Start your experience on this private tour with a pickup at your centrally located Kusadasi hotel. Board your air-conditioned coach and admire Turkey’s picturesque countryside on route to Laodicea.
Hear engrossing facts about this ancient city on your 3.5-hour journey, including how it was once the jewel of the Lycus River valley. Known in early times as Diospolis, the city was named Laodicea ad Lyceum around the 2nd century BC, and, under Roman rule, became a hugely important trading center in Asia Minor.
Enjoy a fascinating tour of the ruins, many of them the monuments that once attested to the city’s power and prosperity. Amble along colonnaded streets, and see baths, theaters and the stadium, where an underground passage used by chariots and horses still stands.
Afterward, continue to Aphrodisias, about 1.5 hours away. On arrival, enjoy an included lunch at a local restaurant (see the Itinerary for a sample menu). Then, explore the remains of this Ancient Greek city that was dedicated to Aphrodite, the goddess of Love, and famed for its school of sculpture due to its nearby marble quarries.
As you walk, hear about the city’s golden age, when pilgrims flocked to its temple to Aphrodite. See the temple remains, the 2nd-century Roman gate and the marble theater, and tread in the footsteps of long-ago spectators at the stadium, one of the best preserved of its kind in the Mediterranean. Then, visit the on-site museum to see some of the city’s famed marble statues.
Following your visit, relax on your drive back Kusadasi, where your tour ends with a hotel drop-off.