Gallipoli Battlefields to Join Peter Sommer Signature Expedition

Gallipoli Battlefields to Join Peter Sommer Signature Expedition

12 October 2015, 3:20PM
MG Media

Archaeological and cultural tour specialist Peter Sommer Travels has added the battlefields of Gallipoli to the company’s most acclaimed expedition, a 12-day journey through Turkey following the conquests of Alexander the Great.
 
Led by archaeologist and BBC documentary maker Peter Sommer, the expedition traces the epic story of the Macedonian king while travelling among some of the most spectacular ancient sites in Turkey.
 
Inspired by Peter Sommer’s own 3200km trek across Turkey in 1994, the expedition has been named by National Geographic as one of the world’s ‘Top Ten Learning Retreats’ and one of ‘The 100 Best Worldwide Vacations to Enrich Your Life.’
 
Next year’s departure of In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great: The Conquest of Asia Minor starts on April 25 and will feature additional time to explore the Dardanelles and the Gallipoli peninsula, providing an ancient context to an area best known for 20th Century conflict.
 
“This year’s centenary of the Gallipoli campaign generated enormous interest in the Anzacs and some of the pivotal events of the First World War,” Peter Sommer said. “As a result, we’ve found there’s also a growing interest in many of the other events that helped define this region, so we’re taking the opportunity to provide a deeper insight into what has been a strategically important location for millennia.”
 
Alexander the Great crossed the Dardanelles (then known as the Hellespont) on his way to conquer the Persian Empire, more than 2200 years before Britain and the Anzacs attempted to secure this highly strategic waterway. Peter Sommer’s tour offers a chance to visit key sites of the Gallipoli campaign before travelling to the city of Troy, where Alexander famously ran naked around the tomb of Achilles.
 
Other highlights of the tour include the renowned classical ruins of Ephesus, Apollo’s great temple at Didyma and the celebrated Mausoleum of Halicarnassus at Bodrum.
 
Specialising in small-group expeditions, Peter Sommer Travels offers more than 20 different tours and gulet cruises among the ancient sites of Turkey, Greece and Italy.  Tours are hosted by expert guides including specialists in history, archaeology, the classics and cuisine. 
 
In the Footsteps of Alexander the Great: The Conquest of Asia Minor operates from April 25 to May 6, 2015 and is priced from £3195 per person twin share (approx NZ$7300), including all ground transport, accommodation, expert guide, site admission fees and most meals (flights not included).
 
For full details and bookings visit www.petersommer.com.

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