Shalini Ramesh's Family Turkey Trip with Thrillophilia

Thrillophilia Verified Booking
PNR: BKDXXVDRNPA
Rating: ★★★★★
Travellers: Shalini Ramesh & Family
Trip Duration: 8 Days | 7 Nights
Date of Travel: 17 Sep 2022 to 24 Sep 2022
Package Booked: Turkey Trip 7N 8D

Shalini Ramesh and her family of four flew to Turkey in September 2022 for an eight-day private tour covering Cappadocia and Istanbul. Four nights in Cappadocia, three nights in Istanbul, and an itinerary that moved between cave hotels, underground cities, hot air balloons at dawn, and a private yacht on the Bosphorus. "The arrangements were excellent and the tour was completed without any major glitch," Kaja Ramesh said in the review. "We had a memorable trip."

For a family traveling with senior citizens and kids, a private tour with dedicated transport and English-speaking guides throughout is the right call, and Thrillophilia put together exactly that.

Starting in Cappadocia

They flew into Kayseri Airport and transferred to their hotel in Cappadocia, checking into Maks Cave Hotel for the first four nights. Starting the Turkey trip in Cappadocia rather than Istanbul is an interesting choice and a good one, because the landscape is so unlike anything most Indian families have seen that it sets the tone for a genuinely different kind of holiday right from the beginning.

Day two was the full day Cappadocia North Tour, covering Devrent Valley with its naturally shaped rock formations, Pasabag Monk's Valley with the fairy chimneys rising from the valley floor, a handmade pottery workshop at Avanos Village, and the Goreme Open Air Museum, a UNESCO World Heritage Site with Byzantine-era rock-cut churches still containing their original frescoes. Local lunch was included, and the whole day was on a private basis with an English-speaking guide throughout.

Day three was the hot air balloon tour, which for a family traveling to Cappadocia is rarely optional once you see what the landscape looks like from above at sunrise. The shuttle transfer for the early morning departure was included, and the ride above the fairy chimneys and valleys with the light coming up over the volcanic plateau is one of those experiences that photographs suggest and reality exceeds. The afternoon was the Sunset ATV Riding Tour at Love Valley, a completely different kind of Cappadocia experience that covered the terrain at ground level and from a rather different angle than the balloon.

Day four was the full day Cappadocia South Tour, covering Rose Valley, Cavusin Village, Kaymakli Underground City, and Pigeon Valley. Kaymakli is the one that tends to generate the most conversation, an underground city carved eight levels deep into the volcanic rock, used by early Christians as a hiding place and large enough to have housed thousands of people with stables, wineries, storage rooms, and churches all underground. It is a genuinely extraordinary thing to walk through.

Three Days in Istanbul

The flight from Kayseri to Istanbul on day five brought them into the city in the afternoon, and the first Istanbul afternoon went straight into sightseeing. Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Sultanahmet Square, and the Basilica Cistern in the afternoon, and then a sunset Bosphorus Evening Cruise on a private yacht from 6pm to 7pm. The private yacht made the cruise considerably more special for a family group, the Bosphorus visible from both shores with the city's minarets and bridges reflected in the water as the sun went down.

Day six was the bazaar day, covering the Grand Bazaar, Spice Bazaar, Galata Bridge, Galata Tower, and Istiklal Street through to Taksim. The Grand Bazaar alone has over four thousand shops across sixty covered streets and has been in continuous operation since 1461, which puts most shopping experiences into perspective. Lunch at Eminonu between the bazaars was the right mid-day break for a family covering this much ground.

Day seven was Dolmabahce Palace, a dinner at Camilla Hill, and Maiden's Tower. Dolmabahce replaced Topkapi as the Ottoman imperial residence in the 19th century and is considerably more opulent, a European Baroque palace sitting directly on the Bosphorus with 285 rooms and the largest chandelier in the world inside the ceremonial hall. Maiden's Tower, the small tower sitting on a tiny island at the mouth of the Bosphorus, was close to the Istanbul days before the airport transfer on day eight.

Why Thrillophilia

Kaja Ramesh was specific about what made the trip work. "The response of the Thrillophilia, especially Mr. Kunal and Mr. Jatin, were very helpful in finalizing the trip itinerary. They took care of all the details which was instructed to them."

For a family traveling with senior citizens and kids, the details matter more than they do for a couple in their thirties with flexible plans. Room configurations, transport comfort, activity pacing, the timing of early morning departures like the balloon tour, all of these require someone on the planning side who actually listens and follows through. Kunal and Jatin clearly did both.

The visa assistance also came in for specific mention. "The visa team was also helpful in securing our visa and answered all our queries." Turkey visa assistance handled end to end removed one of the more stressful parts of international trip planning for a family group.

The transport arrangements were another strong point, a 27-seater minibus for airport transfers and a 14-seater Mercedes Sprinter for sightseeing, private throughout. For a family that includes senior citizens, not having to manage shared transport or wait for group buses across eight days in an unfamiliar country is a significant comfort.

"We would love to travel again with Thrillophilia. Thank you so much for all the support and to make our holiday a special one," Kaja said.

Also Read: Vivek and His Wife’s Memorable Trip to Turkey with Thrillophilia