Highlights of Turkey

We had a great time and enjoyed this tour seeing the many beautiful natural landscapes of Turkey especially in Pamukkale and Cappadocia, not to mention the awesome historic sites and underground cities and of course, the super Goreme open air museum. Istanbul is a great city with its many bazaars and historical sites and mosques. Loved the Bhosporous dinner cruise and dinner especially the many entertainments. Our tour guide Ege, is the best there is, very caring, sweet and certainly knowledgeable about his splendid country. Thanks a lot Ege for sharing with us such wealth of information. More power to you beloved son of Ataturk. We are so glad we finally did this tour which we've postponed few times. Vibrant Istanbul is one great city we would not hesitate to visit again someday.

We had an absolute blast on this tour. Some of the days are long driving days, but we didn't mind, plenty of comfort stops to break it up. This tour was well organised and informative. The cave hotel is a really cool experience. The highlight of our tour was Ege, he was the most kind, considerate and passionate tour guide. You can really see how much he loves his country. He took time to get to know everybody and cared about everybody. He went out of his way to sort things out for people in his free time.

Wonderful! Great guide and really excellent hotels.

the trip was amazing

Turkey has many beautiful and interesting sights-what a wide range of history and culture to experience.

Ege was great tour guide! Would recommend!

Tour guide is knowledgeable. Long drives to attractions. I wish we stay one more day in Cappadocia, because it took one day to drive there and one day to return, and I love rock formations, so Cappadocia is a great tourist site for me.

Ege is an excellent tour guide. He helped navigate the journey within a new culture and language with ease and pleasure. He's very sensitive to the guests with walking difficulties. He is affable and pragmatic and creates a safe and positive tour experience.

The pre tour suggestions were very professional. The pre tour detailing by Mr Ege, the Tour leader the night before the tour was clear and informative. He assured vegetarians and vegans would not have issues.He gave details the day before and posted on the FB page.He looked after the group like a Anatolian Shepherd dog! He gave suggestions what food to try and where to visit.He gave options as where it was safe to draw money from the ATM.The coach was comfortable, good seats with ample leg room, Mr Curly, the man behind the wheel did an excellent job maneuvering the coach through the crazy traffic.His role was exemplary and kept smiling . The hotels and food were nice.A brief history was given, the drive was punctuated with pit stops to allow stretching and comfort stations.

It was my first time with Expat and everything was very well planned and spread out. The group was really fun and helpful. All age groups were great and hope to see more yours targeted for different age groups as I had little more energy to see more

As a woman travelling solo, safety is of the utmost importance and I am happy to say that from the moment I began this tour, I have felt protected, respected and cared for. The Guide's knowledge of Turkiye's magnificent history and how other countries relate to it was very thorough and fascinating. Along with their advice as to how to get the most out of the tour itself. Great tips and hints! Our driver was so professional and impeccable in the safety and care of his passengers, particularly considering the conditions could at times be challenging. He was amazing! Gallipoli, Troy, Ephesus, Pammukkale and Cappadocia were stunning and beautiful and I felt quite humbled to see all that glorious history. Every stop along the tour was an exciting adventure and so pleasant. The hotels were also great but most of all, I cannot recommend this Tour and its Staff highly enough. Absolutely fabulous job.

Great tour using Expatexplore! Wonderful guide, Ege, shared his love of Turkey, the history , his support and caring fun nature . Made new friends from around the world , stayed in good hotels and lots of dinners included. The bus driver was incredible too. Highly recommend

This has been my first Expat tour and it has exceeded expectations. Coming from a country with a relatively young history, the layers of history and civilisation here are awe inspiring. Some days have been long and quite physically demanding, but we have packed in a wide range of fascinating activities. Our guide Ege has been superb - very knowledgeable, very professional, and he has led our group with good humour and attention to detail. It has been a pleasure to share this amazing journey with a very interesting and diverse group of fellow travellers.

The history of the place is amazing

Everything ran smoothly.

Before starting the tour, I had no time to study about the history of Turkey and the tour and the nice explanation of our tour leader Ege taught me a lot of important information with the great joy.

This is a bucket list for sure. Just do it!!! Our tour guide Ege was top notch. The sites to see are magical. Turkey is an amazing country

The tour include all the highlights in Turkey as promised but in order to get to everything in the 8 days on tour means long distance driving and many hours on the bus. Our bus driver, Mr Bake Abe, was excellent at his job and I felt safe at all times and admire his skill at getting the bus through small spaces or park in difficult spots. Our local guide, Ege, was a treat. Not only is he very knowledgeable about Turkey, but he has a lot of energy, a good sense of humour and he can communicate very well in English. Ege also went the extra mile for everyone and always made sure we are safe and OK. Ege helped us find our way after the Istanbul walking tour, by walking us down to the river in his free time. He also accompanied us on a sunset cruise during his off-time and was never too tired to listen or help with advise and guidance in terms of specific shopping requests. The tour itself allowed for time to admire the sights although a bit more time at Pumakale would have been great. The pottery and carpet making were incredible but wish for more affordable stops in terms of that. Hotels were excellent in general especially loved the one in Cappadocia. Suggest that the driving tour ends in Cappadocia and everyone flies back to Istanbul instead of the long last day on the bus. Also would be better to include the entrance fees in the original pricing to be paid beforehand when booking the tour as well as the tips for the driver and guide to be paid beforehand.

This was an well planned and incredible tour. Our tour leader Ege was just amazing. Well informed, well articulated and very helpful. Loved his sense of humour and jis suggestions on where to eat was also great. Definitely one of the best tours I've been on in an amazing country. Thank you

A very knowledgeable tour leader

Amazing experience. Turkey is very underrated. Amazing people, great food and the best tour guide we can ask for. The stays were super pretty as well.

The tour exceeded my expectations! There was a lot of places that we were able to see at each destination and along the way. The tour leader Ege was amazing, he was patient, kind, and displayed passion for his job. He was always available to assist the group. The driver was excellent in driving us from destination to destination. The tour included a number of dinners, which was welcome, especially when arriving late at the particular destination.

Our Tour Leader, Ege, made this Turkiye experience one for the books. Ege & our driver, Serhat were the perfect Team making sure we were safe along the way. Ege's knowledge of Turkey history combined with his sense of humor and personal insights gave us the amazing experience we were looking for.

Just got back from FEZHT tour and it was anything but life changing. I was very confident about taking this tour to begin with especially after reading good reviews for tour guide Ege (woohoo!!!). And I guess...the experience exceeded my expectations. I definitely recommend this tour for those who long for adventure, history, time travel, immersion with locals, and (ehem) cute kitties and doggos! I come back to UK with much love for Turkey. Visiting the country wasn't just a tick in the bucket list. It was crazy, spiritual, mystical, physical (lol), and I dunno...cosmic. It wouldn't be fun if not of my tour mates turned family (we were 29!). And of course, Ege...I can still hear his voice in my head hahaha. Surely, one of the best tour guides ever! He's passionate about his homeland and cared for us in what could have been a hectic 10 days. Also, thanks to Sehrat, our driver who drove so smooth...not to mention his bus with WiFi (yes!). I'll definitely miss everyone but it looks like plans for another Expat tour are in order. So see you down the road! Teşekkürler Ege and Sehrat! Thank you Expat Explore (this is my 6th tour...am I actually counting?). For anyone who's interested with FEZHT...c'mon...just book it. For me, back to reality.

It was an amazing tour experience we had! Our group was really amazing and we all had connections! We have the best tour guide ever! EGE is excellent and wonderful! He made the tour very special! He knows the country and the people very well! I have learned a lot from him! This is the best and made me come back for more expat trip!

It was a very remarkable experience visiting Turkiye. It is a safe place to go. A well tailored itinerary. We had a wonderful time getting immersed in the the history, culture and way of living of the Turkish people. Ege, our tour guide was very passionate about sharing his beautiful country to us.

Flirty & Fun Ege shared the heart of his country of Turkiye during our long bus rides from Istanbul to Cappadocia and all the adventures in between. It's a must do!

It's my first time traveling with Expat. Ege's conducted his job very professionally. He is full of knowledge about Turkey and its culture. He is always available to answer any questions or concerns I had. Our driver is a very driver. I love the all the sites we visited and places we stayed. My favorite is Kusadasi. I am booking my next trip Expat.

I could not have wished for a better experience. Turkey is a beautiful country, underrated & deserved to be explored & appreciated. Stop the overthinking & book this tour, you'll love it! Tour leader Ege, the BEST!

Everything about this trip was fantastic! Ege, the tour leader is wonderful, the food was fantastic, the people are friendly and open and the country has so much beauty and history! I really loved Turkey and want to discover more locations there.

Ege Ertas was our tour guide and what a wonderful guide he is! Not just his wealth of knowledge about Turkish history but his kindness and willing to be helpful and accommodating was above and beyond. The hotels we stayed in were all extremely nice and easily walkable to shops and restaurants. The restaurants we ate at were excellent even the lunch stops along the road on our travel days. Ege has lots of friends in Turkey and was able to recommend and take us to some great places to eat. He went out of his way to get us on our hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia. We were to go Saturday morning, but it got cancelled because of high winds. But Ege was able to get us on the balloon ride on Sunday morning before we left for our long bus ride back to Istanbul. And we stayed on schedule! Our driver Irmat, was an excellent driver and navigated easily thru crazy drivers and traffic. I hope Expat Travel adds a Northern Turkey tour, as I will be on it if Ege is our tour guide!

We have been on two other Expat tours and even though our expectations were fairly high, this tour, our accommodations and our tour guide, Ege, were even better than expected. This tour felt less fast paced then some of the others we had previously been on with Expat but still allowed us to see so much throughout Turkey. We would highly recommend visiting Turkey with Expat and trying to get on one of Ege's busses - you will not be disappointed! Ege made this trip so great for us, not only is he super knowledgeable but also was willing to help us and everyone else with whatever we needed within the tour and on his down time. He is an amazing person and tour guide!!!

Turkey is an underrated Europe destination. This is a magical place and where in the world would you find a place where Europe meets Asia. Turkish people are hospitable as well which surprises us! :) Ege is a very considerate tour guide. Has a good sense of humor, and you will feel how well you are being taken cared of. He does his job with passion, and we can highly feel his love for his country. Try this guys!

We had an amazing time on this tour, very well organized and a very easy way to travel, we were treated really well and experienced so much of the country, we will definitely come back and explore more of the world with expact!

Even before I left my country for this tour, our tour guide Ege, was already communicating with me and informing me of what weather to expect and what clothes to bring. We were 12 in the tour and each one of us felt Ege's genuine care and concern for each one of us from Day 1. He has such a big heart and his love for his country is admirable and I learned so much of Turkey because of him. I got cough and colds during the tour and he immediately gave me his own medicine that he takes along with him. I also celebrated my birthday during this tour and he arranged a surprise birthday cake for me! Because of Ege's warm and fun personality, all of us in the tour had a great time together. We all felt like family by the end of the tour. Our driver, Mujo, drives very well. He is also very kind and always smiling. All the hotels we stayed in were good hotels especially Momento Hotel in Istanbul. The hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia was totally an out of this world experience. Ege woke up early and went with us just to take a video of us taking off. I have been in many tours and hands down, Ege is the best tour guide in the world! Don't hesitate anymore and book the FEZHT tour now! Ege is the exclusive tour guide of this tour so you know you will be in great hands already.

Special mention about our tourguide Ege Ertas who absolutely made our Turkish tour a great success. He made everything run smoothly. From ensuring he had enough change on him for public toilets at the start of our walking tour in Istanbul to arranging free Turkish tea/coffee and sweet pastry at the end of the walk. He paid attention to the wellbeing of all tour members, factoring in sitting breaks, dietary requirements and pharmacy stops as required. His ""can do"" approach positively influenced all members of our tour who participated in all activities despite continues rain.....no mean feat if you consider our wide age range, fitness levels and interests. His love of animals, humorous nature and historical knowledge all contributed to creating a warm, informative and relaxed atmosphere on our long road trips. I noticed his professional and respectful demeanour when interacting with our driver and staff at various stops (hotel, wine tasting, carpet sellers, Bosphorus boat trip, Dervish Whirling, etc). It is clear he has great professional contacts who will support him if required. Ege understood that a tour needs to be special and memorable.....he made sure we enjoyed our Turkish experience. I appreciate all the hard work and long hours and the exceptional extra effort and support....like arranging a birthday cake and dinner experience in Cappadocia for our one tour member. Thank you so much. I'll highly recommend Ege Ertas and Expat Explore for an unforgettable Turkish experience.

Myself and a friend (two young single women) had an incredible time travelling through exotic Turkey thanks to our fabulous tour with expat explore. Our tour guide (Ege) did an incredible job ensuring we had a tailored and expansive experience whilst ensuring our safety and comfort throughout. All accomodation was comfortable, our driver was very helpful and we had a chance to feel as though we were seeing 'real' Turkey.

Enjoyed this tours itinerary, the history and friendly people of Türkiye.

It was a fantastic experience, and what made it really special was the fact that we had the most amazing tour leader, Ege who shared so many facts of the history of his country. It was touching to see how passionate he is about the history and the future. I am so glad that I made use of the tour, as we saw so many places and shared experiences that will last a lifetime. I can highly recommend Expat and specifically the Turkey tour to anyone that wants to visit Turkey, and I keep my fingers crossed that you will get Ege as your tour guide, as he was definitely the major contributor of making this trip a memorable one.

This fantastic tour was led by the fabulous Ege! He is passionate in sharing what Turkey has to offer and made it so memorable for us all. Ege took us to authentic places so that we could experience the true Turkish way of life. The food here is out of this world and is definitely a place for foodies! Katmar, turkish coffee, pide(Kismet-best place for this!), proper kebabs and wine tasting to name a few. We visited many historical/unique points of interest as this country is steeped in history, in that Turkey celebrates 100 years of independence his year. Unique points were Pamukkale, Cleopatra pools, Sultanhani, Oba showrooms for handmade rugs and Aldag Elite Cave Ceramics demonstration. Cappadocia region was an absolute stand out for me and was fortunate to experience hot air balloning and an underground cave city tour! The landscape here is so diverse also. Should there be another tour of Turkey in the future, I will most definitely do it!

Itinerary and accommodation were wonderful. Good selection, amazing and interesting places seen. Maybe add an additional day in Cappadocia to explore the places better. Well done to our tour leader Tamer and driver Murat. Minor issues during the first night in Istanbul but were sorted immediately. I had a delightful and fun Turkey trip. ??

Improve communication between Expat team and the Travel agency partner in Turkey

We were very pleased with the whole experience of this tour in Turkey

This 10 day tour of Turkey was everything I imagined and more! Fascinating history, delicious food, lovely people, beautiful scenery- what else could you ask for?

I enjoyed every minute of the tour. Our guide genius khan always on top of everything. He calls you by your name and tries to make things as easy for you as a traveler. Hotels are all clean and up to par.

Turkey was amazing and all the accommodation was beautiful. My only complaint is the last day of 14 hours travelling from Cappadocia to Istanbul was too long in a small bus

Great adventure. Every city has it's own beauty. Perfect weather. My highlights are white calcium terraces in Pamukkale and the Hot Air Balloon ride in Cappadocia. The view is stunning!!

Fine

Wonderful experience. Met some new friends. We had a couple of long drives that should have been broken into an overnight.

There was excitement everyday! *Expat should update to current prices on website. Prices have gone up!!!*

The country is beautiful and the hotels were ok. The tour itself including the guide were not the best. There were optionals that were NEVER offered. Also the website said tht all public transfers were included, we had to pay for the transfer going towards Troy. We also paid for another transfer that I cannot remember. The tour guide was a little friendlier towards the end, but nevertheless was not too personable. In addition, when you go on vacation you really do not want to visit a cemetery. That was a waste of the afternoon.

The Tour Plan was good. However we were awfully disappointed with the Tour Guide who was extremely rude on the first day itself. He spoke rudely to my wife on the PA System that shocked all the travellers. His conduct thereafter made us wary of asking any clarifications or seeking more info about the country. He had absolutely no info on history, culture or situational brief for most sites. A huge disappointment for a culture rich country like Turkey.

Must avail of this tour, covers highlights of Turkey. Full of amazing history

Tour conducted by partner Fez Travels. The guide is jovial and quite knowledgeable. The coach driver has been hard-working throughout and wore a broad smile always. The tour was well paced. Well thought of method, where usually they have a maximum complement of 25 passengers on the tour as there is a fair amount of coach travel involved amongst the different sites that were being visited. This is done to ensure passengers are more comfortably seated individually and can stretch easily on the longer drives. Hotel accommodation at the smaller hotels is assured. Seating at restaurants to have our meals altogether, that is provided within the tour price is guaranteed. Having been on several directly conducted EXPAT tours; there are some obvious best practices devised and implemented by the EXPAT guides which should be shared with the FEZ personnel too. These being advanced itinerary information sharing and modes of communications disseminated on the tour's logistical aspects. EXPAT customers have become more accustomed to the EXPAT methodologies. EXPAT guides using social media throughout the tour with closed group chats, posters and information pamphlets handouts, the firm break timings, relevant information in group huddle before start of the day's activities, etc., which helps immensely to better program the day and drive expectations. The Fez approach being more laid back with less rigid discipline though construed as refreshing which tends to lay responsibility on the passengers complying is not geared to anticipate better. All in all the tour itself, visiting the places of interest, sites, monuments, and the overall camaraderie was more than satisfying.

Some hotels were better than others but overall the tour is fantastic! Our tour guide from Fez Travel, Aussie, was most informative and helpful in making it most enjoyable.

Firstly, a warning to all. You simply just book this tour through the tour operator, but another tour agency run the tour. This was not outlined in the tour itinerary or information regarding the tour. Secondly, the prices for admission fees to various historical sights listed in the tour itinerary are not included in the tour price (have to pay seperate unlike other expat tours). The also the prices for these entry fees need to be updated on the tour operator's website as they are DOUBLE the price listed for the tour. Some optional excursions not mentioned by the tour leader. Which was a pity The tour leader isn't an Expat tour leader. Tour leader was very informative and knowledgable. But didnt engage much with the travelers at all while on the tour bus. Felt that the tour guide was not very clear with specific information and it was like if you didn't ask, you didn't know. Sometimes unaproachable to ask questions to. Another thing that I found was missing was a welcome dinner on the first night of the tour that Expat usually have for their travellers to all get to know each other. There were no collectable stickers for the booklet handed out for places visited as Expat usually hand out after visiting each destination. This would have been nice. As other expat tours do this. I checked in late to the hotel the first day/night due to a flight delay travelling to Istanbul. The staff at the reception almost turbed me away because there was no "tour group of this particular tour operator" booked into the hotel as per staff. The tour agency running this trip was never mentioned via email etc. I Only came across it on a document which I downloaded with tour itinerary. I felt the tour overall was unforgettable, full of beautiful historical scenery and mesmerising places that we visited. Gained great experiences with fellow travellers while learning about the culture and customs within Turkey. The tour went smoothly. The highlight was the hot air balloon ride in Kapadokya. Despite issues, had great time