Considered by many to be one of the top archaeological sites in the world, Ephesus is an impressive open-air museum. This tour lets you explore this unique site together with the Temple of Artemis, which is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Places to see on this tour:

-the ancient city of Ephesus
-the Temple of Artemis

The following rates are "flat fee", including the guidance and transportation costs.

GUIDANCE:

*Half Day private guidance service : 90,00 USD per day

TRANSPORTATION: 

*Half Day Minivan with driver : 120 USD including VAT plus 15 USD parking fees = 1 to 6  people / per day

Half day private tour cost: 225,00 USD (total for 6 pax max.) / 09:00am to 01:00pm or afternoon 01:00pm to 05:00pm

Any service which ends after 1:00 pm goes into a FULL DAY charge in terms of guide and transportation.

The above rates include:

INCLUSIONS
Complimentary water on board the van throughout the tour
Local transportation by a private chauffeur driven deluxe van with A/C
Services of professional English-speaking tour guide who licensed by the Turkish Ministry of Tourism and expert on Turkey's history and culture.
V.A.T

EXCLUSIONS
Any entrance fees to the sites and museums, lunches and/or dinners, alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages, personal expenses and gratuity to guides & drivers.

Ephesus 
Ephesus is a must-to-see site that impresses each visitor that it welcomes. With a rich history over 9000 years, Ephesus passed through Neolithic period, the nearby mounds show that people lived in the area in 7000-6000 B.C. Hittites mentioned Ephesus in their cuneiform tablets, naming it as Apasas which means the city of honey bees. Later Ionian, Hellenic, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk, Aydin and Ottoman periods came one after the other. Most of the ruins that we see today belong to the Roman period and are found in a wide area between Festival Hill (Mt. Pion) and Nightingale Hill (Mt. Koressos). Throughout its long history, the city had to change its location several times due to the silting up of the river Kaystros (Little Meander river) It would not be wrong to say that the city flourished due to water as it was by the sea and alluviums carried by the river made the land so fertile. On the other hand, it is also due to water that it declined as the harbor was gradually blocked by the silt and soil brought by Little Meander River. Today, visitors explore Ephesus III which used to be the fourth greatest city of the Roman Empire after Rome, Alexandria & Antioch. With a population over a quarter million people, it was one of the greatest political, economical and religious centers of the Romans. Ephesus also served as the capital city of the Roman Province of Asia Famous throughout history for its Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, this city was also the most important shrine of the Asia Minor. Main site of Ephesus houses two big agoras (one commercial and political) Gymnasiums, Odeon, Prytaneion, Fountains, Domitian Temple, Celsus Library, Grand Theater, Harbor Street etc... 

Temple of Artemis
The Temple of Artemis also known less precisely as Temple of Diana, is built for the worship of Artemis whose cult dominated the religious and social life of Ephesus for centuries. Today the site lies on the edge of the modern town of Selcuk. Though the monument was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, only foundations and sculptural fragments of the temple remain. There were previous temples on its site, where evidence of a sanctuary dates as early as the Bronze Age. The whole temple was made of marble except for the roof. It was known to be the biggest temple ever built in the name and honor of a Goddess. According to Pausanias, the Temple was superior in perfection and impressiveness, to anything else made by man. The Ephesian Artemis was recognized throughout Asia Minor and carried many of the characteristics of Cybele, the great Mother Goddess of Anatolia. The cult of Cybele had passed over to Greece with the movements of people in the prehistoric times and later returned to Anatolia with the Greek migrations. When the Greeks arrived in Anatolian land by crossing the Aegean Sea, they saw that the native people living in the area were already worshipping the mother goddess cult. So what they did was to combine the features of their goddess Artemis with the characteristics of the local mother deity in Anatolia. However, the Ephesian Artemis is not exactly the same goddess that we see in Greek pantheon. The Ephesian Artemis is represented as a woman with many breasts symbolizing vitality and the nourishing capacity of the earth. She is the goddess of nature, of fertility, of chastity, of productivity and the protector of wild animals and sailors. Her cult was spread throughout the further shores of the Mediterranean. Since she was believed to be a mother goddess, her temple was very reputed and people who worshipped her believed that Artemis performed miracles, cured the sick, regulated commerce, helped the women to conceive and give birth. Every year, festivities called Artemisia were organized in her honor to celebrate the reawakening of nature. 

You would be met at the pier with a sign bearing your name on it. You would have your private A/C vehicle and your private professional tour guide at your disposal from the time your tour starts till it ends.

The visit of the main site of Ephesus requires a downhill walk of roughly 1 mile ( 1.6 k.m.). Comfortable walking shoes are recommended as you will be walking for quite a while on marble. Ephesus is a vast, open-air museum. Especially for hot summer days, hats and sun cream are recommended to protect yourselves against the harmful affects of sun.