Ephesus Travel Guide

  Ancient Walls on Golden Hills at Ephesus
by cnango
 
  • Ancient Walls on Golden Hills at Ephesus
      Ancient Walls on Golden Hills at Ephesus
    by cnango
  • Great Theater
      Great Theater
    by reading11
  •   Ephesus
    by mavl
  • The setting
      The setting
    by wise23girl
  • me and him
      me and him
    by wise23girl
 

Pro

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  History, architecture, landscape all coming together 


Con

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  Sometimes very hot and always very crowded 


In a nutshell

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  Ephesus is one of the best ancient ruins. 

 

Explore Ephesus

Things to Do  

Virgin Mary House

Virgin Mary House, Ephesus

 23 Reviews  The house of Virgin Mary is considered to be the last home of Mother Mary. The Christians visit here for pilgrimage and it has been also visited by the last 3 popes. Outside the house, you can find 3 fountains which are believed to provide health, love and wealth. You can also see the wall of... 

Celsus Library

Celsus Library, Ephesus

 57 Reviews  It's a long way down the main roads, lined with the ruins of several buildings that your guide will describe in detail. Finnaly it all ends facing the library, whose facade is the best preserved of all, and the most harmonious. An excellent detail in the historical visit, that withdraws importance... 

Grand Theatre

Grand Theatre, Ephesus

 43 Reviews  The biggest construction remaining in Ephesus, and the most impressive after the Library is the great theatre. Built under Greek influence, it was enlarged and transformed by the Romans, an, despite the effects of time and earthquakes, it still impresses by its size and wise conception, integrated... 

Toilet

Toilet, Ephesus

 19 Reviews  You don't need to use your imagination too much here! The latrines were part of the Scholastica Baths and built in the 1st century AD. They were the public toilets of the city where citizens were charged an entrance fee to use them. In the centre, there is an uncovered pool and the toilets are... 

Hadrian Temple

Hadrian Temple, Ephesus

 24 Reviews  This is one of the best preserved and most beautiful structures on Curetes Street. It was built before 138 AD by P. Quintilius and was dedicated to Emperor Hadrian, who came to visit the city from Athens in 128 AD. The facade of the temple has four Corinthian columns supporting a curved arch, in the... 

Artemis Temple

Artemis Temple, Ephesus

 13 Reviews  The Temple of Artemis lies just off the road that leads to Ephesus, to the west of Selcuk but all that remains of the once described Seventh Wonder of the World is a single column capped with a stork's nest. It was originally built around 550 BC and was said to be the largest temple in the world,... 

Agora

Agora, Ephesus

 19 Reviews  The ancient city of Pergamon consists of three main parts: the Acropolis, the Red Courtyard and the Asklepion. The temple of Athena (530 B.C.) situated on top of the city is surrounded by olive groves and encompassed by crumbling city walls and an ancient necropolis (cemetery). The temple entails... 

Curettes Road

Curettes Road, Ephesus

 31 Reviews  Each set of stones has a name. Of course, I do believe the honesty of the studies, and the accuracy of the identification, but, here and there is hard to guess the original building, and how they identified it. Domician Temple, they say! OK. Domician Temple, I say. But don't ask me more details.... 

Odeon (small theatre)

Odeon (small theatre), Ephesus

 17 Reviews  This building has the shape of a small theatre with a stage building, seating places and the orchestra. It had two functional uses. First it was used as a Bouleuterion for the meetings of the Boulea or the Senate. The second function was the Odeum - a concert hall for performances. It was... 

History

History, Ephesus

 5 Reviews  In Kusadasi.biz I read: "In the Augustan era, the spread of Imperial-Roman cults was by then a fact in many provinces of Asia Minor. The cult of the Emperor was alive in Nicomedia and in Pergamum, together with that of the Goddess Rome. The idea for the building of a temple which could celebrate... 

Arcadiana

Arcadiana, Ephesus

 10 Reviews  This street runs down from the Great Theatre to the harbour which silted up during Byzantine times where the people of Ephesus were forced to move to a new settlement further inland which is now modern day Selcuk. 

Hotels  

Aqua Fantasy Hotel & Aquapark

 0 Opinions

Restaurants  

Saray restaurant: Nice and tasty!

Saray restaurant: Nice and tasty!, Ephesus

 linjohn Says:  The restaurant is located in the centre of Kusadasi, not so far away from the port we docked in. You may have a breakfast or a dinner there, they have practically everything you can imagine: italian, indonesian, mexican cuisines etc, The service was great, the garsins very... 

Transportation  

No shopping tour to Ephesus, Virgin, Mary's house

No shopping tour to Ephesus, Virgin, Mary's house, Ephesus

 northcoombes Says:  I recently organised a tour for myself, my husband and his brother and sister-in-law who came over from Melbourne, Australia to see us in the UK. As they had never been to Greece we booked a holiday taking in Athens and some the Greek Islands. As I had been to both Greece... 

Local Customs  

Mosque in Turkey

Mosque in Turkey, Ephesus

 windoweb Says:  A mosque is symbolically very important to Muslims, and is a humble way for man to recreate pure divine presence on earth.The implementation of minarets, were both for embellishment of the mosques, and for the functionality of the mosques, as calling for prayer, ezan, from... 

Warnings Or Dangers  

Do not linger on the road by the Turkish army base

Do not linger on the road by the Turkish army base, Ephesus

 windoweb Says:  The road to the Asclepion passes through a large Turkish army base. Do not linger on the road, or take photos, and be off the road by dusk. The Asclepion (Asklepieion) of Pergamum was perhaps the world's most famous ancient medical center 

Tourist Traps  

Street Vendors

Street Vendors, Ephesus

 obcbreeze Says:  OK, so it's not really a trap, but the street vendors when you come out of the Roman ruins at Ephesus are everywhere, selling everything. Try and remember that they are making a living, so a smile and no thank you and move along. 

Favorites  

Celsus Library

Celsus Library, Ephesus

 6 Reviews  The Celsus Library, whose facade has been carefully reconstructed from all original pieces, was built ca. 125 B.C.E. by Gaius Julius Aquila in memory of his father C.Celsus - the General Governor of the Province of Asia, in the year 135 A.D. and once held nearly 12,000 scrolls. Designed with an... 

History

History, Ephesus

 6 Reviews   The ancient city occupies the territory of several square kilometers. You can see the map of the Ancient city and the typical way of excursion (green color) on the picture. This place became known since the 19th century. The history of excavation began in 1859-74 on the Odeon and the theatre. It... 

Grand Theatre

Grand Theatre, Ephesus

 8 Reviews  The most magnificent structure in Ephesus ancient city, the great Theatre is located on the slope of Panayir Hill, opposite the Harbor Street, and easily seen when entering from the south entrance to Ephesus. It was first constructed in the Hellenistic Period, in the third century BC during the... 

Curettes Road

Curettes Road, Ephesus

 6 Reviews  It is the small portion of the sacred way, running between the Celsus Library and the Hercules Gate. It took its name from the class of priests referred to as "curettes" in long lists found at the clerical school of priests. Colonnaded galleries with mosaics on the floor were located on both sides... 

The Place

Plan a Ephesus vacation with reviews, tips and photos posted by real travelers and Ephesus locals

Experience Ephesus
  •   637 Tips and Reviews
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The People

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Our Members Say
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 September 17, 2009 we were in Ephesus.Though I have seen Ephesus already in 2007, I was obliged to see it again because of some friends who wants to see... 

3 members live in Ephesus

 

Questions and Answers

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Q:  How far from Cruise Port and time wise to bus station to get bus to Epheus. Lots of people said not safe on buses so would we... 

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A: Selchuk is only about 20km away from the cruise port in Kusadasi. Mini buses leave when full all the time, especially in the mornings. Ephesus is easily walkable for the... 

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Top Ephesus Writers

1

THE WONDER OF EPHESUS

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 After years of traveling to parts of Turkey, i finally got the chance to visit Ephesus, and i must say it was worth the wait. Ephesus is not what i really expected at all, i thought it would be like... 

2

Ephesus - Ancient city

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  The ruins of Ephesus are a favorite international and local tourist attraction. In fact Ephesus contains the largest collection of Roman ruins East of the Mediterranean. Only an estimated 15% has... 

3

The Inspiring Roman Ruins of Ephesus

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 The historic site is on a sloping hillside with one entrance right on the main highway at the bottom of the hill. Better to enter the site from the Magnesia Gate at the top of the hill on the road to... 

4

Ephesus the open air Museum

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 Today Ephesus is probably the best-preserved ancient city and outdoor museum in the world. It is located on the south of Izmir’s Selcuk country. It was a gateway for the west to get acquainted to the... 

5

Ephesus (Efes) and Nearby Selcuk

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 Ephesus is generally considered to be the best preserved Roman ruins in the Eastern Mediterranean. This makes the site one of the most important attractions in Turkey and for certain, one of the most... 

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