would like to hear from those that have done ship tour in Ephesus

[mauimary]

Since it is too late to book private tour for Ephesus-- I would like to hear from some of you who have done the ship tours--Which ones have you done and how did you like them. Looks like I am going to have to choose between a tour that includes House of the Virgin Mary or one that includes the Terraced Houses. Any opinions--Please post.

 

Sounds like the carpet shops may be optional--Is this true. From what I have read you do lunch then either go to the carpet places or you can head back to the ship? How long were your tours? 3-4 hours or the one that last 7 hours.

 

Is it possible to take a taxi to the Terraced Houses?

 

PLEASE HELP THANKYOU:)

[CruiserBruce]

We were on HAL, not RCCL, so there might be some slight differences. We had a 4 or 5 hour tour.

 

Ephesus is incredible. Definitely worth going to see. I would go with a ship's tour again. The Terrace Houses are part of (within) Ephesus. You pay an additional fee to get in. Very worthwhile. So, if you take a taxi to Ephesus, you get both (Ephesus and the Terrace Houses)for the taxi ride.

 

Others have said the House of the Virgin Mary was over rated.

 

I didn't get the impression the carpet tours were optional, although as ours was just two blocks form the ship, we probably could have slipped away. It was interesting. Our tour didn't include lunch, but there was a small snack at the carpet demo.

[Turtles06]

Since it is too late to book private tour for Ephesus--

 

Just curious, why is it too late? (I see your cruise doesn't leave for nearly two weeks.) Have you contacted a reputable tour operator like Ekol Tours and been turned away for the date you need? Their prices are very reasonable, even if it's just two of you, and you'd have a far better time than on a ship's tour (imho).

[mauimary]

Thankyou for your replies. The ships tours do not include house of the Virgin Mary and the Terraced Houses. Which we would like to do both. We will have to make a decision if we do go with the ship's tours. The tours sound like the carpet shops may be optional. We are doing other private tours in other countries and I would like to do one in Turkey if we can arrange it in such a short period of time. Almost everything I read is in regards to private tours which I am greatful for. I need a back up if I cannot arrange one. That is why I am wanting to hear from those that have done them with the bigger tours.

 

I have contacted several companies and they have no availability. I am awaiting an answer from Ekol tours.

[Hlitner]

The ship excursions can really vary depending on the cruise line and particular cruise so you would need to simply look at the various offerings on your ship. As a general rule, most of the larger bus tours to the ruins at Ephesus DO NOT include a visit to the amazing Terrace Houses (this is an area within the Ephesus ruins that has an additonal entrance fee and does not accomodate large groups). There are some bus tours that do include the so-called Virgin Mary House (whether this is really a place that the Virgin Mary lived is subject to much debate). We happen to think that EKOL is a very good tour company so we hope you get a positive response. The problem is that if its a busy day (with more than 1 ship) the tour companies can run out of qualified guides. We assume you have also looked on your cruise critic Roll Call forum to see if anyone has already booked a private tour and has room for more.

 

Hank

[zqvol]

Since it is too late to book private tour for Ephesus-- I would like to hear from some of you who have done the ship tours--Which ones have you done and how did you like them. Looks like I am going to have to choose between a tour that includes House of the Virgin Mary or one that includes the Terraced Houses. Any opinions--Please post.

 

Sounds like the carpet shops may be optional--Is this true. From what I have read you do lunch then either go to the carpet places or you can head back to the ship? How long were your tours? 3-4 hours or the one that last 7 hours.

 

Is it possible to take a taxi to the Terraced Houses?

 

PLEASE HELP THANKYOU:)

 

Contact EKOL

 

I doubt that it is too late to arrange private tour. With Ekol you can get Ephesus, including the House of the Virgin Mary, the Terrace House, The Temple of Artemis, The Basilica of St. John, lunch and the carpet factory and be back to the ship in plenty of time (assuming that you are at Kusadasi).

[texancruzer]

With a private tour you can do what ever you want to...... they cater to you. We used Ekol and had an awesome day. We did the jeep tour into the mountains in the morning, Sirince, lunch w/carpet factory (which we enjoyed btw) then Ephesus. Just dh and me with driver and guide. Open air - beautiful country, warm friendly people and great food. !

 

Do not miss the Terrace houses !

 

Worth every penny !

[Cornishpastyman1]

This shows the Terraced Houses

at 1.29

[mauimary]

Thankyou everyone for your help. I did send an email to Ekol tours yesterday but so far have not heard back from them. The other tour group had no availability. The tours for our cc board are all full. We have 6 in our party so it is hard to combine with another group. Still looking. Ship tours will be our back up if nothing comes through.

[johnlh]

Thankyou everyone for your help. I did send an email to Ekol tours yesterday but so far have not heard back from them. The other tour group had no availability. The tours for our cc board are all full. We have 6 in our party so it is hard to combine with another group. Still looking. Ship tours will be our back up if nothing comes through.

Also, try Hello Ephesus. She gave us a good rate for our group that sails in Novemeber. At first we had 6 people (same as your group) then two other couples joined our group last month and she was very accommodating. She was quick with a respond. Some have said she is slow to respond lately, but we have not had that problem. Just make sure your email does not bounce her emails to the trash bin. Lastly, we will be visiting the Virgin Mary House, Terrace House, St. John's Basilica, and other sites, this includes lunch. I did explain to her in my email, we did not want to be stuck at a rug demo.

[maryann ns]

We also had a great tour with Hello Ephesus. Try them. You do not want to miss the Terrace Houses.

 

It would also be possible to hire a taxi and tour on your own. You would want a good guide book. It would not be my first choice, but would be better than missing out.

[Hlitner]

We also had a great tour with Hello Ephesus. Try them. You do not want to miss the Terrace Houses.

 

It would also be possible to hire a taxi and tour on your own. You would want a good guide book. It would not be my first choice, but would be better than missing out.

 

We absolutely agree but one must be careful with the taxis at the port since they will try to rip you off on the cost of going to the ruins. We have heard taxi drivers asking for $60 or the fare which should be less than $20. Some cruisers have much better taxi luck by simply walking a few blocks into town and looking for a taxi that is not sitting in the port parking lot. If you go on your own it makes it quite easy to visit the Terrace Houses since anyone can simply buy a ticket and go into the building (this is within the Ephesus ruins.

 

Hank

[TLCOhio]

You do have lots of great options at Ephesus. We visited this great site with the many Roman structures and the nearby museum through a ship tour, plus the Virgin Mary House. We understand the Terrace House is well worth it. It's hard to do it "ALL". Below are some visual previews from what we saw and did. Hope this help give you an idea that it's well worth doing and seeing as much as possible.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 20,500 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

 

Starting the tour at Ephesus:

 

 

 

A smaller temple at Ephesus:

 

 

 

At Ephesus, here is the famed outdoor theater that hosted Saint Paul preaching, plus rock stars, etc. At this site in the 1st century AD, the Apostle Paul spent over three years in Ephesus preaching the Gospel. This included a sermon condemning pagan worship in this theater:

 

 

 

Even in Roman days, they needed “latrines” with these muliple toilets:

 

 

 

Looking downhill towards the library and other ruins from when Ephesus was Rome's capital of Asia Minor:

 

 

 

Near Ephesus, here is what the final home of Mary looks like from our visit there:

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

We have done both ships tours and just back from a cruise where we did a private tour. We used Epehsus Deluxe (they have a web site you can book directly through rather than e-mailing back and forth, so maybe you have time?) and would highly recommend. It was just six people, a fantastic guide and we did the Terrace Houses, which in my opinion are not to be missed. Our private tour was about half the price of the ships tour that did the Terrace Houses.

[lanikeekee]

We just got back from our trip...I did not book a ship tour and started to panic as we arrived in port as I thought maybe we should be seeing Ephesus...as we left the port and the main shopping area I saw a couple of cabs...these cabs are so clean and fit at least 8 people...I asked and we were told 20 euros per person return to Ephuses...we did not want to go to Marys house although he did ask...the taxi driver co-ordinator..he had a few cabs he was in charge of that i could see...said thatour driver Ali would take us to the top of Ephuses and then wait at the bottom one and a half hours later were he would take us back to the port...this is also were we would be paid...he was really good and it is a distance away...he also gave us a book to use as a guide although you can hire headphones or get a guide if you want...he was waiting for us and the book was so good we bought one when we got back to town...we also asked Ali were we could eat when we got back...he walked us down back streets and alleys intilwe arrived at Ali Babas...yep that was the real name...inside it opened out on to the port and our ship....the food was great and we would never had found it otherwise...I loved all the day and for a 20 euro deal...it was great:D

[TLCOhio]

We have done both ships tours and just back from a cruise where we did a private tour. We used Epehsus Deluxe (they have a web site you can book directly through rather than e-mailing back and forth, so maybe you have time?) and would highly recommend. It was just six people, a fantastic guide and we did the Terrace Houses, which in my opinion are not to be missed. Our private tour was about half the price of the ships tour that did the Terrace Houses.

 

Ship tours can work out, but a smaller-group, private tour does allow more flexibility to see what you want, at your speed, focusing on your interests and needs, etc. We didn't see the Terrace House, but those who did rate it very highly as a great insight into how the rich Romans lived in this area at that time in history.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 21,000 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[texancruzer]

Gosh, I hope you gave him a nice tip ! It is nice when you find a taxi driver who will go the extra mile for you. But on that note, we found the people of Turkey to be extremely polite, friendly and happy to have us "sometimes pesky tourists" there.

[Lair Bear]

In our case we were on the Wind Star, a small ship with about 130 people. So the ship's tour involved two buses to go to Ephesus with a couple guides for all. The one we had was good, proficient in English and kept us interested and entertained. The group was still small enough.

 

Private or ship's tour???

I guess it really depends and sometimes it is unpredictable which way to go. But I am sure, that without a guide you are 'wandering and wondering' as you walk around this marvelous relick of a city of the past.

 

 

BTW, when you see a carbage can amongst these beautiful ruins, you know it is tourist country. Too bad, but try to keep them in the shade.