Turkey is one of those destinations that has been on my bucketlist for as long as I can remember, but a place that feels out of the way and difficult to experience unless you have a good chunk of time available.
In true Jade and Fliss fashion, we booked this trip about six weeks out as we’d found a small window of time. While we wouldn’t usually fly 24hrs across the world just for two weeks, it proved to be well worth it!
Watching the sunrise over Goreme with hundreds of balloons in the sky ranks as my favourite morning of all time. It was MAGICAL. I was sobbing.
Our original plan was to visit Turkey on an organised group trip as we thought it would be too difficult to get around. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) the dates didn’t line up so I decided to just plan the itinerary myself. It all worked out for the best! I found Turkey very easy to navigate and much preferred the freedom to wander aimlessly and see where the days took us.
I vlogged the entire trip, and they’re some of my favourite videos of all time:
These vlogs are very comprehensive, so I won’t go into too much detail, but here is our itinerary and some of the most important points.
Itinerary
Day 1: Fly into Istanbul
Day 2: Istanbul
Day 3: Istanbul
Day 4: Fly Istanbul > Izmir
Day 5: Izmir
Day 6: Fly Izmir > Cappadocia (Kayseri)
Day 7: Cappadocia
Day 8: Cappadocia
Day 9: Fly out of Cappadocia
Istanbul
Stay: Xenia Hotel, Sultanahmet. This was an excellent location, close to transport and walking distance to sights like the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sofia and Grand Bazaar. It was also right on the water between the European and Asian sides of Istanbul.
Sights
- Grand Bazaar
- Blue Mosque
- Hagia Sofia
- Arasta Bazaar
- Balat (colourful houses)
- Galata Tower
Activities
- Turkish Lamp Making Class: this was my favourite activity in Istanbul and we got to take home a completely unique handmade souvenir!
- Food Tour: run by some local university students, this was a fun way to try some authentic Turkish food with someone in the know. It was also a great way to meet fellow travellers and swap recommendations.
Tip: use the Google Maps app for public transport directions in Istanbul. I learnt this after two days of thinking there was no public transport because it didn’t show up on Apple maps!
Tip: get yourself an Istankart card to travel on public transport. This is easy to purchase and top up at most metro and train stations
Izmir
We wanted to visit the Ephesus ruins while in Turkey, so we took a trip out to Izmir. The flight was super quick and easy for a two night detour.
Stay: The New Hotel Zeybek
Activities: day trip to Ephesus
Cappadocia
This was the moment we’d been waiting for. Ever since I got interested in travelling, the hot air balloons in Cappadocia seemed like an absolute dream come true. Spoiler: they did not disappoint.
We flew from Izmir into Kayseri airport, which was a 90 minute flight. From here, a shuttle bus took us into Göreme.
Stay: Elite Cave Suites. We spent a long time trying to find the perfect accomodation. It felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and I was willing to splurge.
My requirements were a beautiful terrace to watch the balloons at sunrise plus a pool. Jade wanted to stay in a cave room.
Elite Cave Suites was the happy medium at a reasonable price point. I would stay here again in a heartbeat. The terraces were stunning with perfect views of the balloons and we got to stay in a beautiful cave room. The sister hotel 400m up the road had a pool that we could use free of charge.
Activities
I planned to have three mornings in Cappadocia to increase our chances of seeing the balloons. In the end, the balloons flew 2/3 mornings which were excellent odds!
We pre-booked a balloon flight through Klook for the first morning. Most of the companies seem pretty good about rescheduling if they are unable to fly. We were lucky enough to fly on the first morning and it was absolutely magical!
Alongside our flight, we could add on a day trip for sightseeing in Cappadocia. We chose the Red Tour (simply because the other option included hiking and it was far too hot). This took us to a bunch of iconic sights including Uchisar Castle, Love Valley, the Zelve Open Air Museum and Monks Valley. There was also a buffet lunch included.
While I absolutely adored the hot air balloon ride, nothing beat the second morning watching the sunrise from our hotel terrace. It was truly MAGICAL.
There are plenty of other activities to do in the area, including Turkish Baths, ATV Quad Bike experiences, horse riding and more. The only thing I was desperate to do was see the balloons, so I was more than happy with our itinerary!
Eat: On our final night, I wanted to try the traditional Cappadocian pottery kebab. We tried a place called Anatolian Kitchen and it was phenomenal! I was actually devastated that we hadn’t tried it earlier because it was so delicious.
Overall, our time in Turkey was AMAZING! I would absolutely love to go back and I feel beyond lucky that we got to have this experience.
I hope this was helpful. As always, please drop a comment or DM me if you have any other questions.
You can follow my adventures on Instagram, Tik Tok & YouTube.
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