Mar 17 Fri OT Tour departs USA (Newark, Atlanta,
DC, Houston, Los Angeles)
Mar 18 Sat Arrive Istanbul Airport – Take connection
flight to Ankara. Overnight Ankara.
Mar 19 Sun Ankara – Hattusas – Yozgat
Our tour begins at the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. After stopping to see the Roman remains of the Temple of Augustus, drive to visit Hattusha, capital city of Hittite Empire. Overnight in Yozgat. (B,D)
Mar 20 Mon Cappadocia
Full day sightseeing in Cappadocia: Visit Göreme, where you will see remains of several hundred early churches, with rooms hollowed out from the cones of volcanic ash. Some of them are decorated with carved frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible. You will drive through the Zelve Valley on your way to Kaymakli, an underground city which was an early Christian center that extended down in the earth for at least eight floors and housed several thousand people in the eighth and ninth centuries. You’ll continue to Uçhisar, another of these early Christian communities, before returning to your hotel for dinner and overnight. (B,D)
Mar 21 Tue Cappadocia – Karatepe – Antioch
Drive thru the heart of the Hittite Empire. Short visit to the Karatepe Archaeology Museum. Arrive Antioch, check-in to the hotel for dinner and overnight.
Mar 22 Wed Antioch – Tell Tayinat – Gaziantep
This morning, we will visit Tell Tayinat. Then drive to Mosaic Museum in Antioch where you will see an unusually rich collection of mosaics from this area. Dinner and overnight in Gaziantep. (B,D)
Mar 23 Thu Gaziantep – Carchemish (Karkamis) – Urfa
Early morning departure from Hotel to Zeugma and see its new excavation, followed by a possible visit to Carchemish (Jer 46:2). We will visit the new Gazintep Mosaic Museum, ranked number 1 mosaic museum in the world. Dinner and overnight in Sanliurfa. (B,D)
Mar 24 Fri Harran – Gobeklitepe – Urfa
After breakfast, drive to Harran (Edessa) to see its wall, mosque, caravanserai (the oldest university of the world), Jacob’s well, and beehive houses. Then visit the Göbekli Tepe temples that date from 10,000 BC. Late afternoon visit to the traditional birth Cave of Abraham, and the pool of sacred fish. Dinner and overnight in Sanliurfa (B,D)
Mar 25 Sat Transfer to Urfa Airport – Fly back to USA
via Istanbul