Most travelers come to Turkey for the sea. The ones who stay longer fall for its lakes — turquoise basins, volcanic craters, and high-altitude mirrors scattered from the Aegean hinterland to the Iranian border. This archive collects the watery surprises we love sending our travelers to. Float above the Maldivian whites of Lake Salda, where NASA studied the shoreline as a stand-in for Mars. Watch the sun set over Lake Van, Turkey’s largest, ringed by Urartian fortresses and Armenian churches. Step into the cinder cones and crater lakes of Kula Geopark, Western Anatolia’s land of fire, or trace the stone-carved waterways of Sivas at the country’s geographic heart. Chase hidden alpine lakes on our 7-day Black Sea tour, paraglide and trek your way through them on an adventure itinerary, or stay in town and find calm at Istanbul’s own waterside chill spots and off-the-beaten-path corners.
The Other Tour is an immersive way to experience Istanbul and the rest of Turkey, led by licensed local guides who take you beyond the tourist spots into the lived culture and quiet corners of Cappadocia, Antalya, Ephesus, Bodrum, and the Mediterranean. We also build personalized travel planning, private tours, and custom itineraries — crafted around what you’re actually curious about, in any region of the country.