Country guide
Turkey travel guide
Our route team has mapped 3 destinations in Turkey across 1 curated route, adding up to 30 places to eat, see and do. Its route is filed under culture. It runs 9 days end to end.
- Destinations
- 3
- Places
- 30
- Curated routes
- 1
- Trip lengths
- 9 days
- Routes favor
- Apr – Jun and Sep – Oct
Where our routes go in Turkey
Tap a dot to open that destination's guide.
3 destinations in Turkey
Ordered by how many of our curated routes stop there, then by how many places we have picked.
Best of Turkey
Our curated picks by theme, drawn from the places our route editors chose for their routes.
Places worth planning around
A short sampler from the 30 places in Turkey, starting with those featured on the most of our routes.
ShopAvanos pottery workshops
Riverside town with pottery made from Kızılırmak river clay.
SeeBasilica Cistern
Vast Byzantine underground reservoir with 336 columns and two Medusa heads.
SeeBasilica of St. John
Ruins of Justinian's basilica over the traditional tomb of John the Apostle.
SeeDerinkuyu Underground City
Multi-level underground city cut into soft rock, reaching about 85 m deep.
SeeBlue Mosque
Sultan Ahmed Mosque, with six minarets and blue İznik tiles inside.
SeeEphesus Ancient City
Roman port city with the Library of Celsus and a 25,000-seat theater.
Curated routes through Turkey
One curated route stops here. Open it for the day-by-day plan.
Best time to visit Turkey
Our route here recommends Apr – Jun and Sep – Oct.
Climate averages (NASA POWER, 2001–2025) for 3 of our destinations here: August is the warmest month, with average highs near 92°F (33°C), and January the coolest at about 47°F (8°C). January is the wettest, around 3.4 in (86 mm) of rain, and July the driest at about 0.4 in (11 mm).
NASA POWER is a gridded model (roughly 50 km cells), so coastal and mountain spots read as regional averages.
Weather by destination
Getting around Turkey
Legs between consecutive stops on our routes. Distances are straight-line estimates, not driving distances.
- Istanbul → Göremeabout 564 km (351 mi) straight-line
- Göreme → Selçukabout 655 km (407 mi) straight-line
Planning a trip to Turkey
How many days do you need for a trip to Turkey?
Our curated route here is planned as a 9-day trip. Shorter visits work if you focus on one or two destinations.
What are the best places to visit in Turkey?
Going by how often our route team includes them, the most-featured destinations in Turkey are Göreme, Istanbul and Selçuk. Göreme alone has 10 hand-picked places in our guides.
When is the best time to visit Turkey?
Our route here recommends Apr – Jun and Sep – Oct. NASA POWER averages put the warmest weather in August and the most rain in January.
Where can I find the best things to do in Turkey?
See our curated picks: top things to do in Turkey, chosen from 17 places in our curated routes.
Nearby countries
Take your crew to Turkey
Start from one of our Turkey routes in TripsCircle, then shape it together: shared itinerary, polls for the big decisions, split expenses and packing lists.