Days 1-2Ephesus: A Roman Capital Preserved in Marble
Why Ephesus matters
Ephesus was one of the great cities of Roman Asia Minor, a busy port, a provincial centre and, later, an early Christian city. Walking its polished marble street today, you follow the same route traders, pilgrims and gladiator crowds once took.
What you will see
Hadrian's Temple, the terraced houses, the public baths and the Great Theatre, which held tens of thousands of spectators, line the route. The two-storey façade of the Library of Celsus, built in the early 2nd century AD as a tomb and library for a Roman governor, is the image most travellers remember.
Guide tip
Start early, carry water and wear shoes with grip: the marble is slippery. The Temple of Artemis, once listed among the Seven Wonders, is today a single reconstructed column, but your guide will explain the scale it once had.
