Excellent Guide in Turkey

[greygypsy]

My wife has been at me to write a thorough review of our Galaxy Eastern Med cruise we were on that sailed on September 27. Have been busy, but she really wants me to get on the boards now to sing the praises of our tour guide in Turkey, Levent Solmaz. And she's right - of all the private guides and tours we had on our trip he was by far the most exceptional.

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A group of six of us (originally eight, but 2 cancelled last minute - and Levent didn't mind!), reserved with Levent in January, or 9 months before the cruise, and he was very busy, so if you are looking for a great guide in Turkey, write to him soon.

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Anyway, Levent is from Izmir, but was educated and spent some time in the States and his English is excellent. He hired (out of his fee) a driver for both Istanbul and Kusadasi (yes - he flew himself to Kusadasi to meet us on day 3 of our Turkey stop) each of whom had a large, comfortable van that could have easily sat 10. This way, he could concentrate on being with us and talking to us, and not about the driving.

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We were off the ship within a half hour of docking in Istanbul, and he met us right on the pier. He got us going way ahead of the tour buses, and we saw many great sights that first afternoon including the Blue Mosque, the Cisterns - at least 5 stops, and he was extremely informative about each place, with great stories and information, and we were never rushed. At the end of the day he took us to the Grand Bazaar - a really crowded and crazy place, and unlike many tour guides who let their guests go and agree to meet them at some later time, he stayed with us the entire way - and let me tell you it really helps to have a native with you when going through the Bazaar!! Still, it was a little crazy for us, and after helping us buy a couple Pashmiras, we left. He got us back to the ship to change for our night on the town.

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Unlike other guests who booked with a competitor, Levent was able to get us into the best show in town at the Orient House. He was also able to get the dinners shows for $15 less per person than was priced on the menu. Goes to show everything is negotiable in Turkey. The show was superb, and there was great audience participation, including my wife who was selected as Miss USA!

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After the show - which ended at midnight, he was there with his driver to make sure we got safely back to the ship.

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By the way - we hadn't paid him yet. He also advanced all the tickets to all the museums himself, he stood in special lines and it was a great advantage.

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The next day was spent almost entirely at the Topkapi Palace, and it was definitely worth the 4 hours we spent there. He was able to get us in to see the Harem, and that usually has to be booked way in advance.

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Unfortunately, there was an International Marathon that day (I think it was advertised as the East/West Marathon). Our ship had advised us of it, but didn't tell us that the only bridge back to our ship would be closed for the three hours immediately prior to our scheduled departure!!

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After being stuck in an interminable traffic jamb, when we got down to the Bosphurus and could see our ship, we decided to walk/run to get back to the ship that was scheduled to depart in 45 minutes. Again, Levent being the true guide and gentleman, got out with us and led us on the three mile walk back to the ship. Just as we approached the ship we saw one of the ship's tours just approaching so they had just re-opened the bridge. The ship did sail an hour late, so we got back with time to spare, but still it is rather nerve-racking. By the way, Levent assured us that if for some reason we missed the ship, he would get us to Kusadasi!

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The next day was a bright and sunny day in Kusadasi and he was there to meet us first thing. After taking us to Mary's house, we spent 3 hours at Epheseus - incredible ruins brought to life by Levent who had a special book he had made to show us mock-ups of what the various buildings would have looked like back in Greek and Roman times. This was truly his love and we had an incredible experience.

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For lunch he brought us to a small, out of the way local Taverna where we had some superb local dishes and some local beer and wine for very, very little.

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Then, a couple of the couples wanted to do some shopping so he took us to both a rug factory and a leather factory. Fun shows, tea or coffee and really very low pressure sales techniques (especially compared to some of the stories we heard from other passengers). Levent recommended waiting to make our purchases for Kusadasi - he said the goods and prices were better than Istanbul, and it was certainly more relaxing than at the Grand Bazaar.

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We made it back to the ship in time to check the internet at a cafe in the nice little square where the cruise ships dock. By the way, Kusadasi has everything the Greek Islands do except it's newer, fresher and cheaper. Great stop!

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So, for 3 days including all admission tickets and dinner at the Orient House the entire cost was $250 per person - including tips!

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You've gotta look him up if you are traveling to that part of the world. And when you do, tell him Susan and Jeff say hi!!

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His website is http://www.leventsolmaz.com. We found him on the boards, so I'm sure you can find other info about him if you search.

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Keep on sailin'!!

[David C]

Thanks for posting this review of Levent Solmaz and his guiding services in Turkey. Just over a month ago, I booked him for our May 27, 28 and 29, 2006 stops in Istanbul and Kusadasi/Ephesus (on Celebrity's Galaxy) as I had read such good things about him and as he was the most responsive of all the Turkish guides I sent emails to. In addition to my wife and I, there will be another five couples joining us (making for a group of 12 in all) all of whom I connected with here on cruisecritic and none of whom I've yet to meet in person. Our itinerary sounds identical to the one you described, including the night tour of Istanbul with the dinner/show at the Orient House. Your posting really has me getting excited now. Thanks again for sharing your experiences, greygypsy. It sounds as if I made a pretty good choice in reserving with Levent.

 

David C

[KruzinAl]

Hi Jeff, great review about your guide and Turkey.

We echo your comments about Turkey.

We were also on the same 09/26 cruise but used another guide with a similar itinerary.

She was Lale Kosagan lale.kosagan@turkishguides.org

Lale and her husband Kagan are licensed guides.

Lale was also fantastic, well-organized and had a passion for the country. Her price for the Orient House was higher than the ships price, so someone of our group booked with Meander Travel. Meander messed up and took us to a similar evening experience but not as advertised. They have offered to refund completely our fee for the mix-up, so they may get some customers back. But be wary of Meader.

I know that Levant is good, but our whole group raved about Lale. She also flew to Kusadasi.

We had the same marathon problem as Jeff, but our driver went in a long loop and returned us close to the ship as the marathoners were finishing the run. No walking required.

In Kusadasi, after Ephesus, we had lunch in an interesting local outdoor restaurant beside a carpet school and salescentre. We didn't go the Church of St. Mary, instead visited the museum in Selchuk, a local mosque and St. John's church ruins.

I posted a review of our entire cruise.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=13190

Happy sailing!

Al