Two wars more than three thousand years apart were fought on the shores of the same strait. Your driver collects you from your hotel in Istanbul at dawn; on the first day you walk the 1915 battlefields of the Gallipoli peninsula, cross the Dardanelles by ferry and spend the night in Çanakkale; on the second you stand on the walls of Homer's Troy before driving back over the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge.
Anzac Cove, Chunuk Bair and the Çanakkale Martyrs' Memorial on day one; Homer's Troy and the award-winning Troy Museum on day two: the Dardanelles by private car with driver, with an overnight stay in Çanakkale. Suggested duration 36 hours; pickup from hotels in Sultanahmet, Taksim, Besiktas and the rest of the region. Prices start at €1060 per vehicle, paid to the driver on the day.
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The Gallipoli peninsula lies about 300 km – four hours' drive – from Istanbul, and Troy is on the opposite, Asian shore of the Dardanelles. That is why this tour is planned as 36 hours with one night in Çanakkale: the long drives are split, and there is time to stand quietly at the memorials instead of rushing between them.
On day one you visit the Kabatepe promotion centre, the Anzac landing area at Arıburnu, Lone Pine and Chunuk Bair, the 57th Regiment memorial and, in the south, the Çanakkale Martyrs' Memorial. Day two brings ancient Troy, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998, and the Troy Museum, opened in 2018.
Pickup is from hotels on both sides of Istanbul. The price is per vehicle, not per person; hotel, lunch and dinner can be added per person in the form, and the guide fee per day. The driver's accommodation is arranged by us.
Stops are shown in a typical order; your driver waits at every stop.
The Çanakkale Epic Promotion Centre at Kabatepe tells the story of the 1915 campaign in simulation halls with sound, light and moving images – the best introduction before you go out to the battlefields themselves. The centre has its own ticket and the visit takes about an hour.
On 25 April 1915 Australian and New Zealand troops landed in this small cove beneath steep ridges. At the Arıburnu cemetery stands the memorial bearing the words attributed to Atatürk in 1934, addressed to the mothers who lost their sons: “there is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us”. Higher up, Lone Pine is the main Australian memorial, where the Australian service is held on Anzac Day.
The hill of Chunuk Bair (Conkbayırı) saw some of the fiercest fighting of the campaign in August 1915; today the New Zealand memorial and a statue of Mustafa Kemal stand on its summit. Lower down, the 57th Infantry Regiment memorial recalls the regiment that held the line on the first day of the landings, after the order attributed to Mustafa Kemal: “I don't order you to attack, I order you to die.”
At the southern tip of the peninsula, above Morto Bay, rises the 41.7-metre Çanakkale Martyrs' Memorial, completed in 1960 and dedicated to the Turkish soldiers who fell in 1915. Nearby are the British Helles Memorial and the old fortress of Seddülbahir, where the Dardanelles open into the Aegean.
On the mound of Hisarlık, Heinrich Schliemann began digging in 1871 in search of Homer's Troy. Nine cities built one on top of another over some 3,500 years – from around 3000 BC to Roman times – have since been uncovered, along with walls, gates and a Roman odeon. A large wooden horse at the entrance recalls the most famous story of the Iliad. UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998.
Opened in 2018 near the site, the Troy Museum displays finds from Troy and the surrounding Troad in its rusted-steel cube, including gold jewellery returned to Turkey in 2012. On the way home you cross the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge, opened in 2022, whose 2,023-metre main span is the longest of any suspension bridge in the world.
Times are an example; your driver adapts the day to traffic, season and your wishes.
The Dardanelles, the Hellespont of antiquity, is the narrow strait joining the Aegean to the Sea of Marmara – only about 1.2 km wide at its narrowest. Whoever held it controlled the route to the Black Sea. The city on the hill of Troy grew rich on this passage, and Homer set the ten-year war of the Iliad here; the Persian king Xerxes crossed it on a bridge of boats in 480 BC, and Alexander the Great in 334 BC.
In 1915 the strait became a key to the First World War. After the Allied fleet failed to force the passage on 18 March, British, French, Australian, New Zealand and Indian troops landed on the peninsula on 25 April. Eight months of trench warfare followed, until the Allies withdrew in January 1916. More than 100,000 soldiers on both sides lost their lives; for Turkey the campaign became a founding moment of the nation, and for Australia and New Zealand the birth of Anzac Day.
Today the battlefields form the Gallipoli Historical Site, with dozens of cemeteries and memorials of both sides scattered across the hills. Visiting them in silence, often side by side with Turkish, Australian and New Zealand families, is one of the most moving experiences Turkey has to offer.
Prices are per vehicle and include fuel, motorway and bridge tolls, parking and the driver. Guide, meals and hotel are added as options.
| Duration | FirstClass Van (1–6) | Vip Sprinter (1–16) |
|---|---|---|
| 36 hours · 1 night | €1060 | €1450 |
| 48 hours · 2 nights | €1560 | €1980 |
| Add-on | Price | How it is charged |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed guide required | €200 | Per day, whatever the group size |
| Lunch | €15 | Per person, for each lunch in the package |
| Dinner | €15 | Per person, for each dinner in the package |
| Hotel accommodation | €60 | Per person per night (sharing a double room) |
Example – 2 persons, 36 hours, FirstClass Van: Private vehicle & driver + Licensed guide + Lunch = €1060 + €400 + €60 = €1520
Can be added as options: Lunch, Dinner, Hotel accommodation.
Distances are approximate road kilometres to the main sight (one way). We also pick up from hotels and addresses not listed – just enter yours in the form.
| Area | Distance | Suggested package | Airport transfer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sultanahmet | ≈ 315 km | 36 hours | Sultanahmet transfer |
| Taksim | ≈ 320 km | 36 hours | Taksim transfer |
| Besiktas | ≈ 325 km | 36 hours | Besiktas transfer |
| Beylikduzu | ≈ 285 km | 36 hours | – |
| Kadikoy | ≈ 340 km | 36 hours | Kadikoy transfer |
Ideal for history lovers, visitors from Australia and New Zealand tracing family stories, school groups and anyone who wants to see both Gallipoli and Troy without a ten-hour single-day marathon. Walking is moderate – mainly short paths between car parks and memorials, and about an hour on the uneven ground of Troy.
Our tours in Çanakkale (Gallipoli & Troy) are accompanied by a licensed tourist guide; the guide fee is added to the price automatically. In Turkey, only licensed tourist guides may give explanations at museums and archaeological sites (Tourist Guiding Profession Law No. 6326).
No other passengers and no waiting for anyone – the car is yours all day.
The order and length of stops are flexible, with no compulsory shopping stops.
The price is fixed at booking and paid to the driver on the day.
Vixride is a TÜRSAB-licensed travel agency (licence 14798); vehicles and drivers are insured.
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The battlefields are far better understood with a licensed guide who knows the story of each trench and cemetery; your driver does not guide at the sites. Whether a guide is required in this region, and the fee, are shown in the booking form – if required, the fee is added automatically.
In a hotel in central Çanakkale, by the strait. If you add hotel accommodation in the form, we book a comfortable hotel at the per-person rate shown; otherwise you can book your own and we pick you up there. The driver's accommodation is arranged by us.
It is possible, but it means about nine hours on the road and little time at the sites. That is why the minimum for this tour is 36 hours with one night in Çanakkale. With the 48-hour package you can add Kilitbahir Castle, ancient Assos or the island of Bozcaada.
Yes, we can plan the tour around 25 April. The dawn service at North Beach starts in the very early morning, roads on the peninsula close at times and hotels in Çanakkale and Eceabat fill months in advance, so please book as early as possible and check the official registration requirements.
Yes. We pick up from hotels in Kadıköy, Ataşehir and elsewhere on the Asian side, and can also start straight from Istanbul Airport or Sabiha Gökçen on arrival; the route is adjusted to keep the drive as short as possible.
The tour price is per vehicle: the package costs the same whether one or six people travel in the van. Only lunch, dinner and hotel accommodation are charged per person. The guide fee is per day and does not depend on the group size.
Nothing is charged online at booking; you pay the driver on the day of the tour in cash (EUR, USD, GBP, TRY) or by card. Free cancellation and date changes; please let us know at least 24 hours in advance.
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