Black Sea and Ani Ruins 8 Days7 Nights

7-day tour itinerary covering the Black Sea coast and Eastern Anatolia region starts in Trabzon.  Arrive at Trabzon Airport and transfer to the Hotel.
Dinner and accommodation in Trabzon ( Dinner )

We will start our Trabzon tour after breakfast in the early morning hours.
When the Roman Empire was divided into two at the end of the 4th century, Trabzon remained under the rule of the Eastern Roman Empire, known as the Byzantine Empire.
Today, we will first visit the Hagia Sophia Church in Trabzon, which was built between 1238 and 1265 during the Komnenos Kingdom and is known for its frescoes depicting scenes from the Bible and the Torah. Then, we will visit the Atatürk Mansion.
You can learn about the valuable handmade Kazaziye and Silver Filigree artefacts unique to Trabzon and the shop.
Passing through Coşandere and Maçka, known for their stony roads, we will reach Altındere Valley.

Sumela Monastery, a Greek Orthodox monastery and church complex carved into the rocks on a mountain slope at an altitude of 1150 m above sea level in 360-395 AD. The complex has priest rooms decorated with frescoes, a kitchen, chapels, and aqueducts. Then, we complete our tour by visiting Hamsiköy, famous for its rice pudding.
Dinner and accommodation in Trabzon (Breakfast – Dinner)

After having breakfast, we will leave Trabzon and head to Uzungöl. Sürmene to visit a famous knife workshop. Later, we will proceed towards Uzungöl to witness the breathtaking view of Çaykara and town districts. Enjoy your time at the beautiful Uzungöl Lake district. Our next stop will be Rize, where we will visit a tea factory to learn about tea making and shopping. We will also see the Rize fabric (Feretiko) workshop, which is one of the most important traditional handicrafts in Rize. We will take a break for lunch and some shopping at the center of Rize. In the Çayeli district, we will enjoy the scenic tea gardens while visiting Fırtına Stream, Zilkale, and Senyuva Village (formerly known as Çinçiva Village). Finally, we arrive at the famous Ayder Plateau.
Dinner and accommodation Ayder Plateau or Rize (Breakfast – Dinner)

After having breakfast in our hotel at Rize, we travel from Ayder Plateau to Hopa. Once we took a break for tea, we finished our entrance procedures at the Sarp Border Gate and crossed into the Georgia/Adjara region. One of the twelve apostles of Jesus, St. Mathias’ tomb is located in Gonio-Apsaros Castle, the most prominent place to visit in Batumi, and it dates back to the Roman period. It was last used during the Ottoman period. As we continued on the road, we could see the training grounds of Russian soldiers in Batumi's city center during the Soviet Russia period. We also saw the Coruh River, which forms sharp lines from Bayburt to the borders of Batumi and the old Gonio Bridge over it. The administrative center of Adjara Autonomous Region, one of the two Autonomous regions of Georgia, is located in Batumi. We will visit Europe Square, Clock Tower, Batumi Boulevard by the sea, Poseidon Statue, Medea Statue, Virgin Mary Church, Orthodox Church, Armenian Church, Batumi Piazza, and Batumi Sea Port, and get to know the city with our guide. After that, you can enjoy the cafes, shops, and night and day casinos popular with local and foreign tourists. You will have free time to try local dishes and regional Georgian wines.
Departure to Artvin Dinner and overnight in Artvin  (Breakfast – Dinner)

Note: Do not take more than the medicines you use when entering Georgia. The PCR test, which is not currently in effect due to COVID-19, can be applied at any time, so you need to upload your vaccination cards or documents to your phone or have your document ready if you have one.

We will start the day with a delicious breakfast and some local shopping in Artvin before heading out to Kars Ani Ruins, which are located 250 km away. We will take a lunch break in Ardahan before finally arriving at Ani Ruins via Kars. Ani was once the capital of the Armenian Kingdom for 67 years, experiencing its heyday between 953 and 1020. However, the city was captured by the Byzantines in 1045, effectively ending the Kingdom of Armenia. Later on, in 1064, Seljuk Ruler Alpaslan conquered Eastern Anatolia, taking it from the Byzantines. Today, Ani is on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Ani Ruins are located across a wide area and include notable structures such as the Lion Gate, the Church of the Savior (Saint Prkitch), the Stone Bridge, the Seljuk Palace, the Tigran Hornets St. Krikor Church, and the Inner Castle. Additionally, we will visit other historical monuments such as the Menuçehr Mosque, Ani Cathedral, Hripsimli Virgins Monastery, and Kars Cathedral, which is also known as the Church of the Apostles. After a day of sightseeing, we will return to the center of Kars.
Dinner and Accommodation in Kars   (Breakfast – Dinner)

After breakfast, we'll start our Kars city tour. In Kars, you'll see buildings with Russian architecture that resemble those in Russian cities but with the climate and geography of the region. The Kars Fethiye Mosque, Kümbet Mosque, and Kars Castle are some of the must-visit places in Kars. We recommend you try the local delicacies such as Kars honey, Kars cheddar, Kars gruyere cheese, yellow fish, Hengel, and kit, which you can also buy as gifts. After our visit to Kars, we'll head to Erzurum from Kars, about 210 km away, and it takes 3 hours to reach by car. 
Once we arrive in Erzurum, we'll start with a short city tour and take a lunch break. Some of the main attractions in Erzurum include Nene Hatun Bastion, Double Minaret Madrasa, Ulu Mosque, Three Cupalos (Uc Kumbetler), Yakutiye Madrasa, Erzurum Congress, and National Struggle Museum.
You'll also have some free time to shop at the Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai, also known as TAŞHAN, built by Mimar Sinan in 1561. Workshops and shops selling world-famous Oltu stone similes and accessories here. Also, you should try the Famous Çağ kebab, special to Erzurum.
Dinner and accommodation in Erzurum. ( Breakfast - Dinner

After the Erzurum tour, we are moving to Trabzon with our bus under the leadership of our guide. ( 320 Km / 5 hours ) We see the town of Bayburt, which is famous for its castle and clock tower. We are visiting the city of Gümüşhane, famous for its silver mines since the Roman and Byzantine periods. 
Afterward, we visit Karaca Cave, one of the world's largest caves, with stalactites and stalagmites formed by dripping water for millions of years. Passing through the Zigana tunnel at an altitude of 1795 meters, we visit Hamsiköy and Maçka, famous for their delicious rice pudding. We will take a lunch break by the river at the Coşandere location. Arrival in Trabzon and free time.
Dinner and accommodation in Trabzon. ( Breakfast - Dinner )

After breakfast at our hotel, transfer to Trabzon Airport,  the end of our tour.  Hope to see you on another Turkiye tour.(  Breakfast )

Customized Tours   
We can create a tour program on your request and offer an itinerary that suits your personal, educational, cultural, and budgetary requirements. Don't hesitate to get in touch with us with your requests.