Aegean and Mediterranean
Aegean and Mediterranean
From the Turkish Aegean to the blue Mediterranean Sea, the shores are scattered with the ruins of ancient civilisations. The Aegean region of Turkiye reveals glittering towns of classical literature: Troy, Ephesus, Pergamum, Sardis, Halicarnassus. Sail along the Turquoise coast aboard a glorious traditional Turkish gulet.
Turkiye's Mediterranean coastline is nearly 1600 km long, scattered with sandy beaches and studded with the jewels of classical cities and ancient ruins. Discover Lycian rock tombs, sunken cities whose ruins can still be seen beneath the crystal clear water, waterfalls, classic open theatres and impressively preserved cities and temples. The Lycian Way is stretches 500km from Fethiye to Antalya and showcases an impressive mountain backdrop, stunning scenery and breath-taking views over the sparking Mediterranean Sea.
Highlights
Peel back the layers of history to discover the ruined walls and temples of the legendary city of Troy, the legendary city featured in Homer's Iliad.
Pergamum, from its vantage-point on a steep rocky acropolis ruled half of Asia Minor for a century. It was this region that was the cultural epicentre of the Greek world under the Roman Empire leaving us with an unsurpassed legacy of history, culture and beautiful ruins.
Ephesus contains the largest collection of Roman ruins in the eastern Mediterranean. Only an estimated 15% has been excavated. The city was famed for theTemple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Spectacular natural site, Pamukkale's dazzling white travertine terraces have been formed by the mineral-rich thermal waters flowing down the plateau’s edge. Nearby at Hierapolis the remains of the Greco-Roman period include baths, temple ruins, a monumental arch, a nymphaeum, a necropolis and a theatre.
Aspendos was an ancient Greco-Roman city in Antalya province of Türkiye. Its theatre was built in the 2nd century CE, during Marcus Aurelius' reign, by an architect called Zenon and is one of the largest ever built by the Romans in Asia Minor. Today it is one of the best preserved examples of Roman theatre architecture.
Side's Greco-Roman ruins boast the remains of the 2nd-century Antique Theatre, which seated up to 15,000. The white marble columns of the Hellenistic Temple of Athena stand near the harbour.
Perge was an ancient Greek city in Anatolia, one of the most important cities of ancient Pamphylia. Today's legacy is an impressive sprawling site comprised of colonnaded streets, city walls, Hellenistic and Roman gates, an ancient theatre, auditorium, well-preserved stadium and a nymphaeum.
Aphrodisias is an exceptional example of the built environment of a Greco-Roman city in inland Asia Minor. Several of its monumental marble buildings have unique features in terms of architecture and design.
