Straddling the physical and psychic divide between the East and the West, Turkey offers the perfect petri dish of cultural combinations: Muslim and Christian, Modern and Ancient, Secular and Religious. Currently there are some inspiring offers to get you there soon and on the cheap.
If you purchase by December 31, you can take advantage air and hotel offers from one of our perennially favorite packagers to the seat of the former Ottoman Empire, Troy Tours (tel. 800/748-6878; www.troytours.com, click "Special City Packages"). The company has three different seven-day/five night comos; you can spend all your time in Istanbul starting from $499 or you split it between there and either Vienna or Rome from $599. Prices are based on non-weekend departures out of NYC, and don't include taxes or service charges, which amount to about $100. The pricetag does include round-trip airfare, five-nights' accommodations, ground transportation to and from hotels, and a half-day tour of Istanbul. Additional gateways are available at varying extra cost (between $30 -$100) based on the package and the departure city. The travel period for the two-city packages is from January 4 to March 3, 2005; for Istanbul only, it's January 4 to March 16.
Pacha Tours (tel. 800/722-4288; www.pachatours.com) specializes solely in tours of the old Ottoman Empire and modern day Turkey. With so many tours available, the hard part about traveling with a Pacha Tour is choosing which one to go on. Founded in 1983, Pacha Tours caters to over 200,000 travelers per year. A 17-day "Super Value Western Turkey Tour" covering Istanbul and the Oriental part of Turkey as well as the historical West Coast including Troy and Gallipoli costs only $1,435 including airfare with four March 2005 departure dates. Other departure dates for 2005 will be available from Pacha in the near future. From Los Angeles the same trip costs $1,565. Included in the trip are three Turkish meals per day, accommodations at four-star hotels every night, and English-speaking tour guides with historical and cultural knowledge. Absolutely all costs are included with the exception of two meals on your last day of travel to ensure some private and leisure time.
For the more independent-minded traveler, Pacha also offers a "Fly and Drive" alternative (www.pachatours.com/OtherPrograms/FlyDrive/Pkg2/pkg2.html) that includes several different driving itineraries. Price for these trips from New York including rental car and hotels as well as a daily breakfast costs around $1,370 depending on which of the driving itineraries you select.
Gate 1 Travel (tel. 800/682-3333; www.gate1travel.com) has a 12-day "Turkish Treasure" on sale for the low price of $999 if you depart on February 9 or March 12, 2005 and pay cash. In the warmer months such as April, May and June, prices vary from $1,429 to $1,849 if paying cash and $1,470 to $1,904 if paying with credit card. Airport security taxes and departure fees are not included. All breakfasts and seven dinners are included in the price. Sightseeing is done on an air-conditioned tour bus. This tour operates to and from New York City to Turkey and includes Istanbul to Ankara but skips out on Troy or Ephesus. Travel to Troy is available for an additional fee. Other Turkish tours are available through the travel operator.
Djoser Tours (tel. 877/356-7376; www.djoserusa.com), the Dutch travel operator with a United States-base in Pennsylvania famous for low-frills low-priced independent-minded travelers, offers a 16- or 23-day tour of Turkey starting at $1,895 out of New York and $2,095 from Los Angeles. With currents departures available in April and May 2005, Djoser wants your tour experience to be bereft of cold air and dark skies. The tour includes round-trip airfare from New York's JFK, hotels and breakfasts, a tour guide (but it's up to you what daily excursions to participate in or not) and all ground transportation to and from airports and other tour destinations. The tour doesn't include travel insurance, meals (which are all up to you), and entrance fees to the country, tips, personal expenses and airport taxes.
Accommodations are usually at local hotels close to major sights and interesting thoroughfares and markets. Also, important to note, all Djoser tour guides are extremely well acquainted with local flavor and customs, mainly because they are local.
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