Ephesus and Mary’s House with Entry Tickets Opt. For Cruisers
Recommended by 98% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Kusadasi, Turkey
- 4 to 7 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Group discounts
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
Why travelers loved this
·
Overview
What's Included
- Driver/guide
- Hotel/port pickup- drop-off
- Transport by private vehicle
- Museum Entrance Tickets. (you can include or exclude the ticket according to the option)
- Gratuities
- Museum Entrance Tickets (you can include or exclude the ticket according to the option)
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup point
- Kusadasi Cruise PierIstanbul Denizcilik, Yeni Yolcu Terminali - Ege Port, Camikebir, 09400 Kuşadası/Aydın, Türkiye
Pickup details
⚠️ Entrance Tickets of House of Mary and Ephesus Ruins are included if the included option is chosen. On the day of the tour, if you would like to visit any other place, you are responsible with the entrance ticket of that place. ⚠️ Our licensed tour guide will meet you at the cruise port with a sign of your name is written on at harbour/cruise port in Kusadasi. For the cruıse passengers please just follow the others from your shıp, then you will see our sign your name is written on, after you passing by custom control. ✳️**CRUISE PASSENGERS WHO WILL JOIN FROM THE CRUISE PORT***** • Upon your ship's arrival at the port, WE STRONGLY ENCOURAGE you to meet with our team WITHIN 30 to 45 MINUTES. By doing so, you can bypass the crowds, school busses, and hot weather, ensuring an enhanced and MORE ENJOYABLE TOUR EXPERIENCE OF EPHESUS✳️
Itinerary
1
Kusadasi
2 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
2
Ephesus Ancient City
2 hours • Admission Ticket Not Included
3
The Temple of Artemis
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
The House of the Virgin Mary
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
Kusadasi (Pass By)
Okuz Mehmet Pasa KervansarayI (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- Please wear comfortable shoes and bring a hat and plenty of sunscreen as shade is limited
- The order of the tour itinerary may vary in order to avoid congestion
- This excursion/activity is private. Only your team will take part.
- For cruise guests, we strongly advise meeting at the port after 30 to 45 minutes have passed after your ship docked to avoid afternoon traffic, school buses, and the heat. To have a better tour of Ephesus before the crowds, IT IS BETTER TO MEET EARLY.
- Sirince Village: Free of charge
- Isa Bey Mosque: Free of Charge
- NA
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
Supplied by
Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.9
based on 226 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Money well-spent. 6.5 hour tour and most importantly Kaya our guide made things interesting and educational all day. Definitely knows the subject - a fun history professor, archeologist, indiana jones rolled into one. 😃 Thanks, Kaya!
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you! We’re thrilled your Ephesus & House of Mary tour was such a rewarding experience. It’s wonderful to know Kaya’s engaging style, deep knowledge, and fun personality made the day feel like traveling with a history professor, archaeologist, and adventurer all in one. Your kind words mean a lot—we look forward to welcoming you again with Moira Travel! 😃
This area has more history than most. Lots to see but a little crowded. Our guide and driver were great. Better shopping in Kusadasi than Istanbul
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted your Ephesus & Mary’s House tour was such a memorable experience. It’s wonderful to know our guide and driver made the day enjoyable, even with the crowds. We appreciate your note on shopping and are glad Kusadasi impressed you. Your kind words mean a lot—we look forward to welcoming you again with Moira Travel!
Kaya was very knowledgeable and friendly. He tailored the tour to match our interests. I debated seeing the sites on our own or using a tour guide, and I'm so glad I did!
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted your Ephesus & Mary’s House tour was such a rewarding experience with Kaya’s guidance. It’s wonderful to know his knowledge, friendliness, and tailored approach made the day memorable. Your kind words mean a lot—we look forward to welcoming you again with Moira Travel!
We enjoyed it a lot . Our guide was amazing
It is hot at Ephesus as it’s a lot of walking and it’s all in the open . We carried an umbrella as most did and that was very helpful
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted your Ephesus & Mary’s House tour was so enjoyable with the guide’s amazing support. We appreciate your practical tip about carrying an umbrella in the open areas—it’s very helpful for future guests. Your kind words and recommendation mean a lot—we look forward to welcoming you again with Moira Travel!
This was a special day for us. Our tour with Memo was amazing!!! So much shared knowledge of Turkey, Ephesus and the Blessed Mother. Stopped at a Turkish rug factory, learned about the craftsmanship. Had an amazing lunch. All with our small group of four. A long day but so fabulous. What a beautiful country that we would not have appreciated had we not had Memo as our guide. Thank you, thank you.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you! We’re thrilled Memo’s knowledge and care made your Ephesus and Mary’s House Tour so special. It’s wonderful you enjoyed the rug factory visit, delicious lunch, and small-group experience. Your heartfelt words mean a lot to Moira Travel, and we look forward to welcoming you again!
kaya was excellent! knowlesgablr and affable- passionate about his country’s history—
highly recommend
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted Kaya’s passion and knowledge made your Ephesus and Mary’s House Tour so memorable. It’s wonderful you found him affable and engaging about his country’s history. Your kind words mean a lot to Moira Travel, and we look forward to welcoming you again!
Having Eda Aksoy as our tour guide in Ephesus made the visit absolutely amazing. Her explanations were crystal clear, and she had a wonderful knack for making everyone feel involved and informed.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted Eda Aksoy’s clear explanations and engaging style made your Ephesus and Mary’s House Tour so amazing. It’s wonderful you felt involved and informed throughout. Your kind words mean a lot to Moira Travel, and we look forward to welcoming you again!
Great private tour for our family/friends of 11. Our tour guide was fabulous and a wealth of information about Ephesus! Perfect way to see Mary’s house, ancient Ephesus, Temple of Artemis with a surprise stop at a Turkish rug making education center.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted your private Ephesus and Mary’s House tour was such a perfect way to explore with family and friends. It’s wonderful to hear our guide shared so much knowledge and made the experience memorable, including the Temple of Artemis and the rug‑making stop. Your kind words mean a lot to Moira Travel!
Kaya is an awesome tour guide. He explained a lot of information to us and is very patient with all our questions too. Highly recommend this tour and if possible, request Kaya to be your guide!!!
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted Kaya made your private Ephesus and Mary’s House tour so memorable with his patience and detailed explanations. It’s wonderful you enjoyed the experience, and your recommendation to request Kaya means a lot to Moira Travel. We look forward to welcoming you again!
All well done. Logistics handled well. Memet was a very knowledgeable and cooperative guide. Could not have asked for more
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you! We’re delighted Memet made your Ephesus and House of Virgin Mary tour excellent with his knowledge, cooperation, and smooth handling of logistics. It’s wonderful everything was well organized and enjoyable. Your kind words mean a lot to Moira Travel, and we look forward to welcoming you again!
Feyzullah our guide was so knowledgeable about all the history of Ephesus and the House of Mary . He explained everything in great detail , even pointing out on a large map places of significance. His love of his country and of its history was very apparent. Ask for him if you want a genuine experience rich in history from a guide who truly loves his job.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
thank you very much for your tıme
Yavuz was a phenomenal guide and a really cool guy. The history was interesting. The sights were memorizing. Turkey had a lot more to offer than I realized. I would highly recommended this tour to anyone who wants to learn more about the history and the rug making. I feel like I can buy a Turkish rug with confidence now, as well as having had a great learning experience about ancient history.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you, Erin! We’re delighted Yavuz made your Ephesus & Mary’s House tour such a phenomenal experience with his history knowledge and care. It’s wonderful you enjoyed learning about rug making and felt confident exploring Turkish culture. Your kind words mean a lot to Moira Travel!
Absolutely perfect! Our tour guide was VERY knowledgeable and kept us engaged throughout the day. Would highly recommend this tour as long as mobility is not an issue as Ephesus can be quite a bit of walking.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're delighted that you enjoyed our Ephesus and Mary’s House with Entry Tickets Opt. for Cruisers and that our knowledgeable guide made the history of these remarkable sites come alive. We appreciate your helpful tip about the walking involved in Ephesus and are grateful for your recommendation. We look forward to welcoming you back for another unforgettable journey through Turkey’s rich history and culture!
We had an enjoyable day with friendly very knowledgeable guide best part of are trip was this tour would highly recommend
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're delighted you enjoyed our Ephesus and Mary’s House with Entry Tickets Tour for Cruisers. We truly appreciate your support and look forward to welcoming you back for another unforgettable journey through the history and culture of Ephesus and Turkey!
Our guide, Kaya, for this tour was the best of all our guides during our 8 days in Greece and Turkey. We was professional, friendly and very attentive to our elderly family member traveling with us. We got off our cruise ship quicker than expected, and Kaya capitalized on that by immediately taking us directly to Mary's House. We were among the first people there that day and literally walked right in and were actually able to linger inside for a brief period of time, something we'd heard would NOT be possible because of the huge crowds there. We saw the crowds arriving as we left and went on to our next spot.
The ruins at Ephesus were spectacular and Kaya provided just the right amount of commentary without overloading us with too much info. When we reached sections which were inaccessible for our mobility-challenged family member he was able to find a shady spot for our family member to rest for a few minutes while the rest of us pressed onward.
We ended the visit at the ruins with some Turkish coffee and then proceeded to do just enough souvenir shopping to accomplish our planned goals without feeling too pressured to buy. Kaya really sensed our expectations very well and definitely met them!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review! We're delighted that you enjoyed our Ephesus and Mary’s House with Entry Tickets Tour for Cruisers. It’s our passion to provide memorable shore excursions with expert guides, seamless service, and unforgettable visits to Ephesus and the House of Virgin Mary. We look forward to welcoming you back to Turkey soon!
Fantastic tour guide, driver and itinerary. The tour guide was waiting for us as we got of the ship. Tour guide provided excellent details during the tour
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review! We are delighted that you enjoyed our Ephesus and Mary’s House Tour for Cruisers. Exploring the ancient city of Ephesus and the sacred House of Virgin Mary is a unique experience, and we are happy to hear that our team helped make your visit memorable. We truly appreciate your recommendation and look forward to welcoming you back to Kusadasi for another unforgettable shore excursion.
We have booked 5 tours with Viator. Kaya was the most knowledgeable and best communicator of all! His English is great. He was so kind buying us a Greek coffee and helping me navigate by allowing me to hold his arm. I highly recommend him
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review!We’re delighted that you enjoyed our Ephesus and Mary’s House with Entry Tickets Option for Cruisers tour. Exploring the fascinating ruins of Ancient Ephesus and visiting the peaceful House of Virgin Mary creates a truly unforgettable shore excursion experience. We appreciate your support and look forward to welcoming you back for another memorable journey in Turkey
Group of 6 tourists and our tour guide was Memo. Memo was a great guide with good English and provide good details on the attraction sites. The only thing was that I thought the tour included couple more attractions e.g. Mary's House & Street of Terrace Houses (understood that the admission fees are extra costs). We visited the ancient city and the Temple. Description on the online tour webpage is misleading.
Response from Host, Mar 2026
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re delighted that you enjoyed the Ephesus and Mary’s House Tour with Entry Tickets Option for Cruisers. Exploring the ancient city of Ephesus and visiting the sacred House of the Virgin Mary is truly a memorable experience, especially for cruise travelers visiting Kusadasi Port.
We hope to welcome you again for another unforgettable Ephesus shore excursion!
Memo was great! Very knowledgeable and gave us great info. Walked thru all the places we wanted to see.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you so much for sharing your positive experience with our Ephesus House of Mary with Entry Ticket Option for Cruiser tour! We’re thrilled to hear that you enjoyed exploring the ancient city of Ephesus and visiting the sacred House of Virgin Mary. Our goal is to make every Ephesus shore excursion unforgettable, offering comfort, historical insight, and exceptional service for our cruise guests. We truly appreciate your kind words and hope to welcome you again on your next visit to Kusadasi and Ephesus
Exhausting but interesting to explore esp the house of mama mary which is a fulfilling memory. The food is nice and the driver is so courteous
I was overwhelmed with this tour. Mehmet was an outstanding tour guide. He met us at the port and escorted us to our awaiting driver and van. This private tour was ours to direct. We went to Ephesus first and spent 2 hours. Our guide brought these ruins to life with his stories and the history of these ruins. The countryside was lovely. So different from Istanbul. We went to a family Ceramic shop and watched a clay piece being formed. We had our own fashion show at a leather shop and found good prices for quality pieces. Turkish carpet weaving is being taught at a place where you can learn about how silk is spun and the different wools are used to make designs. This was truly an educational experience. I highly recommend this tour . You will not be disappointed.
Its was good experiance, bit chaotic on the start as our agent was not waiting there for us and the GPS coordinates were not correct. On the end there were other agents which helped us to call our agent and all went good.
This was the best tour I could have ever imagined when I booked it! I had to decide between two tours and I am so glad that I ended up choosing the Private one with guide Kaya and driver Serdal! First the company kept in touch with me regarding meeting location and time. Second they said I could bring my mobility scooter! Kaya was an outstanding guide! He was so professional, knowledgeable and friendly. He had so much information about the area and history was great and the stories he shared kept me fascinating the whole time! The scenery was magnificent from Ephesus to the House of the Virgin Mary. Kaya made it so interesting and fun. Even going to the carpet school where I meet Charlie who gave me a humorous education on Turkish rugs and rug making. There was no real pressure to purchase.
There was never any issues with Kaya and Serdal taking my scooter in and out of the van! I had a wonderful time and learned so much, I probably should have taken notes, but I didn't want to miss anything!!! This is a must do experience and ask for Kaya and driver Serdal!!!!
Response from Host, Mar 2025
Thank you for taking the time to get in touch with us to share your recent experience about
our Agency we are looking forward to welcoming you in your next trip in the very near future.
Best Regards,
Outstanding tour. Out tour guide was extremely informative and made sure my elderly parents were able to see as much as they could considering their disability.
Highly recommend !
Response from Host, Mar 2025
Thank you for taking the time to get in touch with us to share your recent experience about
our Agency we are looking forward to welcoming you in your next trip in the very near future.
Best Regards,
Great knowledge of Ephasus from our guide easy pick up and drop off at cruise port spacious van with air con
Our guide felt with a medical emergency well with our elderly mother
Chose an appropriate route for the heat and walking distance
Our tour guide Ozan is awesome. All of us enjoy this trip very much. He even tell us some skill to bargain. Highly recommend to everyone.
I’ve been on numerous tours throughout Europe but haven’t had a guide as well spoken and knowledgeable as Hediye. Her enthusiasm for her beautiful country was so wonderful and she truly made our private tour so special. We had a large van with a very nice driver who dropped us at several different locations and picked us up as soon as we were ready. We toured the ruins in Ephesus, stopped by several different picturesque spots and truly enjoyed seeing different parts of Turkey. In the short time we had, we learned more from Hediye than we could have possibly learned on our own. She was absolutely super!
Amazing historical must see place.
Disappointed Haluc our guide only took us to Ephesus, House if Mary and Temple if Artemis, missing the Sirince Village, Isa Bey Mosque, Terrace Houses and Basillica St John without any mention or explanation.
We were the only 2 people on the bus, and struggled at times to understand Halucs explanations in English.
However he did know his stuff on the 3 places we managed to get too.
He was obviously tired as he felt asleep on the way back to the port and we had no commentry.
Shame as we had both been really looking forward to this excursion, maybe with a different guide and actually visiting all the places we should have and paid for it would have been better.
Our guide was great. Gave us a fabulous history lesson during the tour. Unfortunately it was CRAZY hot the day (June 4) we were at the ruins and there isn't much shade. I'd skip the House of Mary... overpriced for what it is and they aren't even sure Mary was ever there. Felt like a tourist trap. We luckily got there before the rush so didn't have to wait to see it, but there was a huge line that would take at least an hour after us.
Here’s the good and bad of this tour.
Ephesus:
The Good - Ephesus is amazing. Seeing the ruins of the city of the Ephesians in the Bible really brings it to life. The tour guide was friendly and knowledgeable about the area. The stop at the house where they believe Jesus mother lived after He was crucified was interesting and in a beautiful park-like setting. Seeing the lush green countryside around Ephesus and learning of how much fruit, vegetables, and nuts they produce was interesting also.
The Bad - In Ephesus a local photographer who appeared to be known by the tour guide kept snapping our pictures. When we said no thanks he kept saying, “last one .” When the guide left us to explore an area of Ephesus alone for 15 minutes, that’s when the photographer came over and wanted us to buy the photos he took. His asking price started at $40 ($10 per person). We kept saying no. Who needs his photos when we have our own phones with cameras? Finally when he wouldn’t let up we offered him $10 total, which he accepted. He was going to email them later but we told him he needed to send them to my phone on the spot, which he did.
Rug Factory:
The Good - On the way back to the ship we stopped for lunch. The guide said the lunch was free. We just had to pay for drinks. What’s the catch? The restaurant was attached to a rug school and factory. We asked the guide if we were expected to make a purchase since we had a free lunch (which was excellent by the way). He said no, the school is run by the government. After lunch we went inside and saw how rugs are made by hand and even how silk is harnessed from cocoons. Very interesting!
The Bad - Then we went inside the showroom for the sales pitch where they served tea and coffee. They kept bringing out rugs. They were beautiful but we were not in the market for a rug that costs thousands of dollars, and all of the rugs they showed cost from $3,000 to $20,000.
Leather Factory Store:
The Good - We then stopped at a leather factory where we were given a personal fashion show - 5-6 professional looking models modeling leather jackets and coats, runway, music and all! Then we went into the leather showroom. They have all kinds of beautiful leather coats. They are very unique to Turkey - very thin, soft leather and many are reversible with an eye catching waterproof material inside.
The Bad - They are expensive- most costing well over $1000. On the way back to the ship as we passed by the port shops where the ships were docked, and saw some of the same leather jackets for half the price of the factory showroom. We didn’t stop because our guide was leading us back to the ship. I suspect they had a fraction of what was available in the showroom but it would be worth checking those shops out first so you have a price to compare.
Overall it was a good tour but beware of the local photographer, rug factory, and leather factory that all seem to be overpriced.
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Attractions in Kusadasi, Turkey
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- Dilek National Park (Dilek Milli Parki) Tours & Tickets
- Temple of Hadrian at Ephesus Tours & Tickets
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