Global Adventure - Explore Istanbul, the Aegean and trek the Carian Way

Arrive no later than Sunday April 5, 2020 in Istanbul, and transfer to our hotel in the historic Sultanahmet district of the city.  After three days of touring in Istanbul (arrival day plus two more), we’ll transfer back to the airport for a short domestic flight to Izmir, where we’ll be met by our private van and guide who will shuttle us and our luggage for the next 12 days.  End this adventure with a transfer east to Dalaman for flights home via Istanbul on Sunday April 19, 2020 or after (no flights before early afternoon please!), or continue on to the start of the Lycian Way trekking adventure!

Itinerary Highlights:   

Tour Istanbul for two full days (plus your arrival day).  On our first day a guide will take us through the many-layered 'old city' with its many Roman and Greek artifacts, huge and lovely mosques, old Byzantine churches, wooden Ottoman houses, elaborate palaces and exotic markets.   Then on our second day you you’re on your own to choose where to explore next:  tour colorful old Greek and Jewish neighborhoods, take a food tour,  cruise the ancient sea route along the Bosporus to the Black Sea, or wander the Grand Bazaar.   Each night we’ll sample the city’s amazing cuisine at a different spot with views of the minarets, rooftops and the Golden Horn with the bustle of this cosmopolitan city all around us.

Then we’ll fly south an hour to Izmir, meet our expert Turkish guide and driver, and spend 3 days touring some of the exceptional historic sites along the Aegean coast, including the 6th-century St John Basilica, the 14th-century Isa Bey Mosque, and the Temple of Artemis which was one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world, all near the town of Selçuk; the extraordinarily well preserved and majestic Greek ruins of Ephesus; and beautifully preserved but seldom visited Aphrodisias  with its Tetrapylon, Temple of Aphrodite and it’s large stadium - the largest ancient stadium in the world and one of the best preserved - all dappled with wildflowers.

Finally, we’ll sample some of the best sections of the Carian Way, the newest of several historic long trails established across Turkey along the byways of its oldest civilizations.   The Carians were an indigenous race with a long history dating back to 3rd or 4th millenium BC.   Through the Greek and Roman periods the Carians preserved their own identity, and were particularly renowned for their seafaring skill.  At its peak, Carian territory extended from what is now Lake Bafa and the ancient cities of Heracleia, Alinda and Alaband in the north, to Lake Köycegiz east of Marmaris, overlapping into Lycia. 

Our 57-mile, 8-day exploration of Caria will begin with Byzantine churches with wall paintings on an island in Lake Bafa, and the ruins of Herakleia and the Stylos Monastery in the Latmos Mountain range, with prehistoric cave paintings nearby.  Then we’ll transfer through the hill country and onto the Bozborun peninsula between the Aegean and Mediterranean seas.  For three days we’ll walk its very rugged trails over high hills, along the cliffs and down to the rocky coasts around the peninsula, between traditional villages, Carian ruins and stunning viewpoints across the sea to the Greek islands of Symi and Rhodes.   Then to cap off our exploration of the Carian Way we’ll transfer east to the Datça peninsula.  The ancient Greeks believed Datça to have been created personally by Zeus, so gorgeous are its rocky outcrops and aquamarine waters. The geographer Strabo apparently said: “God sent his beloved creatures to Datça for them to live longer.”  We’ll hike for three days past pine-crested hills, endless olive groves, blue coves, vast sweeping bays, deserted beaches and sleepy villages with goats on the road and old men arguing over tea in roadside cafes.  Remnants of the Carians and the cultures of Lydia, Persia, and the Byzantine and Ottoman empires spot the landscape: church ruins, ancient cisterns, tombstones and ruined olive oil facilities.  We’ll finish with its most precious jewel: the ancient Greek ruins of Knidos and its lighthouse at the confluence of the Mediterranean and the Aegean.

Every night along our trek we’ll stay in simple lodgings and eat the wonderful food that this country and the Mediterranean are known for.  Our luggage will be shuttled from place to place so all we need to carry is a daypack.  We will have a dedicated van to move us between the best spots and to offer an option for someone to rest if they’re injured or exhausted.

A note about personal security and insurance:  The US Department of State has had a level 3 advisory in place for Turkey since July of 2018 based on civil unrest, periodic terrorist attacks (sometimes targeting Western tourists) and occasional detentions of citizens and tourists for alleged affiliations with terrorist organizations based on scant or secret evidence and grounds that appear to be politically motivated. U.S. citizens have also been subject to travel bans that prevent them from departing Turkey.   However, Istanbul and the tourist areas of the southwest coast have been given a green light by the UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and US travel agencies are continuing or even expanding their trips into these areas.  Tourism in the region is booming!   However, some elevated risk of civil unrest or terrorist acts affecting our itinerary is there.  We will be watchful and avoid getting in the way of demonstrations or developing unrest, and if the situation becomes dangerous we will change our itinerary or, in an extreme case, cancel the trip.  Each prospective participant must weigh their sense of the risk in their decision, as well as being prepared in case something happens.  Most travel insurance policies do not cover cancellation of a trip due to civil unrest UNLESS you buy their ‘Cancel for Any Reason’ coverage, which must be purchased within the first two weeks after your first payment and must cover all non-refundable trip expenses.  Even then you will get only 50-75% of your trip expenses back (nothing if you cancel after 48 hours before your scheduled departure or during your trip) and the Mountaineers won’t be able to refund any expenses that can’t be refunded to us by our outfitters and lodgings.  See  https://www.tripsavvy.com/travel-insurance-in-time-of-war-or-civil-unrest-2973077 for more guidance.

Time of Year:   We’ll be visiting during the spring when the weather hasn’t yet gotten hot and the wildflowers are prolific across the hillsides.  Days should be warm and nights cool, and if conditions permit we’ll take a swim in the sea!

Lodging:   In Istanbul we will stay in a lovely hotel near the historic sites in the Sultanahmet district but also convenient walking distance to the Grand Bazaar and the Golden Horn.  In Sirince we will stay in a simple three-star hotel near a square where storks roost in the old aqueduct.  Every night along our Carian Way trek we’ll stay in village homes and charming small hotels, mostly with private bath but occasionally with a shared bathroom outside or down the hall.

Food:   In Istanbul, an excellent breakfast will be served at our hotel each day, lunch will be on our own in town, and we’ll have dinner at a different restaurant every night to try the range of local cuisines!  In Sirince and along the Carian Way we’ll eat at our lodging and enjoy simple meals of delicious local ingredients prepared in traditional dishes – in my three visits to Turkey I haven’t sampled a bad one yet!  Vegetarian diets can easily be accommodated but other special diets may be more challenging.

Leader’s Experience:    Cheryl Talbert has led many Mountaineers hikes and several Mountaineers and private backpacks, treks and cultural trips around the U.S. west and worldwide, including a group trip to Istanbul, the Aegean, along the Lycian Way and to Cappadocia in 2015.

Strenuousness or Difficulty rating:   This itinerary is rated strenuous, less because of sheer distance and gain and more because of the very rugged and rocky trails that are common across the southwest coast of Turkey.   

 Limit:   Maximum of 12, minimum of ten, including the leader.

Participant Requirements:   Must be a current Mountaineers member with an up-to-date waiver on file. This outing includes hiking for 3-9 hours a day on rugged terrain for multiple successive days.  For this reasons, participants need to be in good cardiovascular condition with good balance and sound joints.  Recent experience with multi-day strenuous backpacking, scrambling or hiking, plus a positive attitude and a demonstrated ability to get along well with groups under demanding conditions, will be very important.   NOTE:  Your leader makes most of the arrangements and provides logistics support during the trip, but is NOT a tour guide!  As a Mountaineers group we will operate as interdependent, capable travelers making our way together and helping one another succeed and be safe. 

Trip Price Detail:   $2400 including all lodging, transportation, guide and most meals (this is a small increase from 2020 to cover the possibility that our price will go up.  As the date gets closer we may be able to refine and adjust the final payment).  Your airfare (~$1500), travel insurance ($75-350), tips (~$100-150 per person) and a few meals in town (<$100) are not included.  NOTE:  For those who are moving their registration ahead from 2020, we may be able to apply some or all of your 2020 deposit to 2021 - you need not pay anything up front to transfer across but the leader will email you if any additional deposit is needed.

Registration Instructions:   If you were not on the 2020 roster, please submit the application form which will automatically be sent to the leader.   After the leader’s approval, go to the trip listing and click the REGISTER button to pay the 50% deposit and hold your space on the roster. Registration will close on September 1, 2020 or whenever the roster fills. A place on the roster can only be held with payment of the deposit.   The final payment due date will be announced by the leader as the outfitter’s payment schedule is finalized.

application         trip agreement        release

Cancellation Policy:  If you cancel because of an emergency, you may receive a refund less any non-refundable expenses incurred and a $100 administrative fee.  If no replacement can be found for you, we will endeavor to refund you as much as we can but the amount of refund you can receive will be dependent on the amount that can be refunded to the Mountaineers less admin fees, and your full refund may not be available until after the trip goes.