SALZBURG & TURKEY 15 DAY ITINERARY:
Day 1 Our trip meets at 3:00 p.m. sharp at 5-star
Hotel Schloss Fuschl, former hunting castle of the
Archbishops of Salzburg and our home for four nights. We'll
depart immediately for our first late afternoon balloon
adventure through Austria's lovely Lakes District with the
stunning Alps as a backdrop. Festive evening dinner party at our
historic hotel.
Day 2 After breakfast explore the romantic “old city” of
Salzurg, birthplace of Mozart and filled with Baroque and
Gothic architectural treasures. A highlight will be the colorful
and lively Getreidegasse, Austria’s most beautiful shopping
area. A quaint old lane of high, narrow houses with medieval
wrought iron guild signs, it is full of fashionable shops and
romantic passageways. Our wonderful city guide, Heidi, with her
interesting stories, makes this morning’s walking tour a real
pleasure. Our elaborate lunch will be on the terrace of 5 star
Sacher Hotel, followed by our late afternoon balloon adventure
through the Austrian countryside. Dinner in the country at our
lovely hotel.
Day 3 Morning drive to colorful St. Gilgen, gaily painted
in the many soft pastel colors of the Austrian style. Board a
lake steamer and sail to the picturesque old market town of St.
Wolfgang, with its decorated 15th century houses and world
famous Baroque style church filled with magnificent furnishings.
For luncheon we’ll be the guests of one of Salzburg’s most
celebrated personalities and our very good friend, Princess
Manni Wittgenstein, in her lovely Alpine home. She is a
brilliant hostess, sharing with us wonderful tales of her
fascinating life. She also frequently flies with our guests in
our balloons, and thoroughly enjoys helping us make their
Austrian visit a memorable one. Late afternoon balloon adventure
through the beautiful Austrian landscape, landing at twilight
and returning to Schloss Fuschl for dinner.
Day 4 Today we’ll explore the ancient village of Hallstaat,
easily the most striking lakeside village in the region.
This tiny, picturesque hamlet clings to a ledge at the foot of a
steep cliff, surrounded by the towering Dachstein mountains.
Best enjoyed from the water, we will use a small fleet of
electric boats to slowly cruise along the shoreline, with its
ancient boathouses and quaint wooden homes. A major Celtic
archaeological landmark and UNESCO protected site, the treasures
unearthed here are so extensive that one era in Celtic studies
(800 - 400 BC) is called “the Hallstatt period.” A pre-luncheon
rafting party with champagne will be held on the lake before
dining in a charming restaurant. Late afternoon balloon
adventure through the summer meadowlands of the Alpine
foothills, with farewell dinner party at Schloss Fuschl.
Day 5 Mid morning departure with Buddy Bombard for commercial
air flight to Istanbul, arriving in the afternoon. Check in
to Ciragan Palace Hotel where our Turkey trip begins tomorrow.
INTRODUCTION: Cappadocia, in central Turkey, is a
dramatic landscape of surrealistic beauty. Over 60 million years
of erosion has transformed its compacted volcanic ash into
several thousand bizarre rock cones and hundreds of wonderfully,
weirdly textured canyons.
From the 4 th to the 13 th centuries, Christians finding
religious freedom here carved dwellings, monasteries, and
churches from the soft rock canyon walls. About 150 of the
approximately 900 churches that remain are richly decorated with
precious frescoes. Starting in the 7th century, subterranean
cities were cut straight down into the rock to escape the Arab
invasions of the 7th and 8th centuries. Some went down 7 stories
and became home to as many as 5,000 people and their animals. By
the 10th century some 30,000 people were living here in the
rock!
These cave dwellers are now gone, and centuries of erosion has
now exposed many of the intricate apartments they created. Our
unique ability to fly slowly in our balloons, just a few feet
from these ruins and geological formations, is due to the gentle
winds that are normal for this area. This allows us to treat you
to a remarkable, close-up view of this strange and eerie
wonderland. NOTE: Each lunch in Cappadocia will be served in a
different and truly spectacular setting, among strange and
wonderfully exotic rock formations and ruined cave dwellings of
the early Christians. Our delicious mid-day meals are totally
private, catered affairs served in our very unique “movable
cafe” of tables, chairs, giant umbrellas, Turkish carpets and
charcoal grills. Each setting was selected by Buddy Bombard many
years ago, after much exploration by jeep and on foot.
Day 6 Istanbul Our personal Turkish guide will escort you on
a sightseeing adventure today with lunch, and return you to
our hotel in time to meet our fellow Turkey travelers for 7:00
p.m. welcome dinner. Sahli, our wonderful Trip Director who will
be with us throughout our stay in Turkey, will also be in
attendance.
Day 7 Istanbul After breakfast we’ll visit Dolmabahce Palace,
the last residence of the Ottoman Sultans, stretching for
600 yards along the the Bosphorus. With 362 rooms and 22 salons,
it is noted for its extensive interior decoration in gold, large
collection of European antiques, priceless paintings, four and a
half ton crystal chandelier and major harem. Then we’ll board
our privately chartered 90 foot yacht, the Sureyya, for a lavish
luncheon cruise on the Bosphorous, sailing close to the European
and the Asian shores. You will see rows of historical Yalis, the
beautiful wooden waterside residences of the 19th century, as
well as expensive modern villas, small fishing villages, ancient
marble palaces, graceful 15th century Rumelihisar fortress, the
two giant bridges connecting Europe to Asia and charming coves
filled with fancy yachts. After our cruise, we’ll visit the most
beautiful of all the imperial mosques in Istanbul, the 16th
century mosque of Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent, and St.
Sophia’s Basilica, built in the 6th century Dinner at the
Kervansaray Nightclub with a colorful traditional Turkish floor
show including dancing girls.
Day 8 Istanbul Morning visit to the Golden Horn, the
harbor around which Istanbul was built with streets of colorful
old wooden houses and churches from Byzantine times. We’ll visit
the Spice Bazaar, the 5th century Roman aqueduct, the site of
the famous Hippodrome where gladiators fought and chariots
raced, and the Blue Mosque of Sultan Ahmet, built in 1616 and
renowned for its 22,000 blue Iznik tiles. Lunch will be at the
Rami restaurant, followed by a tour of Topkapi Palace, the
Imperial residence of the Ottoman Sultans from the 15th to the
19th centuries. With over 6 million square feet and it’s palace
population of over 10,000, it was truly a small city. It is the
oldest and largest of the remaining palaces in the world with
lavish gold, silver and jewel collections, a jeweled throne room
and the remains of a 400-room harem pavilion. We’ll visit the
Basilica cistern built in 532 with 236 Corinthian columns
standing in 3 feet of water. It is a remarkably large
underground reservoir. Our last stop will be the Grand Bazaar,
with 65 streets, 18 gates and 4000 shops all under one roof.
Dinner at the Korfez Restaurant on the Asian shore of the
Bosphorous, arriving by private motor launch.
Day 9 Istanbul to Cappadocia Fly to Ankara by plane and visit
the outstanding Museum of Anatolian Civilization to better
understand the strangely beautiful region we are about to
explore. Proceed to Cappadocia by private coach and check into 4
star Dedeman Hotel for 6 nights. Dinner will be in the hotel’s
private, penthouse dining room.
Day 10 After breakfast a mid-morning balloon adventure
through the extraordinary landscape of Cappadocia. Then our
guide will take us to The Open Air Museum in Goreme with its 16
frescoed monastic churches from the 3rd to the 10th centuries,
carved into the rock. Later we'll visit a local carpet maker for
a highly fascinating visit, watching the weaving of hand made
rugs from cotton, wool and silk. Lunch will be in the remarkable
rock valley of Uchisar, then a guided visit to the 7th century
rock cave dwellings of this intriguing place and its
preposterous towering rock fortress. Dinner will be in a fine
restaurant in Urgup.
Day 11 Mid-morning balloon adventure in Cappadocia. Visit a
ceramic workshop in the caves of Avanos, to see how fine
quality pieces are designed and produced. Lunch will be among
the amazing rock formations of White Valley, called “Fairy
Chimneys”, followed by a guided visit into the ancient
underground city of Kaymakli. Dug during the 7th and 8th
centuries, it is a maze of tunnels and dwelling chambers for
approximately 5,000 people and their animals. It descends 7
stories underground! Our spectacular dinner, arranged just for
us in the Outdoor Musuem, is an elaborate catered affair by
lantern-light. A private performance of Whirling Dervishes is a
moving and mesmerizing experience.
Day 12 Mid-morning balloon adventure in spectacular
Cappadocia, followed by a guided visit to the National Park
of Zelve and the ruined cave dwellings of approximately 8,000
early Christians. Lunch in the visually spectacular setting of
the ancient hand hewn cave church called Gomede. Time for
shopping in the colorful old markets of Urgup. Dinner this
evening will be, with special permission, privately catered and
served to us in the exotic hand-hewn rock chambers of the 10th
century Christian church, Avnali.
Day 13 Mid-morning balloon adventure across Cappadocia
followed by a guided visit to the town of Ortahisar and its
remarkable 10-story tall rock fortress. Lunch will be out
among the most unlikely eroded rock formations of Pasabag
followed by a leisurely stroll through this wonderland of
shapes. You’ll really want your camera for this one. Dinner will
be on the terrace of the Ataman Restaurant, overlooking the
strange and fascinating erosion formations of Goreme.
Day 14 Mid-morning balloon adventure and our last exploration
of this compelling landscape. Our final lunch in Cappadocia
will be in a pretty green glade under the enormous and complex
ruined cliff dwelling village of Cavusin. After lunch we’ll
depart by luxury coach for Ankara where we will check in to the
Ankara Hilton for overnight, and to celebrate our memorable trip
with a farewell dinner and graduation ceremony.
Day 15 Our tour ends after breakfast with a plane flight from
Ankara to Istanbul, coordinated with your ongoing flight out
of Istanbul.
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