In the Footsteps of St. Paul & Seven Churches 14 days
Private
tour / min 2 guests
Accommodation in Superior hotels
• Istanbul (2) - Antioch (1) - Cappadocia
(2) - Konya (1) - Pamukkale (1) - Izmir (1) - Kusadasi (2)
- Pergamum (1)- Canakkale (1) •
Istanbul (1)
Category:
Private
Tour, Comprehensive Biblical Tour, Roundtrip, Scenic Land/Air
Journey
Day 1-
Istanbul
Welcome to Turkey. Arrive
in Istanbul,
meet your guide and transfer to your hotel. Welcome and
info cocktail at the lobby. Overnight in
Istanbul.
Day
2- Istanbul (B)
Our journey begins in
Istanbul, the only city in the
world situated on two continents. Byzantium,
Constantinople, Istanbul - its three names span more
than 2600 years, nearly 1600 of them as the capital of
two of the greatest empires the world has known,
Byzantine and Ottoman. We visit the
Topkapi
Palace
including treasury section, St. Sophia, The Blue Mosque
and Hippodrome, where chariot races and the Byzantine
riots took place and free time in Grand bazaar with its
3.500 shops. Overnight in
Istanbul.
Day 3- Istanbul
- Adana by flight -
Tarsus- Selucia - Antioch (B, D)
Early morning flight to
Adana, country's fourth largest
city. Adana is situated
thirty miles east of
Tarsus, birthplace of the Apostle
Paul. Enjoy breakfast at your hotel, then drive to Tarsus and visit the
Apostle Paul's well, the Gate of Cleopatra, and the
latest excavations. Then we visit the archaeological
remains of Seleucia, the
port from which Paul, Barnabas and John Mark departed
from Antioch on the first missionary journey (Acts
13:4). Drive to
Antioch
for overnight.
Day 4 Antioch - Cappadocia (B, D)
It was here at
Antioch on the Orontes
that believers were first called “Christians” (Acts
11:26). Visit the cave where they met in secret. Paul
and Silas departed from here on the second missionary
journey (Acts 15:35-36). Discover the impact of leaders
such as Ignatius of Antioch and John Chrysostom. We will
travel to Cappadocia via scenic
Ihlara
Valley, where
early Christians carved 3,500 cave churches from the
tufa rock. The beauty and quaintness of these chapels,
with numerous wall paintings and Christian symbols is
astonishing. Persecuted Christians escaping into the
earth to flee Arab invaders in the 10th century,
tunneled out more than twenty underground cities of
refuge here in Cappadocia. Such cities, with carved rooms for kitchens,
sleeping quarters, stables, and chapels for worship,
descend five to ten stories into the earth. At Kaymakli,
one of the best preserved of these cities, you will
enjoy your own guided tour into this amazing region.
Overnight in a Cappadocia.
Day 5 Cappadocia (B, D)
Cappadocia, with its centre
in Caesarea (Kayseri),
was once the heart of the
Hittite
Kingdom
of the Old Testament. This vast area is one of the most
photogenic landscapes in the world. Extraordinary rock
formations have become symbolic of this region, where
you will enjoy the Valley of the Fairy Chimneys and
Goreme’s breathtaking Open
Air
Museum.
Watch the potters at their craft, in the famous pottery
producing town of Avanos. Finally, enjoy the natural wonders of
the Citadel of Uchisar and
Zelve
Valley.
Overnight in a Cappadocia.
Day 6 Sultanhan -
Lystra - Iconioum (B, D)
Drive to the Sultanhani
Caravanserai for a fascinating look at one of the rest
stops for ancient camel caravans. Along the trade
routes, such caravansaries appeared at intervals of some
twenty-five miles, the average distance that camels
could travel in a day. Continue on to Lystra, where a
mob stoned Paul during his first journey (Acts 14:6-19),
and where Timothy joined him during the second journey
(Acts 16:1-3). Depart to Iconium, where Paul preached
and encouraged believers during his first missionary
journey (Acts 14:1-6). Iconium was once the home of the
sect of mystical Muslims called Whirling Dervishes.
Overnight in a
Konya.
Day 7 Pisidian Antioch - Collossea -
Pamukkale (B, D)
Drive to Antioch of Pisidia, where
nearly the whole city came to hear Paul preach during
his first missionary journey (Acts 13:14-52). The
marvelous excavations include the ancient church and the
great first-century
Temple
of Augustus.
Today, you will travel the
Royal Road
that once connected Ephesus
with distant Babylon. Visit the
unexcavated site of ancient Colossae
by the village
of Honaz. The
Apostle Paul wrote one of his prison epistles to the
church at Colossae, a
city situated on the
Lycus
River.
At Hierapolis
(Pamukkale), enjoy the “Cotton Castles” of brilliant
white calcium rock formations and hot-water
travertine's, where hot mineral waters emerge from the
earth and cascade over cliffs. As the water cools, the
calcium precipitates and clings to the cliffs, forming
snowy white travertine's (waterfalls of white stone),
which give credence to the name Pamukkale, meaning
“cotton castle”. This enchanting place is one of the
natural wonders of Asia Minor.
The churches here in Hierapolis,
Colossae, and Laodicea once flourished under the ministry of
Epaphras (Colossians 4:12-13). Overnight stay in
Pamukkale.
Day 8 Hierapolis –
Laodicea- Philadelphia - Sardis
- Smyrna
(B, D)
Explore incredible excavations at
Hierapolis, including a Byzantine church, the
Great Theatre, the
Temple of Apollo,
and the Plutonium, which pagan cults once called “the
entrance to hell.” Examine the intriguing sites of the
Churches of Revelation. Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-22) will take you back to
the first century. At
Philadelphia
(Rev. 3:7-12), your Bible will come alive as you read it
in light of firsthand study. This city was located along
the important trade route that linked Pergamum in the north with Laodicea to the south. At
Sardis
(Rev. 3:1-5), your thoughts will turn to the Old
Testament period following the 586 B.C. destruction of
Jerusalem. That was the time when
the phrase “rich as Croesus” originated. Croesus
(560-546 B.C.) was the king of
Lydia, and
Sardis was his capital. Your
visit to Sardis
will include the imperial court and the ancient Jewish
synagogue. You will rest in the shade of the
Temple
of Artemis,
while studying in the light of prophetic Scripture.
Finally, enjoy dinner at one of Smyrna’s famous kebab or
seafood restaurants. Overnight stay in
Izmir
Day 9
Miletus
- Didyma - Kusadasi (B,D)
Visit the ramparts of Smyrna’s
Velvet
Castle, built in the fourth century B.C.
by Alexander the Great on
Mount
Pagus.
Today,
Smyrna
is the country's major Aegean port and third largest
city. Drive to Miletus, home of ancient
philosopher Thales (640-546 B.C.), one of the fathers of
Greek geometry, astronomy, and philosophy. It was here,
in the first Christian century, that the Apostle Paul,
on his third missionary journey, called for the
Ephesians elders and preached a powerful message to them
(Acts 20:15-38). It was also here that Paul left his
friend Trophimus, who was too ill to continue (II
Timothy 4:20). Its ancient ruins include the marvelous
15,000-seat theatre. Nearby, at Didyma, visit the
massive Temple to Apollo,
one of the most impressive sites in
Anatolia. Ordinary people did not reside in
ancient Didyma. This was home only to a priestly family
whose oracle came from Delphi
and who lived in luxury, as they guarded their temple
treasuries supplied by the people they deceived.
Continue to Kusadasi for overnight.
Day 10 Ephesus (B, D)
Ephesus
(Rev. 2:1-7), major port city on the Aegean, was the
commercial, political, and religious centre of all of
Asia Minor. After a lunatic completely
burned the
Temple
of Diana
(Artemis) on the night that Alexander the Great was born
in 356 B.C., the Ephesians worked for 120 years to
complete a magnificent reconstructed temple, one of the
Seven Wonders of the ancient world. The Apostle Paul's
first visit to Ephesus was brief—during
his second missionary tour (Acts 18:19-21). His second
visit lasted about three years—during his third
missionary tour (Acts 19:1 to 20:31). Luke’s account of
the worship of Diana appears in Acts 19:34-35. See the
Fountain of Trojan, the Library of Celsus and the Great
Theatre. Visit the Chapel of the Virgin Mary (Double
Church),
where the Third Ancient Council convened. Enjoy
St. John's
Basilica (built on the site of the Apostle John’s tomb)
and ponder the remains of the
Temple
of Diana.
Finally, enjoy a visit to the Ephesus
Museum.
Overnight Kusadasi.
Day 11 Thyatira - Pergamum (B, D)
Today, we will visit our final two
of the Seven Churches of Revelation. At Thyatira (Rev.
2: 18-28), you will see the ruins of an ancient
commercial centre, located in the fertile valley where
the trade route passed. A most memorable experience will
be Pergamum, with its acropolis and Great
Theatre, the steepest of the ancient world. Revelation
2:12-16 describes the city as “where Satan’s seat is,” a
reference to the altar of Zeus, where we pause for
reflection on the fulfillment of Scripture. Nearby,
visit the Red Basilica; once a pagan temple, it later
converted into a Christian church. Finally, walk thru
the Pergamum Asclepion, the famous medical centre of
antiquity. Overnight in
Pergamum.
Day 12 Troy – Alexandra Troas - Assos - Canakkale (B, D)
Enjoy a fascinating visit to recent
excavations of ancient Troy, made legendary by Homer’s story of Helen
and the Trojans’ wooden horse. Then drive to Troas,
founded about 300 B.C. by one of the generals of
Alexandria
the Great. During the Apostle Paul's second missionary
journey, it was from Troas that he received the
“Macedonian call” to Europe.
This is where Luke's account changes from “they” to “we”
(Acts 16:6-12), indicating that he joined Paul's team at
Troas. Paul soon walked thirty miles to
Assos, where we will follow the apostle’s footsteps to
the old city walls (Acts 20:5-14). You will walk the old
marketplace of Assos and see the council chamber and Temple to Athena. Overnight in Canakkale.
Day 13 Nicea - Istanbul (B)
Drive to Nicea through Bursa. At Nicea, you will see remains of Constantine’s palace, now covered by the water at the
shore of Lake Iznik.
It was here in this palace chapel that the First Ancient
Church Council convened in A.D. 325 to produce the
Nicene Creed. Enjoy Nicea’s St. Sophia Church, where the
Seventh Church Council convened in 787. Continue to
Istanbul. Overnight in
Istanbul.
Day 14 Istanbul - Departure (B)
Today drive to the Airport for your
departure. Thank you for visiting Turkey, the land
of culture, faith and mystery.
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