Arrival in Istanbul, transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast. Your guide will pick you up from your hotel to start discovering the wonderful old city of Istanbul. We start the tour by visiting the Roman Hippodrome to see the symbolic monuments such as the Egyptian Obelisk, the Serpent Column and the German Fountain. Then, we visit the Blue Mosque called Sultanahmet in Turkish; one of the most important and famous Ottoman mosques in the city for its thousands of beautiful tiles. The mosque was built between 1609 – 1616 by Sultan Ahmet I and is the first mosque with 6 minarets (towers) in the history of the Ottoman Empire. The tour continues with the visit of Hagia Sophia where you can see the mixture of 2 religions that was for more than 900 years the Orthodox Cathedral and for almost 500 years the Mosque. Lunch in a restaurant to eat typical Turkish food. In the afternoon, we continue with a visit to the Topkapi Palace, which for centuries was the second largest palace in the world. After the conquest of the city by the Ottomans in 1453, it was the main palace until the end of the 19th century. As the last stop of the tour, we walk about 15 minutes to reach the famous Grand Bazaar which is one of the largest and oldest in the world with more than 4000 shops, where you can see many kinds of Turkish handicrafts. Transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast. Your guide will pick you up at the hotel to see the famous Bosphorus Strait, the border that separates the continents of Europe and Asia. As the first visit of the day, we arrive at the Spice Bazaar (Egyptian Market) where you can get any species for cooking and take very good typical photographs. We continue after the bazaar to the port to take our ferry (regular) that will take us to the Bosphorus Strait. During the tour, we see the monuments that adorn the banks of the Bosphorus such as the Ottoman palaces of the 19th century (Dolmabahce, Ciragan, Beylerbeyi), two intercontinental bridges, the most luxurious neighborhoods of the city and the typical Ottoman houses, etc. Transfer to the airport for the flight to Antioch. Upon arrival at the airport, transfer to the hotel.

Breakfast. First, we visit the cave of Saint Peter. Antioch is the city where Christians began to call themselves “Christians.” For Catholic groups, we celebrate a ritual in the cave. The visit of the archaeological museum in Antioch. The museum has one of the largest collections of Roman mosaics in the world. A 3 hour journey to Tarsus where Saint Paul was born. Lunch. The visit to the well of Saint Paul (very probably the remains of the house where Saint Paul was born are next to it). Departure for Cappadocia. A 3 hour drive to the hotel in Cappadocia.

The possibility of taking the hot air balloon trip (optional). Breakfast. Your guide will pick you up from your hotel. We start the day with the underground city of Ozkonak. Later, we visit the Valley of Imagination where we begin to contemplate the lunar landscape of Cappadocia. Next, we continue to another valley known as the valley of the fairy chimneys, which are natural volcanic formations with two different layers. One of the main visits of the day will be the Goreme open-air museum where we get to know the best-preserved cave monastic chapels in the region. In the Cappadocia region, Saint Basiland Saint Georgewere born. With the cave chapels of the museum with the beautiful wall paintings, we also see many caves that were used as cellars, kitchens, dining rooms, houses and etc. Lunch. In the afternoon, we celebrate a ritual in an old church inside the cave. Later, we continue to the Goreme Valley to see a fabulous landscape of the conic formations. We head on to our hotel.

Breakfast. We depart from the hotel for Pamukkale. The first visit of a long day (680 km) is Konya (Iconium in the Bible). This stop gives us the opportunity to celebrate a mass. Lunch. We continue to the hotel in Pamukkale. Dinner at the hotel.

Breakfast. The first stop of the day is Hierapolis where the Martyrdom of San Felipe is. We enter the natural pools of Pamukkale“Cotton Castle”. Lunch. Then the visit to Laodicea, the last church of the Apocalypse. We visit an ancient church built just after the Edict of Milan (313 AD), the two theaters and Syria Street. 3 hour drive to the hotel in Kusadasi. Dinner and overnight.

Breakfast. In 45 minutes, we reach the house of the Virgin Mary (the last resting place of the Virgin Mary). We celebrate ritual. Next, we visit the ancient city of Ephesus, one of the most biblical cities in the world (the name of Ephesus is mentioned more than 20 times in the Bible and Saint Paul lived in Ephesus for 3 years). Lunch. The visit of the Basilica of Saint John the Evangelist. We visit a leather factory that is the typical product of the area. Transfer to Izmir airport for the flight to Istanbul.