Part I: Review of Naples/Athens/Kusadasi/Istanbul and Mykonos

[Joolscruise]

Are there Taxis at the port in Kusadasi and has anyone had experience of them ?

[barb61s]

Are there Taxis at the port in Kusadasi and has anyone had experience of them ?

 

There were heaps of Taxis in Kusadasi but be prepared to haggle

[barb61s]

Yes in Kusadasi you have to bargain a lot

 

That includes the shops and the markets

[endeavourol]

That includes the shops and the markets

 

Its just the way of life in Turkey

[atlantasandyg]

Just returned from visiting Istanbul. Hired Murat to give us a 1/2 day tour of Istanbul Bizantine. He took us to see the Palace, the blue Mosque and Hagia Sofia + other sites around Istanbul. We found him to be very friendly and happy to help accommodate us any way we wanted. He did have to rush through the sites to show us as much as possible in 1/2 day. The only comment that I have is after Istanbul, we hired a tour guide in Ephesus and during our stay in Ephesus the second guide kept asking us if our guide had pointed out certain key items at the mosque or palace. That is how we realized that we missed out on some detail during our visit to these sites. Perhaps it was that we rushed him, but we would have liked to have gotten more detailed information at the sites we visited.

[elpam]

We used Ekol for our day-trip to Ephesus last September. Our roll call was sparse, so we ended up arranging a private tour (our first ever). Nur from Ekol returned all our emails promptly and our guide had a copy of my precise requests with him when he picked us up, and he went over them with us on the drive to Ephesus. (Heavy history/archaeology, focus on Ephesus, including Terrace Houses, St. Johns Basilica, Archaeological Museum in Selcuk, and brief stop at Temple of Artemis. No shopping.) We had a wonderful day. Our guide Ali picked up on our interests and kept with our desired pace. Do not miss the Terrace Houses.

 

Have a great trip!

Hi, would you recommend going to St. John's Basilica or House of the Virgin Mary? I am traveling with someone who is not religious, but I would like to visit one of these important religious sites.

[CintiPam]

Hi, would you recommend going to St. John's Basilica or House of the Virgin Mary? I am traveling with someone who is not religious, but I would like to visit one of these important religious sites.

 

We chose to visit the Basilica of St. John, which is located in Selcuk (where the Archaelogical Museum for Ephesus is located, as well as the sole remaining pillar of the Temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world) but we did not visit the Virgin Mary's House, so I have no first-hand comparison to provide.

[wallacesott]

We also chose the Basilica of St John

[endeavourol]

We chose to visit the Basilica of St. John, which is located in Selcuk (where the Archaelogical Museum for Ephesus is located, as well as the sole remaining pillar of the Temple of Artemis, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world) but we did not visit the Virgin Mary's House, so I have no first-hand comparison to provide.

 

Is the museum in Selcuk worth visiting and does it contain many artefacts from Ephesus

[CintiPam]

Is the museum in Selcuk worth visiting and does it contain many artefacts from Ephesus

 

I think so, but I love old items.

 

It is indeed the museum for the artifacts from Ancient Ephesus. It is not all that big, so you will not be overwhelmed, and you can see it easily in an hour.