Ephesus excursion query

[Peadar2000]

Hello everyone. This is my first post. My husband and I (early 40s) are going on our first cruise this summer aboard the Constellation. It’s a belated honeymoon. For most of the ports we’ll do our own thing, except for Kusadasi/Ephesus. I’m torn between the Celebrity excursions and the independent providers. I have some queries.
 

1.  Group size. How big are the general excursion groups? Are we talking 50/60 people? And does this mean a slow, sluggish slog with difficulty hearing the guide/seeing the monuments? Is it worth looking at the tours with limited numbers? (I’m not particularly interested in the very private tours.)

2. I am interested in seeing the House of the Virgin Mary and the Ephesus complex. I know the Temple of Artemis in Selçuk is one of the seven Wonders of the World but Google Earth suggests it’s little more than some stones in a field these days. If I picked a tour that doesn’t include this would I regret it?

3. I’ve seen competing tours offer pretty much the same sites but one might last 4 hours and another 6 hours. What can account for this time difference? Is the short one going to be ‘bang, bang, bang, you’re done’ and the long one an in-depth, informative dive into history?
4. To lunch or not to lunch! Some tours include a lunch of Turkish meze. To be honest that kind of food doesn’t particularly appeal to me and I wonder too does an included lunch add unnecessary time to the excursion. As it’s our first cruise I’m happy to head back to the ship and graze for lunch there.

5. Another area of slight concern is the carpet demonstrations which seem hard to avoid. From what I can tell they are used to pressure guests into buying largely unwanted products. I have no interest in learning how rugs/carpets are made; can I get duck out of these without too much issue?

6. The Celebrity excursions seem to be more expensive than the ones on Shore Excursions Group and Venture Ashore. Are they all essentially the same offerings? The ones on Viator offer ‘skip the queue’ tickets. I assume all the other ones include entry tickets that also skip the queue? Our trip is in July so crowds will be inescapable but obviously I’d like to keep the waiting around to a minimum.

 

I’m sorry for throwing all these questions at ye, but I would really appreciate any helpful advice. We booked this cruise last September when July seemed so far away but it’s scary how fast the time is passing and now July is coming into sight. I’m getting excited!

[Peadar2000]

Me here again. I’m not even sure this is the right venue for my post above. Perhaps someone could redirect me to a better spot on the boards for my query!

[realnice46]

6 hours ago, Peadar2000 said:

Me here again. I’m not even sure this is the right venue for my post above. Perhaps someone could redirect me to a better spot on the boards for my query!

First, yes they will probably move this post to the port boards.

We chose a private tour, there were I think about 8 of us in a mini van. What size tour is a personal choice, we prefer smaller groups makes it easier to hear the guide when you are walking around Ephesus.

I do think most tours will include the carpet stop. We too weren’t interested but it was actually very good. It was also the stop for lunch. We were worried about the food but it was wonderful. We’re able to try many new things.  We love to eat at local restaurants in port, the food on the ship can be repitative especially if it’s 10 days or longer.

[Peadar2000]

7 hours ago, realnice46 said:

First, yes they will probably move this post to the port boards.

We chose a private tour, there were I think about 8 of us in a mini van. What size tour is a personal choice, we prefer smaller groups makes it easier to hear the guide when you are walking around Ephesus.

I do think most tours will include the carpet stop. We too weren’t interested but it was actually very good. It was also the stop for lunch. We were worried about the food but it was wonderful. We’re able to try many new things.  We love to eat at local restaurants in port, the food on the ship can be repitative especially if it’s 10 days or longer.

Many thanks for your response! I have asked for this post to be deleted as I have reposted it in the appropriate Ports section.

[Hlitner]

Ok, I will bite and try to help.  For full disclosure, we have been to Kusadasi 5 times, gone to Ephesus on our own, with a private tour, and with a Princess excursion.  We have also used a rental car in the region (during an overnight).

We do recommend that a first-time visitor take a tour.  We DO NOT recommend a cruise e excursion because they generally have at least 50 souls, will often waste your time locking you away in a jewelry or Pottery Factory (either owned by the tour company or who pay kick backs to that company).  

 

What we do suggest is booking a private tour and you might want to join with some others on your CC Roll Call board.  There are several decent local tour companies but I will not suggest one since it has been a few years since we last took a guided tour in Kusadasi.  You can do some online homework, look at various reviews, and see what folks are saying on your Roll Call,   In our case we once booked a private tour for just the two of us, had an A/C van, driver, professional guide, and the cost was less than a cruise line excursion!  

 

As to time, this is really a personal preference.  One can easily spend 2 hours (or more) just walking through the ruins at Ephesus and one should make sure that the tour includes a visit to the Terrace Houses (this is within the Ephesus grounds but has a separate fee and is often bypassed by cruise line excursions.  The Terrace Houses are amazing!   The normal way to explore Epheusus is that you will be dropped at the upper entrance, walk a long way through the ruins (much on a downward slope) and exit at the bottom entrance/exit where you are met by your transportation.  When we booked our own tour guide we made it clear there would be no stops at carpet, jewelry or pottery factories.  Allow yourself some shopping time downtown (within easy walking distance of the port) and make sure to visit one of the "Genuine Fake Watch" places :).

 

The Virgin Mary House is likely somewhat of a "con" but it is certainly popular.  The truth about this place is that nobody has a clue as to whether Mary was ever at this place.  She was likely in the area, but accepting that this structure (they only found foundation ruins and built a structure over top) was her home is a real stretch.  But calling it the Virgin Mary House does fit an agenda of the Catholic Church who wants to keep a presence in the area.  What I said is probably very close to the truth although you will hear differing opinions.  

 

If you have a private tour it would be up to the folks on the tour if they want to have lunch.  You could take a shorter tour, have the drop you in town, and buy lunch locally (there are many places) or go back to the ship for lunch.

 

Hank

[dhamilt0512]

The private or shared tour is the way to go in Ephesus. It was 1/2 the cost of the ship excursion.  We booked with Ephesus shuttle for a shared tour max of 8 people.  It ended up being just my husband and me.  It was one of the best tour experiences we have ever enjoyed.  Our tour guide was waiting just as we exited the port with a sign.  We had a private van with a driver.  Our guide Emre's historical and biblical knowledge of Ephesus was amazing.  Do not miss the Terrace houses they are a must-see.  Our tour included other stops and local lunch as well.  

[Peadar2000]

2 hours ago, dhamilt0512 said:

The private or shared tour is the way to go in Ephesus. It was 1/2 the cost of the ship excursion.  We booked with Ephesus shuttle for a shared tour max of 8 people.  It ended up being just my husband and me.  It was one of the best tour experiences we have ever enjoyed.  Our tour guide was waiting just as we exited the port with a sign.  We had a private van with a driver.  Our guide Emre's historical and biblical knowledge of Ephesus was amazing.  Do not miss the Terrace houses they are a must-see.  Our tour included other stops and local lunch as well.  

Thank you for your post. A private tour is indeed what we ended up booking. It ticks all my boxes, and includes the Terraced Houses which I hadn’t considered before! Plus it’s significantly cheaper than the Celebrity excursions.

[Worldsurfer]

On 3/7/2023 at 12:06 PM, Hlitner said:

One can easily spend 2 hours (or more) just walking through the ruins at Ephesus and one should make sure that the tour includes a visit to the Terrace Houses (this is within the Ephesus grounds but has a separate fee and is often bypassed by cruise line excursions.

Hank, thank you most sincerely for this tidbit. This is exactly the kind of information that makes this board so informative. Hope I can return the favor at some point. Private tour booked, terrace houses on the itinerary. Cheers! 

[Artemis63]

Our ship arrives in Bodrum. How long is the drive to Ephesus? We want to do a private tour but are worried about getting back in time.

[Hlitner]

I thing you are looking at least 2 hours (if using the toll road). Otherwise a good 2 1/2. (Each way)  

 

Hank

 

[Torfamm]

We really enjoyed the tour we did of Ephesus and the Terrace Houses with Curio Travel. We were a group of 4 and everything about the tour was exactly as promised and our guide was terrific. It was much less costly than a ship excursion I would definitely recommend them.

 

We were given the choice to visit or NOT visit carpet, leather, or pottery shops. We were direct with the guide about the fact that we had absolutely no intention of making any purchases.
 

https://www.curiotravel.com/tours/mini-group-tour-1-option-with-terrace-houses-ephesus-artemis-temple?tur_id=23

[KeithKayla]

On 3/22/2023 at 8:04 AM, dhamilt0512 said:

The private or shared tour is the way to go in Ephesus. It was 1/2 the cost of the ship excursion.  We booked with Ephesus shuttle for a shared tour max of 8 people.  It ended up being just my husband and me.  It was one of the best tour experiences we have ever enjoyed.  Our tour guide was waiting just as we exited the port with a sign.  We had a private van with a driver.  Our guide Emre's historical and biblical knowledge of Ephesus was amazing.  Do not miss the Terrace houses they are a must-see.  Our tour included other stops and local lunch as well.  

Which tour did you do thru Ephesus Shuttle?  They all sound amazing!

 

[dhamilt0512]

We did the mini group tour 1 with  max of 8 people.  We just visited again in May and used them once again with our family.  It was again one of the highlights of our cruise.  Our party of 4 were the only one on the tour.  After Ephesus, the Terrace houses, and Artemis temple they offered us several choices of artisanal visits.  We chose to learn about the local pottery.  Our guide then gave us great tips for where to find local lunch, where to enjoy local treat Knafee, and how to visit the castle. 

[Milhouse]

We just visited Ephesus yesterday via Kusadasi using Ephesus Shuttle.  It's actually our third time using them over the years and we've had a good to excellent experience each time.  This time we did Ephesus again (of course) but decided to tack on the Virgin Mary House for the first time to change it up even though we think it might be a tourist trap. It was a few dollars more and we just wanted to go for a bit of a drive to see the views as the location is on a hill.  For us, I wouldn't consider it a must see but I'm happy we went as it met our expectations.  YMMV of course.  They also include a stop at the Artemis temple ruins which mainly consists of a single column now so it's kind of a short stop.

 

The guides we've had have always been very friendly and this time was no exception.  However, he was a bit more chatty on the ride with explanations than we would have liked.  It's kind of roulette on which guide you get.

As mentioned by others, their group sizes are small.  We only had three couples on this tour but previous tours were also small.  They seem to be flexible with some free time.  We were asked if we wanted to go to a shopping area or see some kind of leather demonstration. Group said no, so we didn't go which was nice to have the option versus being forced.

[bwaz]

On 5/7/2023 at 8:15 PM, Artemis63 said:

Our ship arrives in Bodrum. How long is the drive to Ephesus? We want to do a private tour but are worried about getting back in time.

We are also docking in Bodrum and want to go to Ephesus, but it looks tight. I was hoping that NCL offered a bus tour,but they do not. Di you go to Ephesus from Bodrum?  Thanks for any info.