, Lone Pine Memorial, Chunuk Bair
• →Çanakkale waterfront evening

Start early at Troy (Truva), 30 minutes south of Çanakkale — the dolmuş runs for around £2-3, entry is roughly £8-10, and an audio guide or the on-site interpretation boards do the mythology justice. Then take a bus down the coast to Bergama (~2.5-3 hrs, ~£6-8), lock your bag at the otogar and climb to the Pergamon Acropolis — the cable car (~£3) saves the legs, entry ~£10. From Bergama, take an evening bus or dolmuş to Selçuk via İzmir (~£8-10, 2.5-3 hrs). Base yourself in Selçuk for two nights, walking distance from Ephesus.

🚌Dolmuş to Troy ~£2-3; coach Çanakkale–Bergama ~£7; coach Bergama–Selçuk ~£9

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel in Selçuk (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Troy archaeological site with audio guide (~£9)
• →Pergamon Acropolis & cable car (~£13)
• →Evening stroll past the Basilica of St John

Get to Ephesus at opening (8am) — the dolmuş from Selçuk costs pennies (~£1.50) and 20 minutes. Entry with the Terrace Houses is roughly £25; an audio guide adds ~£5, or a small-group guided entry via GetYourGuide runs around £35-45 and brings the library and Terrace Houses alive. Walk back via the Temple of Artemis and the Basilica of St John. In the afternoon, catch a dolmuş up to hillside Şirince village (~£1.50) — instead of the tour's cooking class, book a standalone village cooking workshop (~£30-40) or just eat at a family-run lokanta and stock up on fruit wine.

🚌Dolmuş to Ephesus and Şirince, ~£3-4 total

🛏Guesthouse or budget hotel in Selçuk (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Ephesus with Terrace Houses (~£25)
• →Temple of Artemis & Basilica of St John (~£4)
• →Şirince village visit
• →Optional Şirince cooking workshop (~£35)

Take a morning bus from Selçuk to Denizli (~3.5 hrs, ~£9-11) and a local dolmuş up to Pamukkale village (~£1.50). En route or as a detour, visit Laodicea (entry ~£6) — or skip it if, like the tour's own reviewer, you feel Ephesus has spoiled you. Check into a small guesthouse near the travertines (the tour uses a thermal resort; a village guesthouse with breakfast is a third of the price). Spend late afternoon walking the white terraces of Pamukkale and the ruins of Hierapolis (combined entry ~£12), then soak in a thermal pool for a few pounds extra.

🚌Coach Selçuk–Denizli ~£10; dolmuş to Pamukkale ~£1.50

🛏Guesthouse near the travertines, Pamukkale village (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Laodicea ruins (optional, ~£6)
• →Pamukkale travertines & Hierapolis (~£12)
• →Optional thermal pool soak (~£4)

Bus from Denizli to Antalya (~3.5-4 hrs, ~£9-11). Once in Antalya, take a dolmuş toward Termessos and walk up to the dramatic mountain-top ruins (~£4 transport, ~£4 entry) — bring water and a picnic, as the tour does. Alternatively join a half-day Termessos tour via GetYourGuide (~£35) if you'd rather someone else handles the drive. Back in Antalya, take an evening stroll through Kaleiçi old town and the Roman harbour.

🚌Coach Denizli–Antalya ~£10; dolmuş to Termessos ~£4

🛏Hostel or budget hotel in Kaleiçi, Antalya (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Termessos ruins hike (entry ~£4)
• →Kaleiçi old town & Old Harbour walk

Free-ish day. Take a local bus or dolmuş east to Perge (~£2, entry ~£9) and pair it with the astonishingly intact Aspendos theatre (~£8) — taxis between the two cost about £10-12 split between a few travellers, or join a small-group Perge/Aspendos/Side day tour (~£40). Afternoon options: swim at Lara Beach, or just laze on the Kaleiçi pebble coves. Grab dinner at a meyhane in the old town.

🚌Local bus/dolmuş and shared taxi, ~£8

🛏Hostel or budget hotel in Kaleiçi, Antalya (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Perge ancient city (~£9)
• →Aspendos theatre (~£8)
• →Lara Beach swim (free)
• →Kaleiçi meyhane dinner

Rent a car for the day (about £30-40 with a local agency, split between two or three people) so you can do the scenic inland drive yourself: stop at Aspendos first thing, then drive north via Beyşehir for lunch and the beautiful wooden Eşrefoğlu Mosque (free), arriving in Konya by late afternoon. No car? Take the bus Antalya–Konya (~5 hrs, ~£10-12) and see the Mevlana Museum on arrival instead. The Mevlana Museum and rose garden are free or a token entry — go in the late-afternoon light.

🚌Rental car ~£15-20 pp shared, or coach Antalya–Konya ~£11

🛏Budget hotel near Konya city centre (approx. £18-25 pp)

• →Aspendos theatre (~£8)
• →Eşrefoğlu Mosque, Beyşehir (free)
• →Mevlana Museum & garden (~£2)

Bus from Konya to Nevşehir/Göreme (~3.5-4 hrs, ~£9-11). If driving, break the journey at the Sultanhanı caravanserai (~£3) — the most impressive of the Silk Road forts. Once in Cappadocia, take a dolmuş out to Derinkuyu underground city (~£2, entry ~£6) and get lost in the eight-storey warren. Check into a cave or stone guesthouse in Uçhisar or Göreme. In the evening, catch a Whirling Dervish sema ceremony at a local han or cultural centre (~£12-18, book via GetYourGuide or your guesthouse).

🚌Coach Konya–Göreme ~£10; dolmuş to Derinkuyu ~£2

🛏Cave/stone guesthouse in Uçhisar or Göreme (approx. £20-30 pp)

• →Sultanhanı caravanserai (~£3)
• →Derinkuyu underground city (~£6)
• →Whirling Dervishes ceremony (~£15)

If the budget stretches, this is THE morning: a sunrise hot-air balloon flight over the valleys runs about £150-200 booked direct or via GetYourGuide — the one big optional splurge the group tour doesn't include. Not ballooning? Hike the Rose and Red valleys at sunrise for free instead. Then visit the Göreme Open-Air Museum (~£12) and walk the fairy chimneys of Love Valley or Paşabağ. Optional: Uçhisar Castle (~£4), or a hamam in the evening (~£20). Dinner at a family-run village restaurant in Zelve or Çavuşin for a fraction of the tour's set dinner.

🚌Dolmuş and walking, ~£4

🛏Cave/stone guesthouse in Uçhisar or Göreme (approx. £20-30 pp)

• →Optional sunrise hot-air balloon (~£175)
• →Göreme Open-Air Museum (~£12)
• →Fairy chimneys hike (free)
• →Optional Uçhisar Castle (~£4)
• →Optional hamam (~£20)

Fly from Kayseri (ASR) or Nevşehir (NAV) to Istanbul (~£30-45 one way on Pegasus/AJet, plus ~£6 airport bus each end; the overnight bus is cheaper at ~£22 but eats a day). Re-check into a Sultanahmet hostel, then take a public Bosphorus ferry from Eminönü at sunset — the Şehir Hatları short tour costs about £2-3 versus the tour's private cruise, and the skyline is identical. Evening in Karaköy or Balat for dinner.

🚌Flight Kayseri/Nevşehir–Istanbul ~£35 + airport buses ~£10; public ferry ~£3

🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, Sultanahmet/Sirkeci (approx. £15-20 pp)

• →Public Bosphorus sunset ferry (~£3)
• →Karaköy/Balat evening wander

Do the bazaars on foot and free: the Grand Bazaar's painted vaults, then the Spice Bazaar and the Eminönü food stalls. Take the T1 tram to Karaköy, ride the antique Tünel funicular (~£1) up to Istiklal Caddesi and walk the full pedestrian street to Taksim, snacking on simit and baklava. Optional museum time: the Museum of Turkish and Islamic Arts (~£12), Dolmabahçe Palace (~£22) or Galata Tower (~£22, go early or at dusk). Farewell dinner at a rooftop or a cheap-and-brilliant lokanta — the tour's set farewell dinner, but on your terms.

🚌Tram, Tünel and walking, ~£3

🛏Hostel dorm or budget guesthouse, Sultanahmet/Sirkeci (approx. £15-20 pp)

• →Grand Bazaar & Spice Bazaar (free)
• →Istiklal Street walk via Tünel
• →Optional Galata Tower (~£22)
• →Farewell rooftop dinner

Last Turkish breakfast, a final wander along the Galata Bridge with the fishermen, and pick up any last souvenirs. Head to the airport by Havaist bus or M11 metro (~£4-7) for your flight home. If your flight is late, a luggage locker at the airport or your hostel covers a slow final morning.

🚌Airport bus/metro ~£4-7

🛏—

• →Galata Bridge morning walk
• →Airport transfer