Turkey for Families: Istanbul, Cappadocia and the Antalya Coast

1. Jour 1 : Arrive in Istanbul

   Istanbul Airport (IST) or Sabiha Gökçen (SAW) to Sultanahmet, then a short evening walk

   • Environ 1 h de route
   • Repas du soir
   • Nuit : Istanbul
   Détail du jour 1

   Fly into Istanbul Airport (IST) or Sabiha Gökçen (SAW). Our driver meets the family in arrivals with child seats or boosters for the ages you booked, and the drive to the hotel in Sultanahmet, the old city between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara, takes about an hour. To join the walk and dinner, plan to land by about 2 pm; the meeting time comes with your final itinerary. After a rest, your See Sight Tours guide meets the families for a short briefing on the ten days, then walks the group into Sultanahmet Park, a few minutes away, where Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque face each other across a fountain and children can run on the grass after the flight. Your guide hands out a small challenge for the week: spot a cat in every place we stop, which is easy in Istanbul. The welcome dinner sits down at about 6 pm at a restaurant nearby, early enough for younger children.

   Compris

   • Pick-up at Istanbul Airport (IST) or Sabiha Gökçen (SAW)
   • Welcome briefing with your guide
   • Evening walk in Sultanahmet Park
   • Welcome dinner in Sultanahmet

   Temps libre : Free until the late-afternoon briefing

   Activité : The walk is short and flat, about 1 km.

   

2. Jour 2 : Two cisterns and a Turkish delight workshop

   Sultanahmet: the Hippodrome, the Basilica Cistern, the Theodosius Cistern and the Blue Mosque

   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Istanbul
   Détail du jour 2

   We start at about 8:30 with a walk through the Hippodrome, where Byzantine chariots raced, past an Egyptian obelisk carved about 3,500 years ago. Then we go down into the Basilica Cistern when it opens at 9, before the queue builds (we reconfirm the hours at booking): a 6th-century underground reservoir held up by 336 columns, dimly lit, with walkways over the water. Children hunt for the two carved Medusa heads at the far end, one upside down, one on its side. A few minutes' walk away, the smaller Theodosius Cistern is quieter, with a light show on its columns. We finish the morning at the Blue Mosque, timed between prayers, and sit down to lunch together nearby. The early afternoon is free for a rest at the hotel. At about 4 pm the group walks to a confectioner's workshop, where a confectioner shows how Turkish delight is boiled, set and dusted, and each child rolls, cuts and boxes a batch to take away. We confirm the workshop when we confirm your dates. Dinner is on your own.

   Compris

   • Walk through the Hippodrome
   • The Basilica Cistern at opening (about 9 am)
   • The Theodosius Cistern
   • The Blue Mosque, between prayers
   • Sit-down lunch in Sultanahmet
   • Turkish delight workshop with a confectioner

   Option plus facile : Skip the Theodosius Cistern and rest in Sultanahmet Park with a parent while the group goes in.

   Option plus active : After the workshop, walk with your guide down to the Galata Bridge to watch the fishermen at sunset.

   Temps libre : Early afternoon free for a rest; evening free

   Activité : About 3 km on foot in the morning, on paving and cobbles. The Basilica Cistern has steps down and is cool and damp; bring a layer.

3. Jour 3 : Topkapı Palace and a boat on the Bosphorus

   Topkapı Palace, Eminönü and the Spice Bazaar, then a boat up the Bosphorus

   • Environ 18 min de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Istanbul
   Détail du jour 3

   We are at the gate of Topkapı Palace when it opens. The palace is closed on Tuesdays, so this day never falls on one. For nearly four centuries the Ottoman sultans ruled from these courtyards, and children head straight for the treasury, with its emerald dagger and the big Spoonmaker's Diamond, then the terraces over the water over the Golden Horn, the Bosphorus and the Sea of Marmara. A licensed guide joins your See Sight Tours guide inside. We walk down to Eminönü for lunch together, then through the Spice Bazaar, where the stalls give out tastes of dried fruit and lokum; we take you to no shop and earn no commission. After a rest stop, a boat for our group leaves Eminönü at about 3:30 pm and runs up the Bosphorus between Europe and Asia, past Dolmabahçe Palace, the wooden waterside mansions and the walls of Rumeli Hisarı fortress, under the bridges and back by about 5:30. Dinner is on your own; your guide suggests places near the hotel.

   Compris

   • Topkapı Palace at opening with a licensed guide, including the treasury
   • Sit-down lunch in Eminönü
   • Walk through the Spice Bazaar
   • Two-hour boat for our group on the Bosphorus

   Activités en option

   • The Harem at Topkapı (separate ticket; we can add it at booking)

   Option plus facile : Return to the hotel after lunch and meet the group at the boat, a short ride away.

   Option plus active : In the evening, take the public ferry with your guide across to Kadıköy on the Asian side for dinner.

   Temps libre : Evening free

   Activité : About 2.5 hours on foot at Topkapı on cobbles and some steps, then a seated boat ride.

   

4. Jour 4 : Fly to Cappadocia, sunset in the Red Valley

   Istanbul by air to Kayseri or Nevşehir, then Göreme and the Red Valley

   • Environ 2 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner
   • Nuit : Göreme
   Détail du jour 4

   A short morning flight, about an hour and twenty minutes, replaces the overnight bus or full day on the road that other trips use to reach Cappadocia. Our driver takes the families to the airport after breakfast, and we fly to Kayseri or Nevşehir, whichever has the better time that day; your guide flies with you and handles the bags. A vehicle and driver meet the flight for the drive to Göreme, about an hour from Kayseri. Home for the next three nights is a cave hotel, with rooms cut into the soft volcanic rock, which most children want to explore before lunch. Lunch is on your own in Göreme, then the early afternoon is for a rest. In the late afternoon we drive a few minutes to the edge of the Red Valley and walk an easy stretch of its path, then climb to a viewpoint as the rock turns red and pink at sunset. Dinner is on your own; your guide books an early table for families who want one.

   Compris

   • Flight Istanbul to Kayseri or Nevşehir, with luggage handled
   • Transfers from the hotel to the airport and from the airport to Göreme
   • Easy walk in the Red Valley and the sunset viewpoint

   Option plus facile : Drive straight to the viewpoint and skip the valley walk.

   Temps libre : Early afternoon free

   Activité : The Red Valley walk is about 2 km on a sandy path with a short climb to the viewpoint.

5. Jour 5 : Balloons at dawn and the Pigeon Valley walk

   Göreme: an optional balloon flight, then Uçhisar and the Pigeon Valley path down to Göreme

   • Environ 30 min de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du soir
   • Nuit : Göreme
   Détail du jour 5

   Before sunrise, families who booked the optional balloon flight are collected about an hour before dawn, watch the envelopes fill in the half dark and fly for about an hour as the sun lights the valleys. Turkish civil aviation decides each morning whether balloons may fly; if this morning is cancelled, the operator tries the next day. Everyone else can sleep in, or come with your guide to a viewpoint above Göreme to watch dozens of balloons rise, which children often like as much as flying. After breakfast we drive to Uçhisar, at the top of the valley, and walk down Pigeon Valley to Göreme, about 4 km and downhill most of the way, past dovecotes cut into the cliffs where farmers once collected pigeon droppings to grow grapes. The vehicle waits at the halfway point for anyone who wants to stop. Lunch is on your own in Göreme, and the afternoon is free for the pool or a nap. In the evening the group has dinner together in Göreme at about 6 pm.

   Compris

   • Dawn balloon viewpoint above Göreme with your guide
   • The Pigeon Valley walk from Uçhisar down to Göreme
   • Dinner together in Göreme

   Activités en option

   • Sunrise hot air balloon flight, about an hour in the air; price given at booking, operator's minimum age or height applies

   Option plus facile : Walk the first half of Pigeon Valley and meet the vehicle at the halfway point.

   Option plus active : Climb Uçhisar Castle, the rock honeycombed with old rooms at the top of the valley, before the walk.

   Temps libre : Afternoon free

   Activité : The valley walk is about 4 km, mostly downhill on a dusty path, about 1.5 hours with stops. There is little shade; bring water and hats.

   

6. Jour 6 : Derinkuyu underground and a pottery class in Avanos

   Göreme to Derinkuyu Underground City, then Avanos and back to Göreme

   • Environ 1.5 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Göreme
   Détail du jour 6

   We drive about 40 minutes south to Derinkuyu and are there when it opens, before the tour coaches arrive. It is the deepest of Cappadocia's underground cities open to visitors, dug into the soft rock over centuries so that whole villages could hide from raiders with their animals and food. A licensed local guide leads the group down through stables, kitchens, wine presses, a chapel and air shafts, and shows the round stone doors that rolled across the tunnels to seal them. Children usually love the low passages; anyone who does not can stay on the upper level with the guide. We drive north to Avanos, a town of potters on the Kızılırmak, the Red River, and have lunch together by the water. In the afternoon a potter teaches the families to throw a pot on a kick wheel, the way it has been done in Avanos for centuries, and each child shapes a piece to take home. Back at the hotel by about 4 pm, the evening is free.

   Compris

   • Derinkuyu Underground City at opening with a licensed local guide
   • Sit-down lunch in Avanos
   • Pottery class on the wheel in Avanos

   Option plus facile : Stay on the upper levels of Derinkuyu, which are higher and wider.

   Option plus active : In the evening, walk with your guide up to the Sunset Point above Göreme.

   Temps libre : Late afternoon and evening free

   Activité : Derinkuyu has steep, narrow stairs and low passages where adults stoop; it is not for anyone uneasy in tight spaces. The pottery class is seated and messy; wear old clothes.

7. Jour 7 : Fly to Antalya and the sea

   Göreme to Kayseri, fly to Antalya, then the beach hotel and an evening in Kaleiçi

   • Environ 2 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner
   • Nuit : Antalya
   Détail du jour 7

   After breakfast we drive about an hour and a quarter to Kayseri Airport and fly south over the Taurus Mountains to Antalya, about an hour and ten minutes where a direct flight runs that season; otherwise we connect in Istanbul, which makes this a longer travel day, and we tell you which when we confirm your dates. Other family trips cross this distance by road in a long day via Konya. Our driver meets the flight, and the beach hotel, home for the last three nights, is about 20 minutes from Antalya Airport, with a pool for the afternoon. Lunch is on your own. In the early evening, once it cools, your guide takes anyone who wants to go into Kaleiçi, the walled old town above the harbour, through Hadrian's Gate, built for the emperor's visit in 130 AD, to the clock tower and down the lanes to the old Roman harbour. Antalya is known for its fruit jams and Turkish delight, and your guide points out where locals buy them. Dinner is on your own.

   Compris

   • Flight Kayseri to Antalya, with luggage handled
   • Transfers to Kayseri Airport and from Antalya Airport to the hotel
   • Evening walk in Kaleiçi: Hadrian's Gate, the clock tower and the old harbour

   Option plus facile : Stay at the hotel pool and skip the Kaleiçi walk.

   Temps libre : Afternoon free at the pool or beach; dinner free

   Activité : The Kaleiçi walk is about 2 km on cobbles and some steep lanes down to the harbour.

   

8. Jour 8 : A boat day from Kemer

   Antalya to Kemer harbour, a day boat along the coast, then back to Antalya

   • Environ 1.5 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner et repas du midi
   • Nuit : Antalya
   Détail du jour 8

   We drive about 45 minutes south along the coast to the harbour at Kemer, where the pine-covered mountains come down to the sea, and board a boat chartered for our group alone, never shared with other passengers. The boat sails along the coast for the day, stopping at two or three bays where the water is clear enough to see the bottom, and everyone can jump off the deck, swim to the rocks or float in a life jacket; life jackets for children are on board. Bring masks and snorkels if you have them; the rocky edges are full of small fish. Lunch is cooked and served on board, and there is shade on deck for the middle of the day. The exact route depends on the wind, and the crew picks the calmest bays. We are back in Kemer by mid-afternoon and at the hotel by about 5 pm. If the sea is too rough to sail, your guide swaps the day for a beach and a swim with lunch and moves the boat to day 9 if the forecast allows.

   Compris

   • Transfers to and from Kemer harbour
   • Day boat for our group alone along the coast with swimming stops
   • Lunch on board

   Option plus facile : Stay on deck in the shade and swim only at the calmest stop.

   Option plus active : Snorkel along the rocks at each stop with your guide.

   Temps libre : Evening free

   Activité : About 6 hours on the water. Bring sunscreen, hats and motion-sickness tablets for anyone who needs them. Children swim only with a parent watching.

9. Jour 9 : The Kurşunlu waterfall and a beach afternoon

   Antalya to the Kurşunlu Waterfall Nature Park and back, then the beach

   • Environ 1 h de route
   • Petit-déjeuner, repas du midi et repas du soir
   • Nuit : Antalya
   Détail du jour 9

   We leave at about 8:30 for the half-hour drive to the Kurşunlu Waterfall Nature Park, east of the city, and arrive before the heat and the day groups. A shaded path loops down through the woods past a string of pools to the main fall, where the water drops in a white curtain into a green pool; children look for the ducks, the fish and the turtles in the stream. The full loop takes about an hour, with steps down and back up. We sit down to lunch together in a garden restaurant on the way back, and are at the hotel by about 1:30 pm. The afternoon is for the beach or the pool, the last long swim of the trip. In the evening the group gathers for a farewell dinner at about 6:30 pm, where your guide hands out the cat-spotting prizes and the children show off their pots and Turkish delight boxes. Families who want to can walk along the seafront afterwards.

   Compris

   • The Kurşunlu Waterfall Nature Park, entry included
   • Sit-down lunch in a garden restaurant
   • Farewell dinner

   Option plus facile : Stay at the top viewpoint above the falls instead of walking the loop.

   Temps libre : Afternoon free at the beach or pool

   Activité : The waterfall loop is about 1 km with steps down and back up; the paths can be wet.

10. Jour 10 : Fly home from Antalya

    Your Antalya hotel to Antalya Airport (AYT)

    • Environ 30 min de route
    • Petit-déjeuner
    Détail du jour 10

    The trip ends after breakfast. The morning is free for a last swim or a walk along the seafront, and our driver takes each family to Antalya Airport (AYT), about 20 minutes away, at the time your flight needs. Antalya has direct flights to many European cities and frequent flights to Istanbul for long-haul connections home to Canada and the US; we can book the Antalya to Istanbul flight with the trip if you ask. Allow at least two hours at the airport before an international departure, as Antalya is busy in season, and if you connect in Istanbul, leave three hours or more between flights. If your flight is late in the day, the hotel can usually keep your bags, and your guide checks everyone's flight times before saying goodbye. Families who want more beach days can add nights at the same hotel before or after the trip, and we arrange the later transfer.

    Compris

    • Drop-off at Antalya Airport (AYT)

    Temps libre : Free until your airport transfer

    Activité : Any flight time works; a flight after about 11 am avoids an early start with children.

Faune et météo : April, May, September and October are warm and easier on children, with fewer crowds; the sea at Antalya is cool in April and May, so the hotel pool takes over. June to August is school-holiday peak: hot on the coast, busy in Istanbul, and Cappadocia's mornings stay fresh. Balloon flights are cancelled on windy mornings in any month.

• Istanbul3 nuits
• Göreme3 nuits
• Antalya3 nuits