Efes Ephesus

Even though it has been about 2.5 years since I have been to Turkey, I am posting here only so that readers are aware of the existence of another page for Selcuk/​Efes! I was reminiscing when I suddenly saw a link to this current page, and saw the many more positive reviews.
Here is the other page that is also very useful:

ORIGINAL REVIEW (9÷291÷2013)
My friend and I took the train from Izmir to Selcuk (about an hour and 45 minutes) for about 4.75 TL (that’s $ 2.40 for about 80 km!). In the morning, there are seats galore, so do not worry about not having space (on the way back though, be prepared to stand up).
You pay 25 TL to enter the site. At first I was jealous of all the other foreigners who had tour guides. But really, you can do this yourself if you remember to read up on the site before hand and ask locals down in Selcuk what to do (we had an amazingly hospitable and kind hearted travel agency person lend us a tour book and give us pointers, no money asked. Even added in tea. Now that’s priceless, memorable Turkish care and hospitality).
Enter always from the top entrance, and try to come before the sun comes up (this way you walk downhill, rather than uphill). It gets very hot (this was in July). And stock up on water before coming here, because water is very hard to find once you’re inside (we essentially took some water from the Austrian archeological water tank, which was actually an old ceramic water jug millenia ago. Kinda cool. Even cooler is how the archeaologists left their books and tools under temporary tarps, so this is legit a current excavation). Wear a hat, long sleeves so you don’t roast alive, come with extra batteries, bananas or some other power food, and good walking shoes. WALKING SHOES (and sunblock).
These archeological sites will take a greater portion of your day, so be ready for it. Read the signs up in the top entrance if you want a background, but don’t waste your time there. There are greater things to see as you walk down. Don’t get fooled by the mini amphitheater you immediately see and think «YES! Photo Session!» It is indeed a great photo spot, but the bigger coliseum comes after Celsus Library.
When you walk past the ancient marina, walk on the beaten path to the ruins of the Church of Mary, where the 3^rd ecumenical council met. There are a lot of other ruins around this area, but remember, it is a far walk off the normal path. These ruins are in ruin, but the amount of history in this spot alone is mind boggling (as is with the entire area, of course).
After you leave the Celsus Library area and walk toward the large ampitheter/​colisuem, don’t jog past the short building to the right. Inside the gated off building are artifacts that were once housed in museums (but I think are being temporarily stored in the current location because of restoration? Funnily enough, it is in an area fenced off for «the visually impaired» but no one can get to it really). For example you will see the Lady of Ephesus, and other artifacts commonly seen in history textbooks.
When you exit from the lower entrance/​exit, you will see lots of cafes. Of course, its over priced, but this is the last time you’ll see food for a bit if you’re not in a tour group. Definitely replenish yourself, and then walk out through the parking lot to the lone tree, which serves as a minibus stop. It will take you in the general direction of the Temple of Artemis.
If you are in the Aegean Sea region or in neighboring provinces, you must come to
is not hard to get to at all. This will change your life, and your perception of ancient history. I guess it’s fitting that Ephesus is visited by a huge variety of tourists. Hearing Russian, Turkish, English, Spanish, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin all in the walkway going towards the Celsus Library on Curetes Street is one of the audible memories that transported me to what Ephesus must have been like during its heyday. It is a memory that I will never forget.

Incredible, huge city with amazing ruins. So much to see and learn about. Hire a guide if you can! And the Terrace Houses with all the mosaics are well worth the extra ticket price.
It does get super crowded, so be sure to also visit plenty of the ruins throughout the country so you can really get a sense of how connected Ephesus is to a network of classic sites across the landscape, even though this one is the most visited and most iconic.

5 STARS BECAUSE: EPIC HISTORY IS EPIC!
9:10 archeologists agree that Ephesus (Efes) is a wonder to see. So much history and it’s open to the public. You can walk around and touch history. Amazing experience that everyone should take part in if they make it over to Western Turkey!!!

a must-​visit if you’re a history buff, the ruins of Ephesus are amazing.
we had a guided tour of the city ruins (with a radio and earpiece) and it took perhaps two hours to walk through (mostly due to the number of people there and the slow speed of our fellow tour members) but was totally worth it.
as another reviewer pointed out, it’s surprising how much of this you can walk through, stand on, and touch. unlike some other historical sites where everything is roped off. walk through the library, brothel, restrooms, theater, market, arena, amphitheater, and more and feel yourself traveling through time (as best as one can do without Delorean or TARDIS).
it’s all downhill walking, but there’s a lot of walking to do and you may experience slowdowns/​bottlenecks by key locations due to the number of people.
no restrooms or shops throughout the ruins, so pack a water bottle but know that you can’t go to a restroom until you get to the end. there’s a bunch of shops as soon as you exit, which all seem to sell the same trinkets, cloth, and whatnot (even our guide said so), as well as a guy with a camel (it looked fake and didn’t move). there’s also vendors trying to sell you «Turkish saffron», which our tour guide informed us is not only not really used in Turkish cooking but usually isn’t even real saffron. you’ve been warned. thankfully the merchants aren’t that pushy here, and when we did buy a few trinkets they happily took credit card and knocked a few Euro off the total price (I assume it’s all probably still marked up, but saving a few bucks is fine in my book).
after our tour, there was a show with dancing girls, gladiator fights, and more. it takes all of about 10 minutes and it’s a lot of cheesy fun to watch.

If I remember what the guide said Ephesus started as a Greek city that later was taken over by the Romans. It was coastal, but silting from the river has resulted in it being several miles inland now, which is why it was ultimately abandoned.
It’s a very large site and having a guide is helpful. The Terrace Houses which are within the site have some really nice frescoes and mosaics, though not as much as Herculaneum (which I reviewed previously). The amphitheater is in generally good condition (as «ruins» go) and is very cool. Apparently they are trying to restore parts of it, but it’s a slow process. It might be interesting to come back in 20 years and see if the site is in better condition.
Be sure to bring water as there are no services within the site (though there are many vendor outside the exit, and they’re fairly aggressive so don’t give them any encouragement if you don’t want anything… just say ‘no’ and keep walking).
We enjoyed our day here. Well worth the visit.

It has all been said before, and there really is nothing that you cannot say about this World Heritage site other than it is amazing. However, in the spirit of the review I will list some points as to why Ephesus rivals, and in some cases surpasses, Pompeii. I will also offer a small tour warning at the end:
1) HISTORY IS COOL: Ephesus story is amazing, and the guides do a wonderful job of painting the picture. From its possible downfall due to a plague of mosquito to the Apostle Paul being forced out of town after calling for an end to the worship of more than one God… It seems monotheism wasn’t popular with the merchants selling icons of the Gods
2) EVERYONE LOVES A GOOD BATHROOM STORY: Ephesus quirky and public bathrooms are a bit weird by modern standards, and certainly entertaining. I personally get a bit of a chuckle when I think of the toilet being treated as a refined Gentleman’s Club. And don’t even get me started on the purpose of the sponge and a stick. Yup, Pompeii may have it’s brothels for shock factor, but Ephesus public toilets are equally interesting.
3) IT IS ALL DOWNHILL: The buses take you to the top of Ephesus and you make your way down which makes for a fairly easy tour.
4) WALK AMONG THE RUINS: As of this writing– unlike Stonehenge, Chichen Itza, and many other archaeological sites– you can still walk through most of the ruins. Ephesus Library is its signature structure and you can walk right through it, which is kind of like walking through Stonehenge. However, I fear it is only a matter of time before some stupid tourist attempts to carve his name on its walls, and they rope it off to the public.
5) THE AMPHITHEATER ROCKS!!!: Test out the acoustics in what is arguably one of the best amphitheaters of the ancient world. Hey, if it was good enough for Elton John, it’s good enough for you.
6) TAKE A PICTURE WITH A CAMEL: At the end of the tour, You make your way through a market were you will a camel. Pay your euro and Saddle up for a photo. Nothing says vaca than looking like Laurence of Arabia.
7) TASTE SOME FRUIT: Near the camel stop a few vendors sell fresh fruit which is safe. So nibble on a grape or have a preach. However, the guy selling peaches is likely to be a bit aggressive as per the following conversation.
Merchant: «Taste this, my friend, You have nothing of this quality in your country.»
Me (taking a slice of peach and discovering that it was ok but not great) «You obviously haven’t heard of the George Peach, my friend.»
Merchant: «Pah, What is Georgia to this?»
Me: «Nevertheless, I think I will stick with Georgia»
8) THE NOT SO MAGIC CARPET; Finally, if you are on one of the cruise line’s excursion tours, you will be taken to a carpet factory. This short side trek will eat up all your free time to explore the port, leaving you only about 30 minutes at the most to do anything at the port. Trust me, the buses will not take you back until every possible euro has been milked from your fellow excursionists’ hands. And since it is in the middle of nowhere, you are basically trapped for the duration. And if you do decide to buy, just know that Turkish merchants invented the art of haggling, so you won’t find much of a deal here. On one trip, a member of my party was ecstatic that she had scored a small table runner for $ 1500…I didn’t have the heart to tell here that I had seen a similar thing for less than half the price in Asian and Turkish carpet store back home.

Yes, another essential place to see for visitors to Turkey.
Amazing what they built so long ago (
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There are still active excavations so some areas are sealed off (

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Bring something for the team that’s hard at work to keep the ruins rodent free (
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And when you’re done, you can buy a fake watch at a shop by the parking lot (
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Many historical places are just ruins that are kind of run down and not much to see, Ephesus (Greek) or Efes (Turkish) was not one of those places. I mean they are ruins but theres still plenty of existing (and partially restored) structure for you to see without having to use your imagination and listen to what your tour guide is telling you.
Ephesus was really cool, and lots of historical things to see, definitely a site worth visiting.
Hercules gate — OK it’s just a gateway, but it well preserved. It’s easy to miss if you don’t have a tour guide because the direction of traffic is one way, and you actually walk thru it with the plain back side facing you. You have to turn around to see the side with the carving on it.
Library of Celsus — Also well preserved and many small details and original carvings remain.
large open air theater was very impressive it could hold 25,000 people!
My favorite thing here was the toilets! Yes toilets! They had running water and all the statesmen and businessmen used these communal toilets together and talked business while «doing their business» which is where the term comes from.
There was even running water to wash up after «doing your business» in shallow troughs in front.
Amazing right, the first flushing toilet!
Can you imagine doing business like that though?! Ok so we’re going to offer 4 million (Fart) for 49% of the company (plop) and you’ll still have the majority of the shares, but with our marketing (squeak) we should be able to grow your company (pooot, splash) so what do you say? do we have a deal? Lets shake on it!

«Ancient City of Ephesus»
A very interesting place. Our tour group spent about 3 hours walking the ruins which was plus on this location there is lots to see… we could have easily spent 3 more. The excavations are on the go. The renovated buildings & statues are impressive. The Ampitheatre is huge and in fantastic condition, try clapping and see how the sound goes around. Another wow moment.

Ephesus was an ancient Greek city, and later a major Roman city, on the coast of Ionia, near present-​day Selçuk. The City was famed for the Temple of Artemis, one of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World. Ephesus was also cited in the Book of Revelation and the the Gospel of John may have been written here.
Although it was relatively hot and crowded, Gayle and I really enjoyed our visit here. We loved strolling the broad boulevards, marveled at the pillared façade of the Library of Celsus, walked up and down a larger version of Berkeley’s Greek Theater, wondering about the lifestyles of the rich and famous at the Terrace Houses, hearing countless stories and observing the associated ruins, and taking pictures of all the cats that were hanging out in between.
The Tour Bus dropped us off at one end, and our Tura Tour Guide led us through to the other end on a fascinating time-​travel back to the grandeur of Rome. There’s also a lot of souvenir opportunities (in tents) at the end and folks that will offer you a bargain price on bracelets at the entrance to the bus. I was partial to buying a signature glass pieces to help ward off the evil eye. Better yet, I found the limited peaks of Izmir province to be fascinating and maybe worth another look on a future non-​Cruise related trip.

The Ephesus archeological site is located 11 miles north-​east of the port town of Kusadasi. Before going here I’d never heard of it, and for me it was stopover on a Greek island cruise. However, I’m glad I did see it. This place has a lot of history. Established before the birth of Christ, the city grew to over 250,000 people and was apparently the world’s fourth largest city in the first century BC (behind Rome, Alexandria and Antioch). It started as a Greek city and was later invaded by the Romans because of the strategic location in a fertile valley and close to the Agean Sea.
Ephesus is the best-​preserved Roman city in the Mediterranean region, and has better ruins than Rome. The city was famed for the Temple of Artemis (completed around 550 BC), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Roman Emperor Constantine I expanded the city and erected new public baths. The city was partially destroyed by an earthquake in 614 AD.
It was a mob scene outside The Magnesian Gate, but once inside it was not crowed in the spacious area. The ruins are magnificent, especially the stadium. The marble-​paved Sacred Way still has shop buildings on each side still intact, and a water canal running behind the stores. Very sophisticated and impressive architecture, and an elaborate water and sewer system. Several of the building structure facades have been restored, including the town hall and Celsus Library. They have an interesting procession show with a Roman gladiator battle enactment. It would have been better if there was some shade from the oppressive sun in August. Bring in your own water or you will wither away in the heat.
Located just two miles outside the town of Selcuk and near the port town of Kasudasi. Many people who come here also go to the nearby House of the Virgin Mary. I couldn’t imagine a better Roman archeological site, but Pompei would be very cool also. Now that I’ve been here I recognize it from seeing concerts on TV at the Great Theatre by people like Pavorati, Elton John, Sting, Diana Ross and Ray Charles.

Super, hier taucht man richtig in die antike Welt ein.

Ein Muss für alle in der Türkei. Das beste open-​air Museum aber man soll es im Sommer vermeiden, da man Hitzeschlag kriegen kann.

Schon sehr beeindruckender Ort, aber extrem überfüllt zu jeder Jahreszeit, vor allem im Sommer. Trotzdem ist Ephesus einer der interessantesten Orte in der Westtürkei. Die Architektur der Bibliothek ist wirklich toll. Alles andere sind eigentlich nur tonnenweise Steinhaufen und Millionen Säulen, aber auch nett.

Epheseus war bis in die 60er Jahre nur unter Ärchäologen bekannt und der Massentourismus (Kreuzfahrtschiffe und Bustouren) wird erst seit wenigen Jahren systematisch rangekarrt. Die Ruinenstadt ist absolut sehenswert aber wenn möglich, sollte man Ephesus im Frühjahr oder Spätherbst besuchen, weil dann 1. erstens die Temperaturen erträglich sind (im Sommer wird man dort gekocht) 2. etwas von der Stadt sieht und nicht nur Touristen.
Bustouren sind teuer und man wird unvermeidlich in irgendwelche Teppichfabriken gekarrt. Die PR der türkischen Bahn ist noch unterentwickelt, aber von Izmir fahren regelmäßig bequeme, moderne Züge zu Spottpreisen (10 Euro Hin-​und Rückfahrt) nach Seldcuk und von dort kann man bequem laufen oder sich mit anderen ein Sammeltaxi teilen (EUR5 pro Nase).
Es gibt einige gute Onlineführer zu Ephesus, welche für Nicht-​Archäologen völlig ausreichen. Vor Ort kann man auch entsprechende Literatur erwerben. Der Eintritt liegt inzwischen bei 20 Lira (ca. 8 Euro), was völlig in Ordnung geht. Neben dem Ensemble als Ganzes, welches durch seine Größe beeindruckt (selten kann man so gut eine antike Stadtanlage nachempfinden) sind die Highlights die von österreichischen Archäologen restaurierte Bibliothek und das gigantische Amphitheater.
Als souvenir empfehle ich hausgemachte Sucuk vom Metzger in Seldcuk, die schmeckt wesentlich besser als das Zeug aus dem türkischen Supermarkt in Deutschland und ist glutamatfrei. Mann kann im Ort gut und günstig essen, ein bisschen bummeln, und das ephesus-​Museum dort ist eine sinnvolle Ergänzung zur Ruinenstadt (Montags geschlossen!)

The best archeological site to see in turkey. Best to go with guide to tell the various stories. Don’t go in summer because it’s really hot.

This place was one of the most amazing places I have ever visited.
This is an enormous city that will keep showing more and more of itself as they excavate more of it.
Here you can see the world’s first advert, a beautiful depiction of Nike and the incredible library. Also the amphitheatre. This is the first place I have been to which I had read about in The Bible and I found that quite amazing in itself.
Beautiful place!

A historic place that everyone must have seen!

Like all the major historical places in the world, this is a place to visit. its trully amazing to see what a former civilisation looked like all be it just the surface remians. The marble streets and colums clearly visible. The huge amphitheartre with amazing sound qualities. The front of the Library still standing with ornate carving and mozacs. I really enjoyed the few hours I had at Ephesus, particularly with a guide from the tour as its would be almost impossible to sit a read from a book what you are looking at. It gets extremly hot as its situated in a ravine/​valley with barely any wind. Make sure you take plenty of water and pee before you enter as there are no facilities on the site only at either end. its better to enter from the top and walk down hill.

the city is uninhabited and is a huge ruin. this city features in the Christian Holy Bible and has a book named after the people that lived there at the time. It is too hot in the turkesh summer, best to go when its cooler.

Superbe site archéologique.
Le théatre et la bibliothéque sont impressionnants par leur taille et leur détails :)
A voir !

I’d always found St. Paul a bit grumpy. You know the stuff. Letters to the Ephesians whingeing about how they needed to keep their act together and get the worshipping thing organised. Then we visited Ephesus and BLOODY HELL, no WONDER Paul had a problem! Ephesus is HUGE — a graeco-​romano-​Turkish version of LONDON that, two thousand years ago must have been truly one of the most impressive cities in the world. It is no wonder that Paul had such trouble keeping his little Ephesian coterie in line. Even now you can sense that the city didn’t just bustle with multi-​national business, trade and visitors, it must have EXPLODED with them. The architecture is stunning, and the city is laid out over hundreds of acres. Even now, after over one hundred years of excavation, scarcely 25 per cent of the city has been uncovered, and what has been is vastly, hugely, mind-​bogglingly impressive. There are temples, roads, markets, not just one but TWO amphitheatres, one of them utterly enormous. Today we like to think of ourselves as multicultural, but Ephesus was that in excelsis two thousand years ago, and even looking at it today, it is clear what we lost when the Roman civilisation fell. As an archaeological site it certainly wipes the floor with ANYTHING I have seen in Britain, and I cannot urge you too strongly to visit if you get the chance. It is the kind of place you come out of altered, humbled and stunned. Just go and see what our ancestors did way back then, and wonder what MIGHT have happened today if the civilisation had carried on growing. I’m impressed! Honest!

El sitio es fantastico son unas ruinas espectaculares, estan muy cerca del puerto de kusadasi, es un puerto de cruceros, si llegais alli no dudeis en vistar ephesus, es una ciudad muy bonita, la biblioteca queda la fachada y es espectacular, tambien queda cerca de la que dicen fue la casa de la virgen maria, recomendacion, si vais en verano llevad paraguas, el sol es muy fuerte y no hay sombras

We loved Ephesus on our visit to Turkey, but if you are visiting in the height of the summer, take a hat/​shade as there is none available there.
It really is a beautiful and haunting place and walking around, it was quite a revelation to see the buildings and you could just imagine what it must have been like.
The amphitheatre is something special too and I understand that some quite famous celebrities have performed there — like Diana Ross! It is quite something to behold.
If you are visiting this area of Turkey, don’t miss out on being able to walk on history and admire the place.

ephessuss ist eine reise wert die ganzen altertümlichen säulen bringen sie in die zeit der griechen aber vorsicht keine steine mitnehmen auch wenn es klein ist. das ist in türkei verboten mann kann sogar in knast dafür kommen.

Ephesus (Efes in Turkish) is an extremely important historical site. The Anatolians had a city here over two thousand years ago with a temple to Cybele. When the Greeks came, they transferred the temple to their goddess of hunting, Artemis. Later the Romans took over, and later the Christians. The site of Ephesus has incredible archaeological remains of the city. Also, Saint John came here in his old age to write his biblical letter to the Ephesians. Even more, Mary mother of Jesus supposedly came here to live her final years.
The archaeological site is 3 km south of Selçuk in İzmir Province.
These are very impressive ruins, with temples, fountains, streets, the library, public toilets, aquaducting, and a 25,000-person stadium! The Temple of Artemis is a highlight, for sure. Also impressive are the façade of the Library of Celsus and the Gate of Hercules. It took us a couple of hours to see it all; real buffs could spend a day. The feeling of history you get by not only seeing these buildings but by walking the ancient paved roads and passing through the gates is awe-​inspiring.
Anyone with any interest at all in history or archaeology will be fascinated by the place. Save money and bring your own water, though: it can get pretty hot and dusty here.

Wowzers. The ruins of the ancient city of Ephesus are really something to behold.
If you’re a lover of culture, history or of walking around in sensational sunshine then you simply must visit Ephesus.
A city bubbling over with ancient history which has been preserved wonderfully and provides a real sense of walking around an ancient site. What I knew about Ephesus before seeing it, was that it was the setting of Shakespeare’s breakneck paced ‘Comedy of Errors’.
I would recommend starting at the top gate, and walking down through the city. Not only does this make the walk a more pleasant downwards gradient, but also saves the best til last.
Columns and old drainage pipes are littered about at the top entrance. A good spot to catch up on the general history of the city before setting off to see the magical set pieces.
The streets themselves are something special — walking on them with sandals on gives you the feeling of strolling to the senate. The first really exciting bit is the ampitheatre, which is actually only a small ampitheatre and was probably the city consul. Half is reconstruction due to the damge done by hasty excavation work trying to discover the Temple of Artemis.
As you descend the hill the library of Celsus comes into view and it is breathtaking. I can’t explain how magical it is to stand in front of it.
Then you turn a corner and walk down the market street towards the main ampitheatre. Wowzers! Boom! Bang! It’s so impressive! It’s massive! And wonderful!
Apparently the largest outdoor theatre in the world, and according to my hotel’s newletter has played host to Diana Ross and Stings (sic).
I think Ephesus is a beautiful, magical place and I cannot recomend it enough to history/​culture lovers.