Ephesus as a group or privately: which suits you

The two options in one sentence

As a group, you share the vehicle and the guide with other cruise passengers and pay 39 euros per person. Privately, the vehicle and the guide are yours alone, you set the pace, and you pay 390 euros per group of up to 15 people. Both see Ephesus with a licensed guide and return to the port at least one hour before sailing. The rest are differences, and this guide puts them side by side.

What does each really cost?

	Group tour	Private tour	Private express
Price	39 € or 45 dollars per person	390 € or 449 dollars per group (up to 15)	290 € or 335 dollars per group (up to 15)
Deposit to book	9 € or 10 dollars per person	39 € or 45 dollars per group	9 € or 10 dollars per group
Balance	On the day, cash or card	On the day, cash or card	On the day, cash or card
Tickets	Separate, per person	Separate, per person	Separate, per person

Tickets are the same for all three: 40 euros for Ephesus with the Experience Museum included, 15 euros for the House of the Virgin Mary and 6 euros for the Basilica of St John when the programme includes them. The Terrace Houses, inside Ephesus, cost 15 euros more and are only visited on private tours.

The private price is split among those who go. Per person it works out like this:

People	Private, per person	Group, per person
2	195 €	39 €
4	97.50 €	39 €
6	65 €	39 €
8	48.75 €	39 €
10	39 €	39 €
15	26 €	39 €

From 10 people upward, private costs the same or less than the group, with your own vehicle and guide. Between 4 and 8, the difference is what you pay to go at your own pace.

What changes on the day?

The start. As a group we meet at the Ada Pier Lounge, inside the Cruise Plaza, about 45 minutes after the ship docks, and leave 15 minutes later. Privately there is no group gathering: your guide waits with a sign at the same Ada Pier Lounge and you leave as soon as you step off the ship.

The pace. In a group the Ephesus walk takes about 100 minutes with fixed stops and pauses in the shade. Privately you stop where it interests you: more time at the Library of Celsus, less where it does not, and you can add the Terrace Houses or a coffee break.

The leather outlet. Group tours include 30 minutes at an export leather outlet, with a short fashion show; it is what makes the 39 euro price possible and we explain it with no small print on every tour page. No private tour includes it.

The House of the Virgin Mary. As a group we visit in the afternoon, once the ships’ excursions have come down and the shrine is quiet. Privately we go up first thing, ahead of the coaches, and come down to Ephesus afterwards.

The extras. Private only: the Terrace Houses, Şirince, the Basilica of St John, lunch in Selçuk, or simply half an hour more in the bazaar.

How long a call does each tour need?

We allow 45 minutes to disembark and gather, and the return one hour before sailing. With that rule:

Time in port	What fits
Under 5 hours 30 minutes	Only the Private Ephesus Express, about 3 hours
5 hours 30 minutes to 6 hours	The essential group tour in express format; from 5h45 also the essential private
6 hours to 7 hours 15 minutes	The full essentials: 4h20 as a group, 3.5 to 4 hours privately
7 hours 15 minutes or more	Every private tour, including the House of the Virgin; the full group day from 7h30

Note one detail: privately the day is shorter than as a group for the same programme, because there is no outlet and no waiting. That is why the essential private fits from a 5h45 call and the private with the House of the Virgin from 7h15, a quarter of an hour before the group.

When does the group suit you?

• You travel as a couple or alone and want Ephesus well explained for 39 euros.
• A 30-minute outlet stop, with coffee and air conditioning, does not bother you.
• You prefer the House of the Virgin Mary in the afternoon, with the shrine empty.
• You want to book with 9 euros and settle the rest on the day.

Your tour is Ephesus, the Experience Museum and the Temple of Artemis, or the full day with the House of the Virgin Mary if your call reaches 7 hours 30 minutes.

When does private suit you?

• You are 4 or more: a family with children, friends, a parish group.
• Someone in the group has limited mobility: the vehicle goes up to the upper gate of Ephesus, the walk is downhill and the guide adapts each stretch.
• You want the Terrace Houses, which groups almost never see.
• You are pilgrims and want unhurried time at the House of the Virgin, first thing.
• You want a day with no commercial stop at all.
• Your call is too short for the group: the essential private fits from 5h45.

Start with the essential private tour and, if your call allows, the private tour with the House of the Virgin Mary.

And the Private Ephesus Express?

It is the answer for calls under 5 hours 30 minutes, where no group tour makes it back in time. About 3 hours, straight to Ephesus and back, with your own guide and vehicle, for 290 euros or 335 dollars per group and a deposit of just 9 euros. We would rather tell you your call is short than let you book something that does not make it.

What is the same in both

A licensed guide, an air-conditioned vehicle, tickets handled at the ticket office so you skip the queue, return to the port at least one hour before sailing, free cancellation up to 24 hours before, and a 100% deposit refund if your ship does not reach Kusadasi. And the usual rule: the programme is calculated with your ship’s real hours. If in doubt, plan your day with your call’s hours and see what fits.