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Windstar Wind Surf Shore Excursions from Kuşadası Port

Wind Surf calls at Kuşadası 22 times in 2027, from 7 May to 9 October, arriving at 07:00 (08:00 on 8 July and 21 August) and staying until 23:59. Ephesus is a 20-25 minute drive from the cruise port, so a party that meets early is inside the ancient city soon after the gates open.

We guided Windstar guests on three 2026 calls here, on Wind Star, Wind Spirit and Star Legend. The two programmes below are built on the Windstar days we guided in 2026: the half day on the Wind Spirit day, the full day on the Wind Star biblical day. Each is a private day with your own licensed guide and vehicle, priced per person with every 2027 entrance fee included. The other Windstar ships are on our Windstar Ephesus tours page.

Wind Surf shore excursions from Kuşadası, in one paragraph

Tours of Ephesus, a Kuşadası operator running private Ephesus days since 1999, plans private shore days for Windstar Wind Surf guests with a licensed guide and a private vehicle. Wind Surf has 22 confirmed Kuşadası calls in 2027, from 7 May 2027 to 9 October 2027, from 07:00 (08:00 on 8 July and 21 August) until 23:59, and Ephesus is 20-25 minutes from the port. The half day costs USD 174 per person for 2-4 guests (USD 149 for 5-8) and the full biblical day USD 186 per person (USD 161 for 5-8), with all entrance fees included, the Terrace Houses optional at 16 EUR per person, and the tour paid at the end.

Written by
Volkan Yırtımcı, Founder, Tours of Ephesus
Last reviewed
October 2026

Wind Surf’s dates and hours come from Windstar’s own voyage pages. The two programmes are built on the Windstar days we guided in 2026.

Two programmes

Two private Wind Surf days at Ephesus.

Both are built on the Windstar days we guided in 2026: the half day on the Wind Spirit day, the full day on the Wind Star biblical day. Prices are per person, with every 2027 entrance fee included.

Half day · No lunch

The half day, with the afternoon still free

Built on the Wind Spirit day we guided in 2026. You walk Ephesus downhill from the Upper Gate to the Lower Gate, then see the Temple of Artemis, the Basilica of St. John and the House of the Virgin Mary. There is no lunch stop, so you are back at the port around 13:30 with the rest of the call ahead.

  1. 01Ephesus Ancient City, Upper Gate to Lower Gate, downhill
  2. 02Temple of Artemis
  3. 03Basilica of St. John
  4. 04House of the Virgin Mary

OptionalThe Terrace Houses are optional on this day: 16 EUR per person at the gate in 2027, added inside the Ephesus visit if you want them, decided before or on the day. The visit climbs six levels of steel walkway and has no step-free alternative. See where the Terrace Houses sit on our Ephesus map.

Meet, 07:00 arrival
08:00
Back at the port
about 13:30
Per person, 2-4 guests
USD 174
Per person, 5-8 guests
USD 149

Everything in the standard private day is included; the full list is below.

Read more about the private Ephesus, Virgin Mary and St. John tour.

Full day · Biblical Ephesus

The full day, the biblical route

Built on the Wind Star biblical day we guided in 2026. Your guide reads Acts 19 in the Great Theatre, where the silversmiths rioted against Paul, then the day goes up to the House of the Virgin Mary, sits down to a traditional Turkish lunch at a family-run restaurant near Selçuk, and ends at the Basilica of St. John and the Temple of Artemis. You reach the port around 15:30.

  1. 01Ephesus Ancient City, Upper Gate to Lower Gate, Acts 19 told in the Great Theatre
  2. 02House of the Virgin Mary
  3. 03Traditional Turkish lunch at a family-run restaurant near Selçuk
  4. 04Basilica of St. John
  5. 05Temple of Artemis

OptionalThe Terrace Houses are optional on this day: 16 EUR per person at the gate in 2027, added inside the Ephesus visit if you want them, decided before or on the day. The visit climbs six levels of steel walkway and has no step-free alternative. See where the Terrace Houses sit on our Ephesus map.

Meet, 07:00 arrival
08:30
Back at the port
about 15:30
Per person, 2-4 guests
USD 186
Per person, 5-8 guests
USD 161

Everything in the standard private day is included; the full list is below.

Read more about the private biblical Ephesus tour.

For a Wind Surf party of two to four, the private Ephesus half day costs USD 174 per person and the full biblical day USD 186 per person; for five to eight guests they cost USD 149 and USD 161. Parties of nine or more get a price on request. Ephesus is 45 EUR per person from 1 April 2027, and every 2027 entrance fee on the route is inside the price. The Terrace Houses are the one optional extra, at 16 EUR per person.

Why a 23:59 departure from Kuşadası suits a full day

Wind Surf stays at Kuşadası from 07:00 until 23:59. A party that meets at 08:00 reaches the Upper Gate of Ephesus, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the first hour after it opens at 08:00, before the coach groups from the large ships reach the marble streets.

The full day returns you to the port around 15:30, with the evening still ahead before Wind Surf sails, so lunch near Selçuk can run long and you see the Basilica of St. John without watching the clock. If you would rather have the afternoon on board or in Kuşadası town, the half day has you back around 13:30. We plan every day to have you at the port at least ninety minutes before all-aboard.

On 8 July and 21 August Wind Surf berths at 08:00; on those days we set the meeting time with you from her arrival.

2027 calls

Wind Surf’s 22 Kuşadası calls, voyage by voyage.

Most 2027 Wind Surf voyages that call here are seven-day round trips from Piraeus, the port of Athens, so Wind Surf guests can reach Ephesus almost every week of her season. The three 14-day Star Collector voyages call twice, which lets a guest split the half day and the full day. Find your sailing by the date it leaves port to see your day in Kuşadası.

Windstar also sells longer sailings that contain two of the shorter legs, so a guest on one reaches Kuşadası twice. The 14-day Star Collector: Greek Classics and Hidden Gems Unveiled voyage PIRPIR14D runs Piraeus to Piraeus from 6 July to 20 July and calls at Kuşadası on 8 July (arriving 08:00) and 15 July (arriving 07:00). The 14-day Star Collector: Greek Classics and Hidden Gems Unveiled voyage PIRPIR14D runs Piraeus to Piraeus from 12 August to 26 August and calls at Kuşadası on 14 August (arriving 07:00) and 21 August (arriving 08:00). The 14-day Star Collector: Greek Classics and Hidden Gems Unveiled voyage PIRPIR14D runs Piraeus to Piraeus from 19 August to 2 September and calls at Kuşadası on 21 August (arriving 08:00) and 28 August (arriving 07:00). A guest on one of these has two days here: Ephesus can be the half day on one call and the full day on the other, or Ephesus on one call and Kuşadası town or the ship on the other. Each call is its own private day, booked and paid for separately.

She is here from May to July on Thursdays and from August to October on Saturdays, with 7 May on a Friday and 27 September on a Monday, as Windstar's own itineraries show. On 8 July and 21 August she sails Windstar's Off The Beaten Path Greek Islands route instead, arriving at 08:00.

  1. 7 May 2027Fri

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  2. 13 May 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  3. 20 May 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  4. 27 May 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  5. 3 June 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  6. 10 June 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  7. 17 June 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  8. 24 June 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  9. 1 July 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  10. 8 July 2027Thu

    08:00 to 23:59 · Off The Beaten Path Greek Islands

  11. 15 July 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · James Beard Foundation: Treasures of the Greek Isles

  12. 22 July 2027Thu

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  13. 7 August 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  14. 14 August 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  15. 21 August 2027Sat

    08:00 to 23:59 · Off The Beaten Path Greek Islands

  16. 28 August 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  17. 4 September 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  18. 11 September 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  19. 18 September 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  20. 27 September 2027Mon

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  21. 2 October 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

  22. 9 October 2027Sat

    07:00 to 23:59 · Treasures of the Greek Isles

Source: Windstar Cruises tour-details pages (windstarcruises.com), read 2026-10-21; CruiseMapper Kuşadası port schedule cross-checked. Where the two differ, Windstar is used. Schedules change by sailing; we reconfirm your call when you book. See the first Wind Surf voyage on windstarcruises.com.

Windstar sailing cruise ship Wind Surf under sail on her five masts, leaving Cavo on the island of Elba at dusk
Wind Surf, the five-masted Windstar sailing ship, leaving Cavo on Elba. In 2027 she calls at Kuşadası for Ephesus on 22 days between May and October, from 07:00 (08:00 on 8 July and 21 August) until 23:59.

Wind Surf leaving Cavo, Elba, photo by Otto Domes via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and optimized for web use.

What is included in every private day

The price covers everything on the route except the optional Terrace Houses (16 EUR per person at the gate). Both days include the same seven things. What a luxury day adds on top of them is in luxury vs standard private Ephesus tours.

  • A licensed private guideYours alone for the day.
  • An air-conditioned private vehicleWith a separate professional driver, so your guide guides.
  • Skip-the-line entry ticketsPre-purchased and pre-paid, carried as QR codes. How the gate actually works.
  • Bottled waterIn the vehicle throughout the day.
  • ParkingAt every site on the route.
  • Road tollsThe whole route, no roadside surprises.
  • TaxesIncluded. The only extra is the optional Terrace Houses, 16 EUR per person at the gate.

How we get you back to your ship on time

Every day we run is planned backwards from your ship’s schedule, and it ends with you at the port at least ninety minutes before all-aboard. The margin is deliberate and comfortable: Ephesus is a 20-25 minute drive from the berth, and behind the margin sit four separate confirmations of the ship’s schedule, the official port list the evening before, the ship’s live position from first light, our own contacts inside the port through the morning, and your guide reading the times posted at the gangway itself.

How the whole system works, layer by layer, is written up in full in how we track your cruise ship.

Meeting point

We meet in the Starbucks garden in the port plaza, two minutes from the ship on flat ground, with no steps between the gangway and the table. Your guide will already be there, holding a printed sign with the name you give us at booking, so there is no searching a crowded gate for a face you have never met. If you would like a coffee before the drive, there is time; the day begins when you are ready.

The walk from the gangway to the table, step by step, is in our Kuşadası cruise port guide.

Tours of Ephesus guide Fulya Tamer waiting with a printed name sign on the Starbucks terrace at Kuşadası cruise port
The Starbucks gardenOur guide Fulya Tamer with a printed name sign on the Starbucks terrace, two minutes from the gangway at Kuşadası port.
Pay after your tour

Payment

Visa and Mastercard are welcome, and the price is the same by card, so pay however suits you. Whichever you choose, it is one payment at the end of the tour: no deposit, and nothing paid before the day itself. Cash is a choice, not a requirement. If your plans change, cancellation is free up to 48 hours before the tour.

Frequently asked

Wind Surf at Kuşadası: your questions

Ask anything else on WhatsApp, +90 532 324 2489, and we answer the same day.

Most Wind Surf voyages that call here stop at Kuşadası once, from 07:00 until 23:59 (08:00 arrival on 8 July and 21 August). The 14-day Star Collector: Greek Classics and Hidden Gems Unveiled voyage PIRPIR14D runs Piraeus to Piraeus from 6 July to 20 July and calls at Kuşadası on 8 July (arriving 08:00) and 15 July (arriving 07:00). The 14-day Star Collector: Greek Classics and Hidden Gems Unveiled voyage PIRPIR14D runs Piraeus to Piraeus from 12 August to 26 August and calls at Kuşadası on 14 August (arriving 07:00) and 21 August (arriving 08:00). The 14-day Star Collector: Greek Classics and Hidden Gems Unveiled voyage PIRPIR14D runs Piraeus to Piraeus from 19 August to 2 September and calls at Kuşadası on 21 August (arriving 08:00) and 28 August (arriving 07:00). The 22 confirmed 2027 calls are 7, 13, 20 and 27 May; 3, 10, 17 and 24 June; 1, 8, 15 and 22 July; 7, 14, 21 and 28 August; 4, 11, 18 and 27 September; 2 and 9 October. Every date comes from Windstar's own itinerary pages; send us your sailing date and we match it to your call when you book.

Choose the half day if you want the afternoon on board or in Kuşadası town: Ephesus from the Upper Gate to the Lower Gate, the Temple of Artemis, the Basilica of St. John and the House of the Virgin Mary, no lunch, back at the port around 13:30. It costs USD 174 per person for 2-4 guests or USD 149 for 5-8. Choose the full day for the biblical route, with Acts 19 told in the Great Theatre and a traditional Turkish lunch at a family-run restaurant near Selçuk, back around 15:30, at USD 186 per person for 2-4 guests or USD 161 for 5-8. Wind Surf stays until 23:59, so both fit every call.

No, they are optional in both programmes, at 16 EUR per person at the gate in 2027. The Terrace Houses are the covered Roman homes inside Ephesus, visited halfway down Curetes Street, and you can decide before or on the day. The visit climbs six levels of steel walkway and there is no step-free alternative. Every other entrance fee on the route is included in the price.

The day belongs to your party alone. Your guide holds a licence from Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism and does not drive; a separate driver handles the air-conditioned vehicle. You pay nothing in advance and no deposit: the price is one payment at the end of the tour, by Visa, Mastercard or cash at the same price. It includes every 2027 entrance fee on the route, with Ephesus at 45 EUR per person from 1 April 2027. Cancellation is free up to 48 hours before the tour.

Ephesus is a 20-25 minute drive from Kuşadası Cruise Port. We meet in the Starbucks garden in the port plaza, two minutes from the ship, and plan every day to have you back at the port at least ninety minutes before all-aboard. With Wind Surf in port until 23:59, even the full day returns hours before she sails.

We do not compare our day with the ship's own excursions. We can describe our own day: private to your party, with your own licensed guide, an air-conditioned vehicle and a driver no one else shares, and a pace and route you set. If the ship offers something you want and we do not, book it with the ship. If you want Ephesus private and on your own clock, that is the day we run.

Yes. We guided Windstar guests on three 2026 calls at Kuşadası, on Wind Star, Wind Spirit and Star Legend. The two Wind Surf programmes are built on the Windstar days we guided in 2026: the half day on the Wind Spirit day in September and the full day on the Wind Star biblical day in August. Wind Surf's first 2027 call is 7 May 2027.

Booking a Wind Surf day

Send us your sailing date and the day you want.

Write to booking@toursofephesus.com, message us on WhatsApp, or use the booking form, which arrives with Windstar Wind Surf already filled in as your ship. We check your call against Windstar’s published itinerary, hold the day for your party alone, and take no payment until the tour ends.

  • Your sailing date, so we can match your Kuşadası call
  • Half day or full day, and whether you want the Terrace Houses
  • How many guests, and their full names for the welcome sign
  • A WhatsApp number we can reach on the day
WhatsApp +90 532 324 2489

Tours of Ephesus is an independent local operator and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of Windstar Cruises.

How booking works

From your ship to Ephesus, in three steps.

  1. Step 1

    Pick a tour, or just message us

    Choose from the tours below or send your ship name and date on WhatsApp. No deposit, no card details.

  2. Step 2

    Meet your guide at the port

    Your licensed guide waits at the Starbucks inside the Kuşadası port plaza, holding a sign with your name.

  3. Step 3

    Pay after your tour

    Cash or card, at the end of the day, once you are happy. Free cancellation up to 48 hours before.

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