Daily Ephesus & House of Virgin Mary from Istanbul - Small Group
Description
Rewind 2,000 years on this day trip to incredible Ephesus and the House of Virgin Mary from Istanbul, including round-trip flights. Fly to Izmir and drive to the eastern Mediterranean’s finest preserved ancient city for an enthralling tour. Walk pavements once strutted by toga-clad Romans; admire the spectacular Great Theatre and Library of Celsus, and see shops, streets, temples and more. View the remnants of the Temple of Artemis and after a complimentary lunch, visit the stone-built house standing on the site many believe to be Mary’s last home. Numbers limited to 14 on this small-group tour.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Leave Ephesus and visit the nearby House of Virgin Mary, said to be the last home of the Virgin Mary. See inside the tiny house, whose foundations may date from Mary’s time in the 1st century AD, as your guide explains why it’s believed to sit where her last residence stood.
Continue to Ephesus, the eastern Mediterranean’s best-preserved classical city. An important hub of early Christianity and thriving Greco-Roman port, this spectacular place boasts streets, shops and temples that make it easy to imagine those who lived here 2,000 years ago. Hear the history of the city as you explore with your guide. View the remains of the nearby, immense Temple of Artemis, once an Ancient Wonder of the World, and wander the streets that formed Ephesus’s heart. Marvel at the 25,000-seater Great Theatre, ogle the façade of the Library of Celsus, and see well-preserved shops and temples. On route, see captivating details such as the chariot wheel grooves and brothel signposts carved in the sidewalks.
The Odeion of Ancient Ephesus is a small, semi-circular theater originally constructed in the 2nd century A.D and financed by PubliusVedius Antonius and his wife FlaviaPaiana.
Grand Theater
Temple of Artemis
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We offer pick up service for a radius of 2.5 km from Karakoy Disctrict. Other guests are welcomed at the meeting point.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Confirmation for this tour will be received at time of booking
- In the event of any museum closures, an alternative similar museum will be visited
- Not recommended for children aged 4 and under
- Children 18 years and under must be accompanied by an adult
- Passport name, number, expiry and country is required at time of booking for all participants
Reviews(95)
Fascinating historical and biblical experience Even with the rain it was very interesting our guide was very knowledgeable and kind
Dear Guest, First of all, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us. We are happy that you were satisfied with the service we provided. We hope you leave our country with pleasant memories, and we would like you to know that we are looking forward to seeing you again and welcoming you back to our country. We wish you healthy, happy, and beautiful days. Thank you.
Flight was delayed 2-1/2 hours, so our tour was cut from 6 hours including lunch to about 2-1/2 hours without lunch, so we had to skip some parts, including Mary’s house. Our guide was so-so, not outstanding. Still, we were glad to see Ephesus. Transfers were on time and efficient.
We are deeply sorry for the unfortunate situation caused by the delay of your flight due to weather conditions, which were beyond our control. We did our best to provide you with a pleasant experience within the time we had, and your satisfaction is very important to us. Thank you very much for choosing us. We would be delighted to see and host you again in our country.
The tour was fantastic, We had four friends on the tour. The Ephesus tour with Elif, the tour operator, was great. She also took us to a rug place and a tile place (make sure you want to go there.) We enjoyed her and she made the tour interesting and informative. The transportation back and forth to the airport on the tour was nice and spacious. It is a full long day but it was worth it. We did have some issues. The tour started earlier than expected, which was not a problem. We left the hotel at 3:45 AM instead of the 5:30, as stated on the website. The issue was that while checking in for the flight from Istanbul to Izmir, Turkish Airlines put two of us on standby. The plane was overbooked on Turkish Air by 20 people. The tour company said we could get boarding passes at the airport. This problem may have been avoided if we checked in for the flight 24 hours ahead of time. We did not know that two of us would have seats on the plane until they were escorted up the stairs minutes before we took off. This was very stressful. Despite contacting Viator, they were very unhelpful about receiving any rewards credit for the tour.
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
The tour was amazing! The company organized everything and everyone was on time. We had no difficulty finding our guide tour once we arrived to Izmir and the transfers to and from the airport were all on time. Our guide was amazing, his name was Mr. Zafer Bozoglu and he shared with us a lot of information about Ephesus and what is known about the House of Virgin Mary. We loved seeing all the cats at Ephesus. Our lunch was awesome, was a local place with home made food. We loved this experience and we recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning more about ancient places.
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
We are very lucky to have Ellif as our guide. We had so many questions regarding the history of The House of Virgin Mary and ancient city of Ephesus. An addition to planned sightseeing she showed us Turkish handcrafting cultures which was real art. Very thankful that we booked this trip via Viator
Dear Guest, we are very happy to hear that you were satisfied with our service. Your feedback is very helpful to us in improving our service. We hope that your entire trip to Turkey was wonderful and that you leave our country with beautiful memories. We would be delighted to see you in our country again. Thank you.
I have been here several times. I bought friends this time and found out religion is a expensive business. Entrance fee is shameful compared to other historical sites and the costs to get there.
Been on many tours, it's always the chemistry with the tour guide that makes or breaks the day. We were fortunate enough to have Elif handle our family. Courteous, knowledgeable, fun and knew when to leave us be and then pick up the pace again. showed and taught us many items and pointed out things we never would have seen. Top notch tour guide
Dear Customer, Thank you for your valuable feedback. We are very much pleased to hear that you had such a good time. Hope to see you and your family again. Kind regards
Elif was absolutely amazing from start to finish. She became more of a friend than a tour guide. A wonderful, and extremely knowledgeable tour guide who was there to assist in any way possible. This is a must do tour!
We did 3 tours with Neon while we were in Istanbul. However, I am only reviewing this particular one as it was just wonderful. Our tour guide just had my husband and I and everything was catered to us and needs. I wish I could remember the guide's name as I give him top marks for knowledge, experience, communication, and enthusiasm. I made sure I made a wish in Mary's house... The location where we lunched was a private place where people learn to make rugs. We ate outside and enjoyed the scrumptious chicken. They grow their own olives, make marinated olives, oil and wine. We are still talking about this lunch and the atmosphere. We spent the night at the Ramada which was a decadent experience, then travelled by to Instanbul the next day. Top marks for this tour!!
This your was everything I had hoped for. As a Christian I have wanted to see Ephesus and understand the more. I got the perfect guide, Harman. Everything worked like clockwork from the time the picked me up at the hotel at 4am (I was a tad late as I had read the reviews:-() They keep time! The only nightmare for me was the air ticket. I called several days and even on the penultimate day, I had not received my ticket. However they made me forgive everything with the professionalism and time keeping. That you very much Neon tours! Than you, Harman, you're the best guide!!!
Dear our valuable guest, Thank you for your kind review. It's a great pleasure to know that you loved our tour. Airlines companies tend to make a lot of changes on their schedules. So we always send updated flight tickets just one day in advance in order to prevent confusion. Neon Tours
