Corbieco Travel

We just returned on a 10 day trip to Turkiye.
Corbeico did a fantastic job or planning, booking and the executing the trip. We worked with Buse to plan our entire trip and tailored it to what we wanted to do. She was very patient in terms of answering my questions and making useful suggestions. We made our own hotel bookings because we wanted better quality hotels. Each pickup and drop off was perfectly on time. Their people were always at the airport to pick us up on time. We never had to wait around. Their vans were clean and the drivers were punctual. Our Istanbul guide Ismail showed us around for 3 days. We had a great day of seeing the main Sultanahment area sites- Hagia Sophia, Blue Mosque, Bascilica Cistern, Topkapi palaceband Harem were the highlights. Ismail then took us to Dolmabacche Palace (a bit over the top), the grand Sulemaniye mosque, Egyptian Spice market, Ortakoy and a Bosphorus cruise. In between we went to Cappadocia and the returned for a day to the Asian side of Istanbul. Ismail was again our guide and took us around to Camlica hill, Uskadur, Kuzguncuk and Kadikoy. Ismail always took us to good local restaurants as we wanted to try Istanbul street food rather than eat at fancy restaurants.
We spent 3 days in Cappadocia as well. Our guide Didem was superb. The places that we enjoyed the most were the Goreme open air museum and the Zelve open air museum. The geology and cave houses, some with churches and painted frescoes. The geology in Cappadocia is truly like nothing else we have seen. An ancient volcano deposited ash over a vast area and erosion and weathering over millions of years has created a unique geology of towers, conical shapes etc. The Derinkuyu underground city was one of the highlights. It is hard to imagine how this elaborate underground city could house 30,000 people, their livestock, grain, water and have elaborate ventilation systems. Didem also took us to local restaurants to eat simple, authentic Turkish food as we requested. Some of the stops to see overpriced Pottery and semi precious jewelry was something we could have avoided. The pottery and precious stones were lovely but the prices were absurdly high. The two castles Uchisar and Ortahisar were quite imposing. The clean air, fresh air in Cappadocia was a welcome change from the hustle and bustle of Istanbul. Due to weather conditions our Balloon trip got canceled on the day we booked it as well as on the reserve day. That would have enhanced the experience in Cappadocia

All in all a very successful trip that exceeded our expectations

Activity Reviews

Chic Asian Side Tour with Beylerbeyi Palace

İstanbul

The trip across the Bosphorus on Bridge 1 was a treat. We went to Camlica hill on the Asian side from where we could see the entire city, both the European and Asian side as well as the Bosphorus strait. We then went to the Uskudar and Kuzgunchuk (spelling?) area which were quite chic and had great houses overlooking the Bosphorus. The Beylerbeyi castle though quite modern was superb. The furniture, rooms, Bohemian chandeliers and Turkish rugs were exquisite. We then went to Kadikoy to wander around and eat at a couple of local restaurants- lahmacun (a thin pizza like bread with a meat topping), Adani kebabs and of course Turkish tea and Turkish coffee

Quality of Experience

Food

Super Turkish street food

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ismail was a great guide

Transport

The van was very comfortable and the driver was skilled

South Cappadocia Tour

Cappadocia

Though the balloon ride was cancelled due to bad weather we had a good day. Cappadocia geology is terrific. The Zelve open air museum with the fairy chimneys was very interesting. The cave houses were quite amazing and being able to clamber through them was a treat.

Quality of Experience

The geology and houses carved into the rock was great. The Open air museum was well preserved and presented

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Didem our guide was superb. Very knowledgeable. She took us to good local places to eat great bebans, have the Aryan butter milk and of course Turkish tea and Turkish coffee

Transport

The van and driver were great

Mustafapasa Village Tour

Cappadocia

To be fair this was not the best part of Cappadocia and we could have shortened our trip by a day. But it was nice to be in the open air and see the magical geology of Cappadocia

Quality of Experience

Food

The local food was amazing. We had Gozleme

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Didem was superb and took us to good places to eat local food and have Turkish tea and Coffee

Transport

Comfortable van and good driver

North Cappadocia Tour

Cappadocia

The Goreme Open air museum is superb. A World Heritage Site! The geology, cave houses and churches were great considering their age!

Quality of Experience

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Didem was a superb guide. Very knowledgeable about the area. She also knew the best places to eat

Transport

Very comfortable van and a great driver

Old City Tour with Hagia Sophia and Topkapı Palace

İstanbul

The best day of the trip. The Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia and Topkapi palace are the best sights in Istanbul. The architecture and history is fabulous

Quality of Experience

Food

The street food and local food was amazing. We did not go to any fancy restaurants

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ismail was a great guide. Very knowledgeable

Two Continents tour with Dolmabahce Palace

İstanbul

Guides, Drivers and Staff

Ismail was a wonderful guide. Very patient. Took us to good local restaurants. Hiss knowledge of history was very good and accurate (I had read up quite a bit on the Byzantine and Ottoman empires before the trip)