Kusadasi is the gateway port city to visit the ancient city of Ephesus.
We arrived before dawn on a beautiful sunny day.
By the time the sun came up we could see Kusadasi and the old fort that is a short walk from the cruise terminal.
About a 40 minute drive from the port is one of antiquity’s best-preserved cities, Ephesus, which gives you a look into the lives of the ancients. Many of it’s ruins have endured from the time Ephesus was one of the largest metropolises of the ancient world. Excavations go back to the 10th century BC, when this city hosted one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World – the Temple of Artemis.
Today, Ephesus is still full of wonders; the towering façade of the Library of Celsus
The massive amphitheater that once sat 25,000 spectators
The 2,000-year-old road which still leads down the hill to the library,
the mosaics!
Ephesus also holds an important place in Christianity. John is said to have preached here and Mary lived out her final days in a tiny stone house.
However, when on a cruise, with limited time in ports you only get a taste of the destination. Ephesus definitely proves that a longer visit would be worth it along with a stay in the beautiful Aegean beach resort town of Kusadasi.