Turkey - Tour Bolt-ons
Enhance your holiday with one of these exciting bolt-ons! Take a relaxing beach break in coastal Marmaris or witness the thousand or so barefoot and buff grapplers compete in the annual Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Championships. Oiled up, stripped to the waist and sporting a pair of leather trunks anything goes in this centuries old sport originated by an elite fraternity of body guards to the imperial Sultans, known as the Janissaries.
For something a little calmer travel with us on a tour departing between 10 - 17 December and whilst travelling through Konya you may get a chance to see the annual Whirling Dervish festival commemorating Rumi, the great Sufi poet and teacher.
Marmaris Beach Stay - 4 days
Marmaris with its long coastline of beaches and secluded bays is the perfect place to get away. Extend your holiday with our 3 night beach stay. Relax by the beach or large outdoor hotel swimming pool or opt for a day trip to the Greek Island of Rhodes - only an hour catamaran ride away!
Oil Wrestling Kirkpinar
Every year since 1640 Turkey’s best wrestlers, men and boys, gather and lather up for the oldest wrestling contest in the world. Competitors pair off, grappling and struggling to gain a grip on their opponent. Tactical moves include a hand down the side of the pants trick and the common schoolboy ‘wedgie’ (grab, lift, flip and throw) to pin ones opponent to the ground! The winner goes on to fight another winner, and so on, until there is only one wrestler left standing.
Join us at the Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Championships held in the 1st week of July each and every year. Although the exact date of the event has yet to be released, it is normally held on a Saturday allowing us of offer the excursion prior to the commencement of our Aegean Explorer, Istanbul to the Med, Turkey Unplugged, Turkey & Tutankhamen and Turkey Discovered tours starting that week.
Whirling Dervish Festival
From 10th – 17th December every year, crowds of devotees and tourists flock to the Whirling Dervish festival in Konya, Turkey. The festival commemorates the death of the great Sufi poet and teacher Rumi, whom many Muslims consider a saint. The Sufis believe that union with God can be achieved through dance and the Dervish dance to honour their teacher.