Private Daily Tour in Gobeklitepe and Karahantepe from Istanbul
Description
This tour is a journey back in time to 12 thousand years on a private long day tour to Gobeklitepe and Karahantepe from Istanbul by flight. Gobeklitepe had been built during the Pre-Pottery Neolithic age which was beginning time period at the end of Ice Age. P.S. THIS TOUR CANNOT BE BOOKED IN LAST MINUTE TO CHECK AVAILIBILTY OF OUR TOUR GUIDES AND FLIGHT TICKETS. Advantages of our tour; • We keep the Air-tickets included. *We visit Karahantepe too. *Also we visit Kızılkoyun caves and have enough time for Archeology museums. *All Admission fees are included. • Most of time good English-speaking tour guides are not available in the location. So, we provide tour guide from Istanbul who has enough knowledge and English to give good information for you. *We pick you up from your hotel and drop you back to your hotel again in Istanbul.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Our tour guide pick you up from your hotel and drive to Istanbul Airport together. We suggest the TK 2246 flight from IST to Sanliurfa which takes off at 6.25AM. Driving takes around 1 hour. So, we must pick you up latest at 4.15AM.
Take flight to Sanlıurfa. Flight takes around 2 hours.
Karahantepe is believed to date back similar time with Gobeklitepe. Karahantepe has a special structure carved into the bedrock with a human head and phallic totem. It is thought to have a ritualistic function to be adult for a human.
We drive directly to Gobeklitepe where history started. This place is on-going archeological excavations at Gobeklitepe. Klaus Shmit who discovered Gobeklitepe gave this name to this hill which means abdomen hill. Although this site was not so widely known. But currently being undertaken anywhere in the world. It is thought that first humans was praying and thanking to mother nature for fertility. So They had built huge stones in T-shaped with animal figures on in tons of weights. It will be so exciting to be there and smell the oldest history on the hill. After having enough information there, we leave the area and drive to Karahantepe.
We have a lunch break in a local kebab restaurant. Sanliurfa is the home of Turkish Kebabs and is the city of Gastronomy in the world. Cevahirhan is the best restaurant to taste the local kebabs.
After than we visit Sanliurfa Archeology Museum and Halepli Bahce Mosaic Museum. They were closed for a year and reopened again in last January. Therefore, we include these worth to visit museums to our itinerary as we promised. We are going to see all findings from Göbeklitepe Hill and Karahantepe. And of course, Haleplibahce Mosaic Museum to see magnificent early Roman period floor mosaics of Roman Villas there.
Sanlıurfa is famous with its caves. It is believed Kızılkoyun caves are the oldest caves from Neolitic age. And It had been used during thelater periods too. Today we can see Roman tombs there.
Balikligol (means fish lake in English) has been considered sacred by Jews and Muslims. According to legend, this is where Abraham was thrown into a fire by Nimrod, but God turned the fire into water and the wood into fish. The pool is full of carb fish and not allowed to touch them. We walk around of pool.
Sanliurfa Historical Castle has a panoramic view of the city, Harran plain and Euphrates River. It had been built by the ancient kingdom of Osroene. It has two columns that are 33 meters high and are decorated with reliefs of animals and humans. They are believed to be symbols of the sun god Shamash and the moon god Sin. Also according to Islamic belief, These 2 columns were the Catapults where Abraham had been thrown away to fire. Castle is closed to visitors nowadays. So we walk around of it.
The Cave of Abraham in Sanliurfa is a sacred site for Jews, Christians, and Muslims. It is believed to be the birthplace of the prophet Abraham, who is considered the father of the three monotheistic religions. According to legend, Abraham was born in a cave under the control of King Nimrod, who was a tyrant and an idolater. Nimrod had a dream that a boy would be born who would destroy his kingdom and spread a new faith. He ordered all the newborn boys to be killed, but Abraham’s mother managed to hide him in the cave for seven years. If we can have time left, we are going to visit here too.
The old bazaar of Sanliurfa is a treasure trove of history, culture, and art. It is a place where you can experience the rich heritage and diversity of this city, as well as find some unique souvenirs and gifts. It is a complex of narrow alleys and covered markets that sell a variety of goods, from traditional handicrafts and textiles to spices. It was very important marketing point on the Silk Road.
After completing our tour around 5.30-6.00PM we drive to Airport to catch our flight back to Istanbul.
We take TK2243 flight back to Istanbul which takes off at 20.15PM from Sanliurfa Airport. It takes 2 hours flight back to Istanbul.
Our driver will meet us at the airport to take us back to Hotel.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pick up our guest from lobby of hotel where they are staying. So Our guest must write the name of Hotel and adress in details. The hotel where we can pick them up has to be in city center of European side of Istanbul.
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Specialized infant seats are available
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Reviews(28)
I have not been picked up for my trip. I have not received any flight confirmation from istanbul and I am not able to reach anyone. I'm getting nervous they will not arrive at 4 as listed. Even though my hotel is listed.. please let me know how this can be fixed. Im looking forward to going
Dear Krystal, This tour has to be booked min 10 days prior time of tour date to get ready for your service. You booked tour 2 days before the tour date. And I didn't receive any booking mail from system to confirm your booking. And your mail was in spams. Please believe me it is happening first time. It is a kind of system missing. If I would be you, I would definitely thinking same way. I really apologize you personally as the owner of company. You wanted to give 1 star. It is fine. Because we couldn't give our service to you. Your money has already been fully refunded. It is up to you to believe me or not. But, It happened because of mail missing. Sorry again. Zerrin
Highly recommended. It was a long day but the tour was well worth it. My guide Ensar is knowledgeable, professional, and he made sure everything went smoothly from start to finish from hotel pickup through each stop at Karahan Tepe, Göbekli Tepe, and Sanliurfa including the flight from Istanbul and all local transportation were professionally arranged at the highest standard. The ancient sites are well kept and maintained. I will definitely use this tour again for a longer tour program next time I come back to Turkey.
Dear Nan, thank you very much for nice review regarding our service. Our Tour Guide is expert on this tour and we love his personality as well. We are so glad you enjoyed the day and witnessing to be at the the zero point of time Gobeklitepe and Karahantepe. Best Regards.
FANTASTIC GUIDE! Incredibly knowledgeable, very interesting and speaks perfect English. She is also kind and very thoughtful. She and her drivers are smoke-free, the vehicles were very clean with very good drivers. What a truly wonderful experience!
Thank you very much Laura for nice review regarding our service and my guidance. It was my pleasure meeting you and taking you to #Gobeklitepe and #Karahantepe. Warm Regardsss
I did this tour in October 2025 and would rate it as one of the best personal tours of my 70-year life. The sites had been on my short bucket list for years, but the distance and character of the locations made planning a visit challenging. When I found this tour on TripAdvisor, it seemed to be exactly what I had envisioned -it truly delivered. This was not a bus full of tourist, getting canned commentary and rushed through stops of little interest. Instead, it was a personalized experience. From the time of booking, ZERRIN was extremely helpful, providing excellent communication that continued throughout the trip. Every detail exceeded my expectations. The Istanbul pickup and airport coordination were seamless, and language was never an issue. Discussing the sites and theories of their construction and use, one on one with someone who has done archaeologic work there, was a rare privilege. We avoided large groups, and never felt hurried, bored or overwhelmed. ZERRIN‘s knowledge was exceptional, and when questions had no clear answers, she explained the ongoing scholarly debates with honesty and insight. There was time for spontaneous exploration at the sites, after lunch and during the museum visit which I highly recommend for gaining a deeper understanding of the area. ZERRIN stayed in touch throughout the return journey and even after the hotel return. I would gladly come back for another tour and enthusiastically recommend booking with her
Dear Glen, thank you very much for nice review regarding our service, my guidance and itinerary. I am so glad you enjoyed every moment of this long day. Hope to see you again in other tours. Best Regards...
Our tour guide was amazing! We were picked up from our hotel. Our guide arranged all transportation to the sites. The van was really comfortable. She knew so much information about the sites we saw. We felt very safe having her with us. We stopped at a very special restaurant for lunch. It was a wonderful tour and I highly recommend it.
Dear Sandy, Thank you very much for nice review regarding our tour. I am so happy you enjoyed this long day with me. Hope to see you again in other tours. Best Regards...
Perfect for history lovers! It is a really long day, but worth it. You see so much history. It's unbelievable how old the things are that you see. This is great for those who are staying in istanbul but still want to see the oldest human structures. Very organized and well planned.
Thank you McKay, It was a long but wonderful day as well. It was our pleasure to give you a private service. You are more than welcome anytime to discover hidden gems of Turkey. Best Regards..
Turkey is so full of treasures from the past and this trip is an excellent opportunity to see the oldest known site of human civilization and journey back into the roots of mankind. The trip is well organized and the best way to see Gobekli Tepe from Istanbul in a single day. Ensar picked us up from our hotel and accompanied us the whole day. He was knowledgeable and fun to travel with.
Thank you very much for nice review regarding our tour service to zero point of time. Ensar is one of best guides ever. He is the expert of Turkey. Also hearing that from our guests is another pleasure. You are more than welcome for discovering other hidden gems in Turkey. Best Regardsss.
Ensar knows what he’s doing. This day trip is an excellent opportunity to see what the roots of humankind are. It’s not for the faint hearted. 4:00am-11:00pm. But it’s totally worth. Next day try to have a sort of lighter schedule… but you won’t regret taking this opportunity.
Thank you very much for booking our tour and nice review regarding our service. It is a long day tour and tiring. But So glad you enjoyed it. Best Regards. You are more than welcome anytime.
It’s physically demanding but it’s worth every penny. Very well planned and professionally run. Don’t miss both museums.
Thank you for nice review regarding our service Mr Meklin. We are very glad you like it Best Regards
This was one of the best tours I've ever done. Zerrin and Ensar went out of their way at every moment to make sure we got so much out of our time and were always comfortable. Nothing was too hard. So many aspects of our experience were elevated by their specialised knowledge and connections in the area and added to this was their flexibility in letting us do it the way that was most enjoyable for us. We will never forget our time at Karahan Tepe and Gobeklitepe and also the fantastic markets at Sanliurfa. We are still excitedly telling friends and family about the trip and hope to take our kids when we return. This is a must do tour for anyone interested in history, archeology or just humanity.
Thank you very much Mitra for nice review. I am so glad you loved tour. This is our very precious tour. So we have to be so sensitive to all our guests. Best Regards
