Hi,
I am having a very hard decision trying to decide whether my boyfriend and I should tour around Turkey ourselves by bus, or use the Fez Bus hop-on-hop-off service?
We have 16 days in Turkey and I seem to think that with the Fez Bus we will get to see more of the country, as they stop at places on the way, meaning we will not have to worry about organising our own tours etc. when we get off the buses with our luggage. But I have been told by friends that local buses will be much cheaper and more comfortable.
The itinerary I had drawn up for if we did local buses is:
Aug 8 - Arrive at airport 4:30pm
Aug 9 - Istanbul
Aug 10 - Istanbul
Aug 11 - Bus to Gallipoli (Gallipoli Tour from Istanbul - Hassle Free Tours??)
Aug 12 - Bus to Kusadasi/Ephesus
Aug 13 - Kusadasi
Aug 14 - Kusadasi
Aug 15 - Bus to Fethiye
Aug 16 - Fethiye (Go to Saklikent Gorge)
Aug 17 - Bus to Olympos
Aug 18 - Olympos
Aug 19 - Olympos
Aug 20 - Bus to Cappadocia
Aug 21 - Cappadocia
Aug 22 - Cappadocia
Aug 23 - Cappadocia (O/night bus to Istanbul, Arr. Aug 24th, AM)
Aug 24 - Istanbul (O/night bus to Thessaloniki, Greece)
I would like your opinion on if this itinerary can be done in the time given, and also if you think we would be better getting the Fez Bus? The Fez Bus is £139 each - do you think local buses will be a lot cheaper?
Also, can anyone advise approximate journey times for the bus rides listed above so I know how long we will have in each place?
Thanks in advance for all your help!
Seems to me that you will be spending most of your holiday on buses, just to give you a vague idea, i have used the autobus ( overland coach ) from Fethiye to Istanbul, 500 mile and it took 11 hours with a couple of rest stops.
I have looked on google earth and if i'm right on their exact location your first leg Istanbul to Gallipoli as the croow flies is just over 600 mile, possibly 14 or 15 hours.
Second leg gallipoli to Kusadsi around 600 mile as the crow flies, same again 14 or 15 hours.
Kusadasi to fethiye about 150 mile and the list goes on,
personally speaking although your holiday sounds like it might be fun visiting all of these places, i think you will find it very very tiring, but good luck to you.
Kev
I know that my first leg is only about 5hrs according to some of the tour websites I've looked at that take you there and do a 4-5hr tour in the same day. So, I'm hoping it's not 14-15hrs as you guessed!!
I'll wait to see if anyone has done the trips and knows the timing, but if you're even close to accurate, you're totally right and we will be very very tired.
If anyone has done the trips and knows how long it will take, I'd love to know.
Thanks.
Gallipoli Battlefields: ferry & taxi, about 30 minutes (to Kabatepe Information Center & Museum)
Istanbul: 340 km (211 miles) E, 6 hours
Istanbul's Atatürk Int'l Airport: 317 km (197 miles) E, 5 hours
Izmir: 340 km (211 miles) S, 5 hours
******************************
Kusadasi to;
Adnan Menderes (Izmir) Airport: 80 km (50 miles), 1.25 hours
Ephesus: 17 km (11 miles), 25 minutes
Istanbul: 705 km (438 miles), 9.5 hours
Izmir: 95 km (59 miles), 1.5 hours
Marmaris: 200 km (124 miles), 4 hours
Pamucak Beach: 8 km (5 miles) N, 15 minutes
Selcuk: 20 km (12 miles), 30 minutes
*****************************************
Fethiye to;
Antalya (coastal route via Kas): 295 km (183 miles) E, 6 hours
Antalya (inland route via Korkuteli): 222 km (138 miles) E, 3.5 hours
Dalyan: 76 km (47 miles) NW, 1.75 hours
Demre (Myra): 150 km (93 miles) SE, 3 hours
Ephesus (Selçuk): 306 km (190 miles) NW, 4.5 hours
Istanbul: 890 km (553 miles) N, 16 hours
Olimpos: 215 km (134 miles) E, 5.75 hours
Ölüdeniz: 8.5 km (5.3 miles) S, 15 minutes
Antalya to Cappadocia ; 586-km (364-mile) 9 hours over night bus from Antalya bus station..
*************************
So after all that there are no scary 14-15 hrs bus rides...for the most part 6hrs..except for the Antalya-Goreme route..and still it is not all that bad..
Ps...I am an ex-pat living in Antalya for 11 yrs and we drove ourselves last year from Antalya to Canakkale there and back in 4 nights and 5 days...
whether you take the Fez buses or public buses...either way is good..I would however prefer the independant public buses...so if you change your plans slightly you are not commited to their schedule..
from all the places you have mentioned...public bus service is easily avialable..
my photos;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/canmom/sets/
Thanks heaps for that! I didn't think the journeys were quite that long!!!! Plus, we're from Australia, so driving for 4/5hrs to get somewhere is not that big a deal.
You have also made me a bit more confident on the local buses instead of Fez Bus, after advising me that all routes we have chosen are fairly accessible by domestic buses.
Can't wait until August!!
And you are more than welcome....a few other tips for you to make your travels as easy as possible..where ever you plan to stay at have the owner/manager help you make your bus tickets in advance..for them it is just a simple telephone call away and they can advise you on the correct means of travel...
Second tip...you are planning to stay in Olympos...which BTW is lovely...if you are looking for the budget acommodations ( mainly the treehouses / bungalows etc ) and are interested in the backpacker party scene then it is a nice place for you..however ..if you are not...consider staying in Cirali instead...same beach ( shared by both villages )...the advantages of staying in Cirali are this..closer to the beach, flames of the Chimaera ( Yanartas ) which is located in the north end of the Cirali village, and Cirali is a bit more quiet than Olympos catering to more families and the mature traveller..
just my thoughts have a great trip
I think we will definitely stay in the treehouses in Olympos, as that is the scene we will be after (well, at least for a few nights on our trip anyway).
So if we book the tickets via the accommodation we plan to stay at, do you think we will get the cheapest/reasonable price, or do they bump it up for the convenience of it? So basically, once we book our accommodation, are you saying we can email them and ask them to book our ticket for our next journey so it's there waiting for us when we arrive from our previous bus journey? That does sounds nice and easy...I like the sound of that!
usually 1 day before or the same day is enough avanced planning..also many of these buses are daily leaving every hour or so to the next town/city...sometimes you just wait along side of the road to board them..
There are frequent busses from Canakkale to Izmir ( Selcuk / Kusadasi ).
The companies working on these routes are Canakkale Truva, Kamil Koc, Metro, and Radar.
and then you could change buses to get to either location...but inquire when buying your tickets with Canakkale Truva as thye might have direct buses to Kusadasi..
Truva Turizm Bus Company
Çanakkale Tel : +90.(0)286.217 48 91 - 217 77 78 - 212 27 640
+90.(0)286. 212 22 22 - 213 31 00 - 217 13 56
\Izmir Tel : +90.(0).232. 472 00 94 (5 lines)
http://www.truvatur.com
Kamil Koc Bus Company
Istanbul Tel : +90.(0)216.418 8485-86
Çanakkale Tel : +90.(0)286.213 75 00
http://www.kamilkoc.com.tr
Radar Turizm Bus Company
Çanakkale Tel : +90.(0)286.213 12 60
+90.(0)286.213 11 60
Hakiki Koc Bus Company
Çanakkale Tel : +90.(0)286.217 1960
+90.(0)286.214 11 78
PS..glad you liked my photos too
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