Meet your professionally trained guide and drive to Ephesus, approximately 30 minutes from Kusadasi. Famous in antiquity for its Temple of Artemus during the years of the Roman Empire, the Greek port of Ephesus became the greatest city in Asia Minor. You will start your 90 minute Ephesus tour at the upper Magnesia Gate, and work your way down through the city, ending near the ancient Harbor.

Along the way, you will see the Forum, the Odeon, the Library of Celsus, Temple of Artemis, the Thermal Baths of Scolastika, and the Great Theater, built in the Greek era and reconstructed in the Roman period. With your skip-the-line access, you can fully enjoy these sites, which have played host to events as varied as Paul and his sermons to the Ephesians, to concerts by Sting, in part due to their remarkable acoustics.

You will walk along the Arcadian Way, where once Mark Antony and Cleopatra rode in procession. You will hear stories of Alexander the Great, the Virgin Mary, and many other famous visitors who walked the same marble streets that you are walking. As you depart the Ephesus site, you will be able to view the hilltop ruins of the Basilica of St. John in the distance, which was erected over his grave in the 6th century A.D. by Emperor Justinian.

Returning to the town of Kusadasi, guests will have the option to end their Ephesus tour in the shopping area, where they can attend a Turkish carpet explanation and explore the shops filled with jewelry, carpets, leatherware, and copper goods, or both. Turkish salespeople expect you to haggle and quite often you can get 10-15% off the listed price. Treat it as an adventure. The cruise pier is a 5-10 minute walk from the main shopping area.

Guests not wishing to attend the optional carpet shopping should stay on the bus and they will be taken directly back to the pier.

Departing from the Maritime Station cruise pier in groups of no more than 30 guests, you will meet your guide and your driver and begin an approximately 50-minute drive to the door of the Amalfi Coast: Vietri sul Mare, the charming coastal village known as the gateway to the Amalfi Coast. You will have approximately two hours to yourself in Vietri to shop, take pictures, enjoy the local ceramics, or stroll the narrow streets and several churches at your leisure.

After your time in Vietri, sit back and enjoy an approximately 45-minute drive towards Mount Vesuvius and the ancient city of Pompeii, which lies in its shadow. Ironically, one of the ancient world's worst disasters preserved time in Pompeii, where you will experience life as it was lived in 79 AD. Once a thriving Roman town, it was devastated by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, when 30 feet of volcanic ash and pumice stone buried the city.

Upon arrival in Pompeii, enjoy some free time before beginning your guided exploration. As you enter through one of its ancient gates, you'll find yourself surrounded by lavish temples and porticoes, beginning to glimpse the lifestyle of its inhabitants. Admire the mansions and artwork of wealthy patricians who moved to Pompeii to escape the turmoil of Rome, and view countless paintings and inscriptions. See the streets with raised pavements on both sides and the stepping-stones that ensured pedestrians a safe crossing at intersections. Your guided visit to Pompeii lasts approximately 2 hours.

At the end of your tour, you will drive back to Naples.

Please Note: The entrance fee to Pompeii is included in the tour price; however, all guests must present a valid photo ID on the day of the tour. Lunch is not included in the tour price. Crowds are to be expected at all sites and lines for certain attractions may exceed over one hour to enter. The tour itinerary may be reversed but will still cover the mentioned sights. Heavy traffic congestion should be anticipated and may affect the duration of the excursion. On select days or holidays, heavy delays in traffic may contribute to a change of itinerary at the operator's discretion. Your tour of the ruins is guided.