2009 ANZAC Day Tours
"The Sergeant tour"
12 - Day itinerary
22 Apr 2009 to 03 May 2009

Welcome to Istanbul, where you will be met at the airport and transferred to your hotel. Tonight, meet your guide and the rest of your group. Overnight Istanbul.

After breakfast, you enjoy a fully guided tour of the only city to span two continents, visiting the Blue Mosque, the Aya Sofya, Topkapi Palace and the Hippodrome. Tonight don’t miss the optional Turkish Folklore evening. Overnight Istanbul. Breakfast and Lunch

Depart for the Gallipoli peninsula early morning and tour this now serene site. Visit Lone Pine Australian Memorial and Chunuk Bair New Zealand Memorial and ANZAC Cove if accessible. Straight after the tour we head for the site of the dawn service to get a good spot. Tonight, soak up the vibrant atmosphere under the stars waiting for the break of dawn. Overnight at Dawn Service. Breakfast.

Awake for the ANZAC Dawn Service and commemorate our fallen forefathers on this special day. Also attend the Australian &/or New Zealand Memorial services. Overnight Ayvalik. Dinner.

Today we head south and on the way we enjoy a guided tour of the magnificent acropolis of the ancient city of Pergamum. Overnight Kusadasi. Breakfast and Dinner.

Stand in awe at the Roman technology once used on a tour of the ancient city of Ephesus. Also visit the former Greek village of Sirince, famous for it's fruit wines, before a leather goods show. Turkey produces some of the finest leather goods in the world and many are made here before branding in Italy. Carpet weaving has long traditions in Turkey and today we learn how the carpets are made by hand and what determines their value. Overnight Kusadasi. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner.

Today we drive east for the calcium terraces of Pamukkale (cotton castles). You also visit the ruined city of Hierapolis, an ancient health spa just above the calcium terraces. Overnight Pamukkale. Breakfast and Dinner.

Today we visit the Mevlana Museum in Turkey's religious Capital, Konya. We then stop on the ancient Silk Road at the Caravansary, Sultanhani. Overnight Cappadocia. Breakfast and Dinner.

Amid the moonscapes of Cappadocia, you tour the Goreme open-air museums, Pasabag and Uchisar castle. Photo opportunities are everywhere so have your cameras ready. Tonight, don't miss the optional Turkish folklore evening featuring folk and belly dancers... a night you won't forget! Overnight Cappadocia. Breakfast and Dinner.

After breakfast we visit Ilhara Valley, a region once favoured by Byzantine monks, and the amazing Derinkuyu underground city, home to early Christians who hid underground from Roman persecution. Overnight Cappadocia. Breakfast and Dinner.

Leaving the surreal landscape of Cappadocia behind, we head for exotic Istanbul. In the nation's capital, Ankara, we visit the Mausoleum of Turkey's first President, Ataturk and learn a little about why he is so revered in this country. Overnight Istanbul. Breakfast.

After breakfast, our tour concludes and we say goodbye to our new friends. Breakfast.

Tour includes

o Inbound airport transfer from Ataturk Airport or Sabiha Gokcen Airport to your hotel
o Transportation in a fully air-conditioned, non-smoking coach
o Professional English-speaking tour guide for the duration of the tour
o Commemorative gift
o 10 breakfasts, 2 Lunches, 7 Dinners
o 10 nights - Hotel accommodation in total.
  - 1 night in Ayvalik
  - 3 nights in Cappadocia
  - 3 nights in Istanbul
  - 2 nights in Kusadasi
  - 1 night in Pamukkale

Tour does not include

o Tips
o Anything not mentioned above
o Entrance fees to the various sites