Daily Sardis & Philadelphia Tour from Didim – Seven Churches of Asia

Daily Sardis & Philadelphia Tour from Didim – Seven Churches of Asia

This full-day trip from Didim takes you inland to Sardis and Philadelphia, two of the Seven Churches of Asia named in the Book of Revelation, combining Lydian royal history, Roman monuments and early Christian heritage in a single guided excursion. After hotel pickup you travel to Sardis, today the village of Sart, set in one of the most picturesque landscapes of all the Seven Churches. In the 6th century BC it was the capital of the wealthy Lydian kingdom, and in Revelation its church was described as one that had a name for being alive but was dying.

At Sardis you visit the great Temple of Artemis, one of the largest Ionic temples ever built, and the Temple of Cybele, later converted into a Byzantine church. You also walk through the restored gymnasium complex and the reconstructed Synagogue, among the largest ancient synagogues ever found, and see the last few metres of the Royal Road of the Persian Empire, which ran from Susa to Sardis and is associated with Cyrus the Great. Nearby flows the Pactolus, the legendary golden river whose gold dust once made the Lydian kings famously rich. Lunch is served at a restaurant along the way.

The tour then continues to Philadelphia, modern Alasehir, the only one of the seven churches that received no rebuke in Revelation. Here you see the remains of a brick-built Byzantine basilica with a soaring arch and traces of 11th-century frescoes. With hotel transfers in Didim, an air-conditioned vehicle, a professional English-speaking guide, lunch and entrance fees included, this Didim day tour is ideal for travellers interested in biblical history and ancient Anatolia.