Excursion Review: Private Ephesus Tour in Kusadasi

June 3, 2025 Randy Young

Kusadasi, Turkey, is a popular stop on many Mediterranean cruises that visit the Greek Islands, as it’s not too far away. It’s a smaller port that’s usually only a half-day stop. One of the top attractions in the area is the ancient city of Ephesus. I visited it during my May 2024 cruise aboard Norwegian Viva and wanted to share my experience with the excursion we booked.

What is Ephesus?

Ephesus is an ancient historical site that dates back to the 10th century BC and holds a long-standing place in history. The city was once home to one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, the Temple of Artemis, built in 550 BC. It served as a major center of trade for centuries. During biblical times, the apostle Paul preached in the theater, and two books of the Bible were written as letters to the people of the town. Today, the ruins of Ephesus are designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

If you’re on a Mediterranean cruise, you’ll likely see a lot of ruins, but you definitely shouldn’t overlook this one.

Getting to Ephesus

While Ephesus is the main draw in Kusadasi, there are no public buses or trains that go there, so it’s a bit tricky to visit on your own. The best way to see it is by booking a tour. Here are some of the options:

Tour Options

Norwegian Cruise Line

Ephesus & Terrace Houses: $139
Ephesus And House Of Virgin Mary: $139
Magnificent Ephesus: $109

Carnival

House of the Virgin Mary and Ancient Ephesus: $120
Best of Ephesus: $150
Terrace House & Ancient Ephesus: $115
Ancient Ephesus: $100

Virgin Voyages

Ancient Ephesus: $105
Ephesus & the House of the Virgin Mary: $200
Deluxe Ephesus & House of Virgin Mary (Small Group): $245

Viator

SKIP THE LINES: Best Seller Ephesus PRIVATE TOUR For Cruise Guests: $57 (plus the following passes if you want access)

On Your Own

Ephesus Archaeological Site: 40 euro
Terrace Houses: 15 euro
House of Virgin Mary: 14 euro

For my sailing, we were in port from 6:30 AM to 12:30 PM. Since it’s a shorter timeframe, I’d usually try to book through the cruise line to be safe. However, for some reason, Norwegian didn’t list any excursions until about three weeks before the cruise. Because we weren’t willing to wait for NCL to figure out what they were doing, we booked a third-party excursion.

The tour I chose was called “SKIP THE LINES: Best Seller Ephesus PRIVATE TOUR For Cruise Guests.” I wasn’t concerned about skipping lines, as Ephesus isn’t known for awful lines like some other attractions. What mattered to me was having a knowledgeable guide, comfortable transportation, and a private experience.

The tour I picked was one of the cheapest private options because the entrance fee for Ephesus (40 euros per person) wasn’t included. The listing clearly noted that ahead of time, and we paid directly to the driver. Still, even with that cost included, this excursion was a great value.

See the Ephesus Excursion we did on Viator

Tip: Third-party tours aren’t always about saving money. While they can be cheaper, that’s not always the case. Another reason to look at sites like Viator is that they can offer unique or more exclusive experiences. My tour only had five people. Compare that to the 50-person groups from the cruise line. Of course, if you’re late getting back, the ship won’t wait for you unless it’s a cruise-line excursion. Most companies do offer a return-to-ship guarantee, but it’s still a risk to consider.

Meeting Our Guide

Our tour guide used WhatsApp to confirm the meeting time of 7:00 AM, just outside the cruise terminal. The terminal at Kusadasi is set up like a small shopping village with plenty of vendors. It was only a five-minute walk to the exit. Right outside, a large board listed the names of everyone taking private tours. It made it easy to spot my name and meet with our guide.

Within minutes, we were in an air-conditioned van headed to Ephesus. Since we arrived so early, we had time to spare before the site opened at 8:00 AM. The guide suggested a quick stop at a local carpet-making facility while we waited.

Choosing What to See

Our main goal was to see Ephesus itself. I wasn’t interested in visiting the House of the Virgin Mary, which some tours include. That site is considered a pilgrimage destination and has long lines, but I preferred to use the time for the ruins instead. We also opted for a stop at the Temple of Artemis, which most people skip since it’s in a state of disrepair, but it’s hard to pass up a chance to see one of the ancient wonders of the world.

The Infamous Turkish Carpet School in Kusadasi

If you’ve read about Kusadasi, you know this is a notorious part of every excursion in Ephesus—a stop at Turkman Carpet. Here, you learn how they make hand-woven Turkish rugs and get a Turkish coffee. In reality, it was less of an educational experience and more of a sales pitch.

Since we were early, the five of us were the only ones there. A gentleman walked us through the carpet-making process, allowing the women working there to demonstrate the art of carpet-making. It was clear those women were not excited to be part of the demonstration.

After that, we sat on our couch to have our coffee while vendors rolled out carpet after carpet in front of us. There’s no arguing that the carpets were beautiful—some even changed color before our eyes—but who goes on vacation and buys a $700+ carpet without knowing how it would fit in their room?

“What’s your favorite color?” the man asked a woman in our group, and then he proceeded to show her every carpet in that color. The choices were overwhelming, and the facility had a labyrinth of rooms filled with different options. At one point, someone in our group was shown something in a different room, and we quickly had to go find her before she ended up buying three different carpets.

Our tour guide told us to let him know when we were done, so we did. He quickly signaled that we were not buying, and then we headed on to Ephesus. It wasn’t overly high-pressure, but I would have preferred to skip this part.

Touring Historic Ephesus

Our tour guide said he’d typically start at the House of Mary if we wanted to see that. That site had an extra 10-euro admission cost, and lines could get up to 40 minutes or more. Since our group was not interested in seeing it, we headed straight to Ephesus.

Ephesus is the site of the ruins of an ancient city that dates back to biblical times. Back then, it was a port city; although over thousands of years, the waters have receded, it’s now a 20-minute drive from the cruise port. It was lost to time, only to be discovered in the late 1800s, and slowly recovered and reconstructed. The ruins in Ephesus were in varying states of repair, ranging from nearly complete to those with only a single column standing.

Our guide took us down the streets of Ephesus, explaining what happened at that point in history and how the site was being excavated. Being in a private group, it was nice to be able to ask questions and focus on the stuff that was interesting to us. Our guide did a good job of explaining what we’d see in the shade away from the crowds; then, we’d go look at it. This way, we weren’t clogging the attractions like other tour guides were doing.

We were constantly being passed by larger cruise ship groups of 20 to 40 people wearing headsets and being herded around like cattle. It would have been awful doing this tour in a group like that, just listening and baking in the hot sun. (Our tour guide would find us a shaded area when he’d stop and explain things.)

We entered the site near the baths and State Agora, which featured many ruins that resembled rubble. However, as we ventured further into the site, the buildings were better preserved and more impressive. It was a unique experience to walk down the same roads ancient civilizations had walked. It was also amazing how far we’ve come. The old marble roads were slippery and hard to walk on. Today’s concrete and asphalt are such a huge improvement.

Tip: Wear closed-toed shoes when touring ruins. Roads back then were made from basalt, granite, or marble, which have been worn down over the years and become very slippery. Be careful; a twisted ankle can ruin your whole vacation.

The highlight of the site was the Library of Celsus, a massive restored building that towers over you. It’s been meticulously reassembled and strengthened to withstand earthquakes. As you get closer, you can appreciate the intricate carvings on it. You’re actually able to walk up and into the Library of Celsus. It’s funny because, as tall and grand as it looks from the outside, it’s relatively small on the inside. While it could hold up to 12,000 scrolls in ancient days, the facade is much grander in appearance, a smart move by the designers to make this building stand out in a crowded city.

Ephesus Terrace Houses

This historical site is constantly changing, with new areas being uncovered each year. A recent addition has been the Ephesus Terrace Houses, where the upper-class people lived with opulent mosaics and wall paintings. While located at the historical site, these require a separate admission. Unfortunately, it was not open during our visit, but people who went on later sailings said it was a worthwhile addition.

Ephesus Theater

We took Marble Road to the Ephesus Theater. It was an impressive sight to behold. It was hard to comprehend that this massive structure was constructed in 250 BC. Built into the mountainside, this theater could accommodate 25,000 spectators (in comparison, Madison Square Garden in New York City holds only 19,500). It’s roughly 60 feet tall and divided into three levels. It’s incredible how much it resembles a theater we’d build today.

Of course, there were no microphones or speakers in those days, so this site was built to enhance acoustics. It’s been said you could hear whispers from the stage in the top rows. I can’t attest to that, but I can attest to the acoustical performance. One woman stood in the middle of the stage and sang Amazing Grace as if she were the only person there. You could see her partner in the background, videotaping it for TikTok or Instagram. It was a cringeworthy moment, but I’ll give the Ephesians credit. From up in the second tier of seating, I was able to hear every single off-key note she sang. (I don’t know if she understood the irony of singing Amazing Grace on a stage where Christians were literally fed to lions.)

Wrapping Up the Day

We then exited the site at Harbor Road, where our van was waiting for us. The guide told us more about the area’s history as we returned to the ship. Even though Kusadasi was a short port for us, it didn’t feel rushed, and it felt like the right amount of time to take in the sights. There were several souvenir shops at the exit of Ephesus if we wanted to buy souvenirs, but the group wasn’t really into shopping, so we headed back to the ship.

We arrived back at port with an hour left before all-aboard time.

Verdict: A Great Private Experience Rivaling the Cost of a Cruise Tour

Overall, I’d highly recommend a tour in general. I saw some people who booked the “Ephesus on your own” tour, which only included transportation to and from the city, and they seemed to miss out on much of the history and stories behind the site. While there was some decent signage, I learned even more from our guide, which enriched the experience.

This private tour was also so much better than the cruise ship tours. I loved that our guide was able to tailor the experience to our interests and that we could have a conversation with him about what was going on. From the small, air-conditioned bus to the one-on-one interactions with our guide, it really felt like a VIP experience.

I was impressed with the city, more so than I thought I would be, as I knew very little about the site before this trip. It was truly impressive, rivaling the scale of the Pompeii ruins in my experience.

See the Ephesus Excursion we did on Viator

Disclosure: We purchased and paid full price for this excursion through Viator and this post was not sponsored by them or the individual tour provider.