TURKEY

Day 1 – October 18, 2027 Depart Honolulu

Today marks the beginning of your extraordinary pilgrimage!

Day 2 – October 19, 2027 Arrival in Istanbul

Arrival and guidance assistance. Transfer to the hotel. Dinner and accommodation.

Day 3 – October 20, 2027  Istanbul

Breakfast. Departure from the hotel for a boat tour on the Bosphorus, the strait separating Europe from Asia, where we can enjoy the great beauty of Istanbul’s forests, its palaces, and the yalı, wooden mansions built on both shores. We continue with visits to the splendid 6th-century Hagia Sophia basilica and free time at the Grand Bazaar. We proceed with visits to Istiklal Avenue, a lively avenue with shops, bars, and restaurants, and the famous Passage of the Flowers and its typical restaurants, breweries, fruit and fish markets, pastry shops, and Catholic (visit to the Catholic Church of San Antonio) and Orthodox churches. Return to the hotel. Dinner and accommodation.

Day 4 – October 21, 2027 Istanbul / Flight to Antioch / Adana

Breakfast, transfer to the airport. Assistance with boarding formalities and departure to Antioch. Arrival and visit to the Cave Church of St. Peter, where St. Peter gathered his first followers (a church was built by the Crusaders between the 12th and 13th centuries). Departure for Adana. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Day 5 – October 22, 2027 Adana / Tarsus / Cappadocia

Breakfast. Departure for Tarsus, mainly known for being the birthplace of Saint Paul and the site of the first meeting between Mark Antony and Cleopatra. Visit to this small city with the House and Well of Saint Paul. Continuation to Cappadocia. Dinner and accommodation.

Day 6 – October 23, 2027 Cappadocia

Breakfast at the hotel. Day dedicated to visiting this fantastic region, unique in the world. Göreme Valley, with its rock churches with paintings from the 10th and 11th centuries; visit to the troglodyte village of Uçhisar, photo stop at Üçgüzeller in Ürgüp with its most spectacular fairy chimneys in Cappadocia, Dervent Valley with its curious natural formations, visit to the underground city of Özkonak. The underground city preserves stables, common rooms, meeting rooms, and small rooms for families, and time for craft workshops such as carpets and semi-precious onyx stones. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

OPTIONAL VISIT: HOT-AIR BALLOON RIDE IN CAPPADOCIA

Day 7 – October 24, 2027 Cappadocia / Lystra / Sille / Konya

Breakfast and departure for Konya. On the way, there is a stop to visit the Sultanhan Caravanserai from the Seljuk era.  We continue with the visit to Lystra (Kilistra), where Saint Paul met Saint Timothy, and where Saint Thecla was born. She was a 1st-century Anatolian martyr, venerated as a saint by the Catholic and Orthodox Churches. Before arriving in Konya, on the way, visit the famous village of Sille. This village was an important religious center during the Roman and Byzantine periods, as it was located on the road to Jerusalem. It is known that in the early years of Christianity, Saint Paul and his friends arrived in Konya, tried to spread Christianity and retreated to the mountains around Sille under pressure. In the village, we will visit the Church of Archangel Michael, built in 327 AD by Saint Helena, the mother of the first Christian Byzantine emperor, Constantine, on behalf of Archangel Michael. After the visit, we will walk along the riverbank passing through its market, cafes, and shops. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Day 8 – October 25, 2027 Konya / Antioch of Pisidia (Yalvaç) / Pamukkale

Breakfast and departure for Antioch of Pisidia-Yalvaç. Visit this rich Roman metropolis at the foot of the impressive Taurus Mountain range. It was here that the Apostle Saint Paul delivered his first sermon known in Asia Minor. Continuation to Pamukkale. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Day 9 – October 26, 2027 Pamukkale / Laodicea / Pamukkale

Breakfast. Visit to Pamukkale. Free time at “Cotton Castle”, unique in the world with its thermal pools of limestone origin and petrified waterfalls. Visit to Hierapolis, a Roman city where Apostle Philip was martyred. Continue with Laodicea. According to legend, Christianity reached Laodicea through Epaphras, a disciple of Saint Paul. Visit to the ruins of the ancient city. Return to the hotel. Dinner and accommodation.

Day 10 – October 27, 2027 Pamukkale / Philadelphia / Sardis / Thyatira / Izmir

Breakfast. Departure to Philadelphia. Visit to the ruins of the city with the Byzantine Basilica that preserves frescoes. Continue to Sardis, which was the capital of the Kingdom of Lydia under King Croesus. The Lydians are famous for inventing coined money in the late 7th century BC. We can visit the Temple of Artemis, the Acropolis, the Synagogue, and the Gymnasium. Continuation to Thyatira (Akhisar), a small town with ruins of the Temple of Apollo, an ancient street with columns, and ruins of the Byzantine Basilica. Continue to İzmir. Dinner and accommodation.

Day 11 – October 28, 2027 Izmir / Miletus / Ephesus / Izmir

Breakfast. Departure for Miletus, which houses a magnificent theatre dominating the entire site. In Roman times, Miletus was declared a free city. Saint Paul arrived during his third missionary journey, returning from Corinth, when he was heading to Jerusalem to bid farewell to the elders of the Church of Ephesus. Continue to Ephesus. Arrival and visit to the House of the Virgin, the supposed last residence of the mother of Jesus. Visit to the ruins of Ephesus, a city dedicated to Artemis: the Odeon, the Temple of Hadrian, the House of Love, the Library of Celsus, the Agora, Marble Street, and the Theatre. Visit to the ruins of the Basilica of Saint John. Stop at a leather production center. Return to Izmir.

Dinner and accommodation.

Day 12 – October 29, 2027 Izmir / Pergamon / Alexandria Troas / Çanakkale

Breakfast. Departure to Pergamon, now Bergama. Visit to the ruins, including the Acropolis, to visit the ruins of the grand theatre, the Temple of Trajan, the gymnasium, and the library, and finally, the ruins of the Roman basilica called the Red Basilica, considered one of the Seven Churches of Revelation. Continuation to Alexandria Troas, where Saint Paul passed twice. Continuation to Çanakkale. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Day 13 – October 30, 2027 Çanakkale / Troy / İstanbul

Breakfast. Departure to Troy. Visit to the famous city of history that evokes the poetic name of Homer’s Iliad. Continue to İstanbul. Dinner and accommodation at the hotel.

Day 14 – October 31, 2027 Departure from İstanbul

Breakfast. Transfer to the airport for flight back to HNL.