This enclosure for archaeological remains at Ephesus elegantly reconciles historic conservation with accessibility for visitors. The site of a succession of great ancient civilizations, Ephesus, on the south-west coast of modern Turkey, embodied a peculiarly fertile synthesis of architecture and culture. In 356BC the Greeks built the Artemesium (a colossal Ionic temple dedicated to Artemis the fertility goddess) which was one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. During the 2nd century BC, Ephesus was the fourth largest city in the eastern Roman Empire, famous for its Artemision, the Library of Celsus and its medical school..
It is believed that the evangelist St. John had spent his last years in the region around Ephesus and buried in the southern slope of Ayosolug Hill. Three hundred years after the death of St. John, a small chapel was constructed over the grave in the 4th century. The church of St John was changed into a marvelous basilica during the region of Emperor Justinian (527 -565 AD). The second half of the first century was full of persecution for the early Christians.Apostle James and Stephen were killed in Jerusalem.Paul was sent to Rome and executed. According to tradition John took The Mother Mary and came to Ephesus.He wrote his Gospel in Ephesus and the Revelation in Greece Island, Patmos in 96AD.
House of Virgin Mary is located on the top of the "Bulbul" mountain 9 km ahead of Ephesus, the shrine of Virgin Mary enjoys a marvelous atmosphere hidden in the green. It is the place where Mary may have spent her last days. Indeed, she may have come in the area together with Saint John, who spent several years in the area to spread Christianity. Mary preferred this remote place rather than living in crowded place. The house of Virgin Mary is a typical Roman architectural example, entirely made of stones. In the 4th century AD, a church, combining her house and grave, has been built. The original two-stored house, which consisted of an anteroom (where today candles are proposed), bedroom and praying room (Christian church area) and a room with fireplace (chapel for Muslims).
The Temple of Artemis is known as one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world. It has been built in the areas of Ephesus on a flat area which has over the centuries turned into a swamp. If you visit Ephesus today, you can only see the ruins of the foundations of this marvelous construction of the Hellenistic Age, entirely made of marble and full of sculptured columns' capitals and shafts.
Ahmet was very informative and flexible to do what we wanted for the itinerary. He was knowledgeable about the history of where we visited and Doan was a great driver I highly recommend booth of them
Beatiful places highly recommend a visit and the house of mary was so peaceful also the temple of artemisia was good to . 👍 Nesli the tour guide was brilliant polite professional and very knowledgeable. Thanks for a great experience 👍
Very knowledgable and personable guide. Zeneaj was an excellent guide who knew the area well. We learned many facts about Ephesus and the Virgin Mary.
Wonderful full day tour from Kusadasi to Ephesus. Our tour guide Mel and driver Mehmet were very flexible in terms of our pickup, and allowed us to get the most out of the time we had. Melike was very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about her town, and we understand far more about the entire area and history than we did after our first time there. Thanks Mel….we really enjoyed the day
Enjoyable experience even on first rainy day of Summer. Serdar, our local guide was knowledgeable in the history of the House of Virgin Mary and Ephesus. He very polite & genuine & brought the visit to life for us. No pressure even after we attended a carpet demonstration later which was interesting!
We had a really good experience with this tour. Ahmet was a great tour guide who could not have been more accommodating or polite. He was extremely flexible to accommodate our timeline and preferences and assisted us with parking to make everything very seamless. He was also a very knowledgeable and engaged guide. I would recommend this tour and Ahmet.
Millos was just the most wonderful tourist guide! This was a private tour so the timing was flexible. Pick up/drop off at the hotel. She made the trip very enjoyable for the whole family.
We had an amazing tour! Our tour guide Ahmet was professional, kind, and knowledgeable! He was able to answer every single one of our questions and made the tour so much more enjoyable. Ahmet was able to tailor the tour to what we wanted and exceeded our expectations! Would book with him again! Ali our driver was very efficient at getting us to all the places we needed to see safely as well! Overall we had an amazing day because of this tour
This tour was amazing for so many reasons. Stepping foot into Ephesus, seeing the ruins, was breathtaking, transporting us back in time. Walking through the Virgin Mary’s final place gave us a spiritual experience that can’t fully be explained. Walking through the Basilica of Saint John was also surreal, to think that we were walking in the same place as those who have brought us the words of The Lord. Through it all, we were guided by the most incredible guide, Asli. Not only did she show us all of these beautiful sites, but she made us feel like family for the day. We hope to return to Türkiye and get to see the sites and her again!
Ahmed is incredibly friendly, polite, and respectful. He is highly knowledgeable and answers every single question thoroughly and reasonably. It is rare to find someone so trustworthy and professional. Highly recommended!
We just spent a wonderful and educational day at the port of Kusadasi with Mel. She was so knowledgeable and pleasant to be around. She truly loves her home town and it shows in how she describes their customs and traditions. Our tour was customized to our interests and her recommendations. We loved having a private guide and not being in a large group. Because of Mel, we are leaving a small part of our heart in Türkiye.
This tour was a revelation from beginning to end. The location is amazing and our guide Darmla was informative, professional and could not have made the experience better. We have been traveling for a while and this was definitely one of our most favorite tours.
We loved our tour with Zeynep. She was very knowledgeable and easy to talk with. We got into each of the sites smoothly and she even offered suggestions on the best photo spots. She suggested a great spot for lunch, and we had a nice sampling of the local cuisine. My 2 teenagers enjoyed it as well. She was well versed on the history and current events, so she fielded questions easily. I would recommend this tour to others who are overwhelmed with getting in and out of the tour sites in a foreign country with a cruise ship timeline. Zeynep took care of everything.
Devin was very knowledgeable when providing information which was very good info. He sounded like a stern professor at times though.
Couldn’t have been better or easier. Guide Zeynep was great. Very knowledgeable and friendly. Highly recommend.
Asli was an absolute amazing guide!! She was so knowledgeable and personal. We had the best time learning from her. She customized the tour for us and answered our questions. We loved this tour! There is a lot of walking and some includes slick, rocky areas.
Booked this trip for my Mom and she loved it. Super knowledgable guide and patient driver. Highly recommend this company.
Amazing driver & guide. They met our every request & were extremely knowledgeable. $143.00 Aust. dollars which included admission to Mother Mary's chapel. Next was lunch which included BBQ, vegetables & dessert. Next we visited the carpet Co-op. which included a demonstration of their skills, included hand made jewellery & sales. No pressure to purchase but we did purchase a carpet at an amazing price. An a Renata Australia amazing experience & highly recommended. Renata, Australia
We booked this tour late the night before we were in town so we weren’t sure what to expect. Selim picked us up at the port and told us he would customize the tour based on our interests. He was extremely knowledgeable about all the sites we saw and made sure we did everything we wanted to do. He took us to see some incredible ruins as well as the Virgin Mary’s house. We expressed an interest in locally made arts and crafts as well as local food. So he took us for a traditional Turkish lunch and to see how turkish rugs are weaved by hand which was fascinating. Afterwards we went to a Turkish ceramic studio where we were shown how they create pieces on the potters wheel and then fire them, design them and paint them by hand. This was exactly what we wanted to see and shop for, so it was perfect. He then took us back to the port. It was one of the best tours of our 2 week trip. Selim was extremely attentive, knowledgeable, and kind. We truly enjoyed our day with him in Ephesus and feel like we really lucked out given it was booked at the last minute. Highly recommend this tour! It was excellent.
We were picked up at the port by our lovely guide Selim. He was ever so helpful and knowledgeable. He made sure we had the best experience ever.
the guide and transport was great. I had read that some tours take you to a high pressure rug sale business. i had booked this tour to avoid this but it turned out to be the same. lunch was there and the tour which i though had included our visit became a lot more expensive with paying for lunch, and the tickets to the locations. my advice be aware there are a lot of added cost that are not clear on this booking.
I would like to recommend to everyone who want to explore kushadasi surrounding, because this agency is very professional and successfully will achieved every your need.
Asli our guide was really nice informative and friendly. Includes Included in this booking is a stop for lunch with a tour of a Turkish rug making company. Very interesting.
Mel was is one of the most educated tour guides?I have come across in my years of travel. She was very engaging and being a local since birth. Shared stories not only about history but the way the locals lived to paint a better story. She was fantastic attentive to my family's needs.And we're very blessed to have her as our guide and Boss as the Driver
Great excursion and Furkan was a great guide. Fascinating tour.
Our guide, Ahmet made this experience so wonderful. His love for history and his knowledge of everything we were seeing in Ephesus made this worth every single penny! We enjoyed this tour and highly recommended it!!
Tas was our guide. We all knew within the first five minutes that it was going to be a great tour. Tas was wonderful and very knowledgeable. We all felt it was the best tour ever. Our driver, Boss, was also wonderful. Tas and the Boss collaborated to work around the threatening weather and we managed to stay dry on a rainy day.
Our guide Ali was exceptional with his English, knowledge of history, culture, and current status of excavations. We would thoroughly reco
Wow! What an amazing day! We had the most awesome tour guide. Sergen was the most knowledgeable guide we could have had. So kind and explained everything we were seeing explaining as we went. He made us feel like we have known him forever. What an excellent guide and trip.
Had an outstanding experience with Zeynep leading our tour. She provided deep insight into so many aspects of Ephesus, House of the Virgin Mary, and St. John's Basillica that it made the entire experience come alive. We were fortunate to have a small group and beyond the details of the site, Zeynap was able to answer our questions about Turkish, Ottoman, and Greek history as well as cultural nuances of Turkish life today. Her knowledge and openness made the experience fantastic. We had a nice lunch and also a tour of the rug/carpet making cooperative. The demonstration of the silk work silk extraction was extremely interesting. We read some other reviews that indicated they didn't like the rug/carpet sales pitch and felt like it was hard. I couldn't disagree more. While we didn't buy anything, we were interested and wanted to see the different options. There was definitely no "hard sell." Did they offer options and opportunities? Yes. But it was all professional and it a warm, welcoming environment.
Incredible tour with Melike! We were picked up on time and our van was extremely comfortable. My wife and I were the only participants, so we had Mel’s complete and undivided attention. Wow! She provided fabulous historical descriptions at all of our stops. Our favorite was Ephesus. Also wanted to thank our driver Engin for keeping us safe. Highly recommended!
Nagi was such a gracious host and my apologies for taking so long to post this review… certainly Ephesus was one of the major highlights of our trip and Nagi made it so much more enjoyable and informative.
She was great. Very informative and just an overall great guide. I would love to get her name as we have some friends going and they would like to book her.
We are a group of 12 persons, joined a private tour when the cruise arrived at Kusadasi. Nora, our local guide, a beautiful lady, led us to visit Virgin Mary House, then to Ephesus ancient city. After that, visit leather factory to see a fashion show, during which, we were very exciting as we had a chance to act as model. After a delicious lunch, we visited St. Jean Basilica. Lastly, Nora brought us to a souvenir shop for selecting our gift. Throughout the journey, we were very satisfied with Nora's working attitude. She is a well experienced guide as she explaines in detail about each view point. She is also a thoughtful and considerate person, as she will let us know the routing and ask us whether someone is vegetarian beforehand. On the whole, Nora deserves a credit with her work.
Nagi is the best tour guide we’ve had in the four cruises my son and I have taken together. We had this particular tour on October 30th. We learned so much from her and enjoyed the incredible lunch as well.
The entire day was amazing, but I think Ephesus was the best! had no idea it was that big, very similar to Pompei but in my opinion, better! our Guide Nage was one of the best guides we have ever had, anywhere!!! 5 Stars! Dale and Val Claussen
It was a very personal tour conducted by a great driver. Selin was very knowledgeable and listen to our questions at all times about the tour . Enjoyed the house of Mary but was kind of disappointed we didn’t go to Saint Paul’s grave. Could’ve not have gone to the shops but I did enjoy the leather shop and the fashion show with it. The restaurant we went to was very authentic and enjoyed the atmosphere.
Our little group loved this tour. Nagi reached out to me the morning of our tour asking if we would be open to starting earlier than planned due to the high volume of traffic that would be visiting the sites that day (there were more than 3 cruise ships docked). It worked out perfectly because we were able to get into the House of the Virgin Mary in less than 10 minutes but as we were leaving the line was so long that she said they would have a 90 minute wait to get in. This was the case with all the sites we visited - as we were leaving the tour buses were just arriving. She was extremely engaging and very knowledgeable during the entire trip. And I can't forget to mention Mehmet, the driver. He expertly navigated the roads and knew exactly where to pull over to get the best views. Thank you both for such a wonderful afternoon.
Kusadasi was a cruise stop for us, so we only had a half-day to explore the major sites in this area. This tour provided an outstanding overview of the significant historical sites in Ephesus. Our guide Nagi was extremely informative and provided a wealth of information about the different sites we visited. Walking among the ancient ruins was surreal and we highly recommend this tour to get a very good overview of the history of Ephesus and the surrounding area.
Great tour and friendly guide Tas, very helpful driver Boss. Tour covered all what was in the itinerary and finished on time as per our request.
This was a superb tour. Our guide Asli was very knowledgeable and great company. We saw everything we wanted to see without the tour feeling too long or rushed. Everything went so smoothly from the port collection to our comfortable car always waiting for us in the right place. We would thoroughly recommend it.
Brilliant!! This was a real 5 star experience. Absolutely made by our guide Mehmet MEA. The logistics of pick up, quality of the vehicle and thorough understanding of our needs was the best. Being shown around by Mehmet MEA was like a day with a good friend - I think it was a day with a good local friend. His knowledge and ability to get us to the best places and explain the historical and cultural aspects of the tour were perfect. We would recommend this company and this guide to all. Made our second visit to Ephesus very special and memorable.
Our tour guide “Boz” was only concerned with getting a “10” rating from everyone on Trip Advisor than providing us with the tour we paid for. We paid for a tour of Ephesus, the home of the Virgin Mary, the basilica and burial sight of St. John and the Temple of Artemis. While we did tour Ephesus and the Blessed Mother’s house we never made it to St.John’s church & burial site or the Temple of Artemis, because we were too busy being pressured to visit locations where we could spend our money on locally made items. First it was highly suggested that we would enjoy watching how world famous Turkish rugs were made, it would only be about 15 minutes. Our group (6) said ok. 15 minutes turned into 1.5 hours. After the demonstration we were herded into a large room filled with rugs. Then the sales pitch started. After free drinks were offered including alcohol, the fast talking salesman aided by 4 fast moving men had rugs were flying everywhere. After the 30 minute pitched ended and we informed them we weren’t interested in buying $30,000.00 rugs they wanted my wife to visit the jewelry room. We declined but Boz suggested we take a break and eat in the restaurant next door (owned by the rug company). For a fixed price of 15 euros a meal we had an ok meal of local food. When we got home we found out we were ripped off and charged for 3 meals instead of 2. After lunch and back on the bus, Boz started suggesting we “visit” a pottery shop to see how pottery was made. We all declined and said we wanted to go straight to The Virgin Mary’s home. We did and after that visit Boz tried to talk us into going to a leather factory to see how authentic Turkish leather goods are made. Everyone said No thanks. By this time Boz was obviously frustrated with us and downplayed visiting The Temple of Artemis. He said it was just one pillar and not much to see. If that’s the case why bother putting it into the tour we paid for. At this point it had been a long hot day and Boz said we would be heading back to our ship. At this time Boz diverted our attention back to giving him a 10 star review on TripAdvisor. He started directing everyone to open their phones to start the review, instructing us on what to do. He was willing to help anyone who needed it even going so far to suggest he could write the review for them. Two of the people in our party were not familiar with how to do a review, so they reluctantly gave their phones over to Boz and Bingo just like that Boz had two 10 star reviews. Boz kept going on and on about 10 star reviews and how it meant so much to him and his family, it was overbearing how much he went on and on about it, trying to convince the other 4 people to write similar reviews for him. He talked about it all the way back and none of us thought about St.John’s church and burial site and how he never mentioned it, let alone take us to it, something we paid for. Also take note if you take this tour with Boz, expect to pay for every historical place you go, we had to pay out of pocket for ours in addition to paying to go on the tour. I will have to say Boz was knowledgeable about the one site we visited where he gave us a narrative ( Ephesus), but that was about it. Stay clear of Boz if you visit this part of Turkey unless you’re interested in a shopping trip instead of a historical tour of the area.
Upon meeting our guide Zeynep, we were struck by her Turkish beauty, and warm welcome. Zeynep was very thorough explaining our journey for the day, as well, sharing history of both current and ancient days of Ephesus. One of the added perks; a private van, and pre-purchased entrance tickets so we were able to ‘skip-the-line’, and head straight to turnstile. The experience of booking through TripAdvisor for small group tours was seamless, reasonable costs, and reputable.
The tour given by Cann was very well done. He guided us to all the key sites we should see. He suggested we stop at the carpet making factory which was interesting except that the salesman started putting pressure on us to buy $2000 carpet. The only good part of stopping at carpet factory was that we missed the line at the House of Virgin Mary. All in all the tour was worth it.
Nagi was the perfect tour guide for our Ephesus experience. She was extremely knowledgeable and pleasant to spend time with. She adjusted our tour to minimize the crowds and moved at just the right speed!
Burak waited for us near the Royal Caribbean Cruise at Kuşadası . He is a professor tour guide and we enjoyed our excursion very much.
Very interesting and interactive. Very knowledgeable guide with lots of history! Not only that, but we experienced many of the local trades! Thank you so much!
We are travelling 2 adults and 2 children and it was so far the best tour we’ve had. Filiz our tour guide was amazing. Made the tour so easy and understandable and really interesting for the children and of course for us too. We enjoyed every moment of our day making the most of our time in Ephesus. Thank you ever so much Filiz!!
10/10 would recommend! An unforgettable experience to see Ephesus and have its origin and history explained thoroughly! Erkan, our guide, tailored the Trip according to our needs and proved to be exceptionally knowledgeable about all things and gave us some tips what to explore next.
Monday through Friday 9 am to 7 pm EST
Reach us by phone
Reach us by email