DAY 1

Collection from your hotel or home in Side from 08:30 am.  Our first stop will be at the Kurşunlu waterfall national park.  An unique natural oasis, where a cascade connecting seven clear water ponds falls over an 18-metre height waterfall against a backdrop of pure nature.  Kurşunlu waterfall is stunning with several small waterfalls hidden in the haven.  We take a short scenic walk along the nature path with a pit stop for a tea/coffee in the beautiful national park surroundings.

Continuing on the Isparta road we head towards Sagalassos. On the way making time for a small photo break by the beautiful dam lake Karacaören.  

Next stop, Sagalassos.  This has to be one of our favourite ancient cities in Turkey and you will soon discover why.  Hidden high up in the mountains 7 km from the small town of Ağlasun, Sgalassos is on the UNESCO tentative heritage list.

"Except perhaps for Pompeii and the other sites in Bay of Naples destroyed by the Vesuvius eruption, there are no other similarly well preserved middle sized ancient cities. The difference with Pompeii and other sites, however, is the fact that Sagalassos does not present a city frozen at a specific moment in its occupation history, but that it offers all remains for at least thousand years of occupation.

There were only five major production centres of Eastern Sigillata in the Mediterranean, only two of which have been localised: Sagalassos and Pergamon. However, the workshop area in Pergamon, Kestel Valley has been completely flooded as the result of the construction of a dam. Therefore, Sagalassos, for the moment, is the only pottery production centre, active throughout at least a thousand years, which still can be researched in a completely preserved and pristine state.

All of these make Sagalassos a unique place in terms of the quality and quantity of buildings, artefacts and all other material remains. In addition, the site has also become a real training ground for dozens of Turkish and foreign scholars in various disciplines, and the site is now considered to be a model project for classical archaeology of the 21st century."
(https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5409/)

Sagalassos is a large ancient city where we allow at least two hours of exploration time before driving down to the small town of Ağlasun for lunch in a quaint local restaurant.  Continuing on our route after lunch we travel to Egirdir town and lake Egirdir which is our last stop for the day.  
Lake Egirdir is part of  the lakes region and is position number 4 of the largest lakes in Turkey and is the second largest freshwater body.  The town is situated on the shore of the calm lake with the mountains on the outer ring around the town.  Arriving at our hotel there is time for a freshen up and early evening walk enjoying the small narrow streets of Eğirdir, the beautiful lake and mountain views before dinner is served from a traditional Turkish menu in our hotel.

DAY 2

Rise and shine to the morning views of the Eğirdir lake on one side and the rugged mountains on the other, enjoying a traditional lazy breakfast before we continue our drive along the Eğirdir lake through the beautiful apple gardens and national park forestry.  As this area is known as the ‘Turkish lake district’ the route we have chosen takes you around the lakes to enjoy the splendour of the surrounding natural beauty.  

The next lake is the Beyşehir lake and the beautiful town of Beyşehir (meaning the city of the lords).  Beyşehir was an important city in the Seljuk period and we will visit some of the buildings from this period.The most famous building is the Eşrefoğlu Camii ( 1296-1299) which is the finest example of the Seljuk Turkish flat-wooden-ceiling and wooden column-style mosque construction in Anatolia. There is also a Medrese (religious school) , an old columnated bridge and a historical Turkish bath. This Turkish bath is 700 years old and still in use today.  It is here we make a break for a traditional hammam in this vintage baths relaxing in the steamy temperatures whilst having a classic full body scrub and aroma massage.  You will never have felt so clean!

Refreshed and revived it’s time for lunch in a local restaurant before we continue our panoramic drive through the winding roads of the stunning Taurus Mountains.  Passing through the Akseki region we make a short break to visit a mountain village where the traditional architecture of the region has been well preserved.  Last pit stop for a tea/coffee then on route to Side arriving in the evening to finish off your Lake District road trip.

PRICE: From 150 euro per person

PRICE INCLUDES: Hotel with breakfast, transportation, entrances, guiding and Turkish bath.

MINIMUM NUMBER OF PEOPLE: 4 (can be arranged privately for less than 4 people - ask for price)

MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PEOPLE: 12

NOT INCLUDED: Lunch / Dinner / Drinks

SINGLE ROOM SUPPLEMENT: 30 euro