Visiting Ephesus, the Terrace Houses and Selçuk on a Day Trip from Izmir

Sitting just 75 kilometres south of central Izmir (and 55 kilometres south of Izmir Airport), UNESCO-listed Ephesus (Efes) is the best-preserved classical Greco-Roman metropolis in the eastern Mediterranean. Because direct trains link central Izmir with the town of Selçuk (3 kilometres from the ruins) multiple times a day, visiting Ephesus independently from your Izmir hotel is effortless, inexpensive and far more flexible than joining a rushed bus tour.

How to Get from Izmir to Selçuk (Ephesus) by Train

You have two comfortable rail options departing from central Izmir (plus intercity coaches from Izmir Otogar):

1. TCDD Regional Trains (Direct, ~1 hour 15 minutes): the regional trains bound for Denizli, Söke and Nazilli depart 6 to 8 times daily from Basmane Train Station in central Izmir, stopping directly at Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport (20 minutes later) and pulling right into the heart of Selçuk Station (50 minutes from the airport) with zero changes of train. Buy tickets at Basmane/Airport ticket windows or on the TCDD e-Bilet app.
2. İZBAN Commuter Train (Every day with İzmirim Kart / Contactless Card): board any southbound İZBAN train towards Tepeköy at Alsancak, Hilal, Halkapınar or the Airport, step across the platform at Tepeköy station onto the connecting Tepeköy, Selçuk İZBAN shuttle train, and arrive at Selçuk station.

The Smartest Strategy at Ephesus: Enter at the Upper (Magnesia) Gate

Ephesus is built in a long valley sloping downward from east to west between two hills. From Selçuk bus/train station, take a 5-minute taxi to the Upper Gate (Magnesia Gate) rather than the lower gate so you walk downhill the entire way:

• Curetes Street and the Library of Celsus: walk down the marble-paved processional avenue past the Odeon, the Temple of Hadrian and Trajan's Fountain to the soaring two-storey marble facade of the Library of Celsus (117 AD), built to hold 12,000 scrolls.
• Do Not Skip the Terrace Houses (Yamaç Evler): rising on the hillside directly opposite the Temple of Hadrian under a protective glass-and-steel roof (requiring a separate supplemental ticket or included in the combined Ephesus ticket / Museum Pass), six luxury Roman aristocratic villas preserve vivid floor mosaics, frescoed dining halls and heated marble baths.
• The 24,000-Seat Great Theatre and Harbour Street: finish at the monumental Hellenistic-Roman theatre where St Paul preached, exit the Lower Gate, and take the green dolmuş minibus back into Selçuk to visit the Ephesus Archaeological Museum (home to the twin marble statues of Artemis), the 6th-century Basilica of St John, 14th-century İsa Bey Mosque and the single standing column of the Temple of Artemis.