The Taurus Express
An overnight rail journey from Turkey to Syria with a full excursion programme
Day 1 Fly from London Heathrow to Istanbul. Transfer to Hotel Ramada Old-City for three nights.
Day 2 Full-day sightseeing includes the Sultan Suleyman mosque, the spice market, Eyup mosque and the church of St. Saviour. Continue on a cruise along the Bosphorus from Tarabya to the Galata Bridge. Lunch is included as well as dinner in an atmospheric former Roman cistern.
Day 3 Full-day sightseeing includes the Basilica of St. Sofia, the Roman hippodrome, Blue mosque and the grand bazaar. Continue to the Topkapi Palace, including the harem and imperial treasury. Lunch included.
Days 4 & 5 Transfer to the station to board the Taurus Express to Aleppo, departing at 08.55 am. The journey across Turkey takes 36 hours and calls at, amongst other places, Eskisehir, Afyon, Konya and Adana before arriving at Aleppo on Monday afternoon on
Day 5 Transfer to the Hotel Beit Salahieh or the Beit Marrash (Jdaideh Hotel in 2008) for three nights.
Day 6 Full-day tour includes the church of St. Simeon, erected in the 5th century. Continue to Serjilla, a beautifully preserved Roman provincial town.
Day 7 Tour of Aleppo visits the national museum, citadel and souks. Late afternoon visit to the old city quarter of Jdeideh.
Day 8 Visit Apamea and the Byzantine waterwheels of Hama en route to the Crusader castle at Crac des Chevaliers. Overnight at the Wadi or the Al Khier Hotel.
Day 9 Depart into the desert to Palmyra, a Roman city which became wealthy as an oasis at the western end of the Silk route. Continue to Damascus for a three-night stay at the Dar Al Yasmeen or the Shahbandar Palace.
Day 10 Damascus city tour visits the national museum, the street called straight, the chapel house of Ananias and St.Paul’s Gate. Afternoon visit to the Umayyad mosque, Salah Al din’s tomb and the Hamidiyeh souk.
Day 11 Morning departure for ancient Bosra with its Nabatean and Roman remains and some of the oldest and most important Christian and Muslim monuments in Syria. Continue to Ezra and the extraordinary Byzantine church of St. George. Return to Damascus.
Day 12 Transfer to the airport for the return flight to Heathrow.
