Didyma, Priene, Miletus itinerary

[ROCruiser]

Wanting to spend our day at the ruins in Didyma, Priene, and Miletus from Kusadasi. Our port time will be from 8:00AM~6:00PM. How should we plan our time at each site? Would also like to save some time at the end to walk around Kusadasi also.

[cruisemom42]

As I think I said when answering an earlier post of yours, I've done this itinerary twice. Both times the tour provider suggested starting with Priene, then Miletus and finishing with the Temple of Apollo at Didyma.

 

Priene has a bit of a climb to reach the site, but once you get to the ruins, the area is pretty compact. Still, there's a lot to see there -- I suggest a couple of hours to see the majority of the city remains; less if you are only interested in some "key" sites (theater, gymnasium, temple of Athena, early churches, agora).

 

Miletus is much more spread out, but it is also flatter and easier to walk. Much of the site has not been excavated. The main sites to be visited are the splendid theatre, Faustina baths, harbor monument, Ionic stoa, temple of Apollo and the sacred way. I also suggest that you don't miss the pediment from the Temple of Serapis Helios, a beautiful remnant (later reused as part of the city gate). Unless you are a dedicated ruins fan, 1.5 hours is probably fine here -- just don't spend it all in the theatre.

 

The temple of Apollo is just that -- the remains of one very large, very grand temple. (So grand it was never completely finished; purportedly funded by Alexander the Great at one stage of its construction). There is a lot to see here -- from games and building measurements scrawled into the marble paving to the wonderfully detailed carving around the bottoms of the gigantic columns) but it requires paying attention to details and understanding the purpose of the temple (explains why it is designed as it is). I suggest an hour here.

 

Guides often recommend lunch in the restaurant facing the temple but I haven't tried it, so I can't say if it's good.

 

None of these sites has good signage. It would be helpful to do some reading before you go in order to have a good idea of what you'll see. A guidebook I purchased on my first visit was very helpful -- unfortunately I wasn't able to get it until near the end of the tour.

 

If you get an early start, you should still have a little time to walk around Kusadasi on your return.

[Hlitner]

A tough question. We have visited Prience, Didyma and Miletus on two different occasions with totally different results. The first time we did it during a port day where we simply hired a taxi driver and had him take use to the 3 sites. In those days, 2 of the 3 sites were not even secured and it was quite an experience. The 2nd time was about 4 years ago when we did an overnight in Kusadasi on another cruise. The first day (without any concern of getting back to the port on time) we rented a car (cost us less then $50 for the say) and first drove to the small town of Tire for their weekly market (we were the only foreigners anywhere near this town). We then spent the rest of the day driving to the Priene, Didyma, and Miletus and were pleasantly surprised that the Turks had finally recognized the value of these sites and secured the areas. As to how much time to spend in each, it really depends on the individual and how much exploring they want to do. One could easily spend a full day at Didyma...or rush through it in less then 2 hours. Of the 3 sites we would probably say that Priene is our favorite...but it really is a toss-up.

 

We agree with Cruisemom that signage is not great at any of these sites, but they seem to keep improving the signs (and handouts) so one can hope that these sites continue to improve (from a tourist perspective).

 

Hank

Edited January 7, 2015 by Hlitner

[cruisemom42]

In reference to Hank's post, I should've made clear also that one could spend a lot of time at each place. But I know some (okay MOST) people don't have the strong interest in ruins that I do (:D), and I wanted to give you some reasonable minimum times per site.

 

I was just there in October and signs are still very minimal; no maps handed out with tickets. Miletus has some weatherbeaten signs in bad shape, some are unreadable. Priene had the occasional identifying sign for a particular building.

 

Also, Priene has some active archaeological work going on that may affect a couple of areas (but this is minimal).

[ROCruiser]

Thank you, cruisemom and Hank! I was hoping the two of you would respond. I have learned so much from your posts! At least now I have a better idea on how to plan out our day there. We like ruins. Just imagining how people lived years ago is fascinating, especially places that has Biblical significance. We did Ephesus a couple of times and want some other experience. Thanks again!