Çanakkale Cruise Stop: Troy or Gallipoli in One Day

On a Çanakkale cruise stop, your ship calls on the Asian shore of the Dardanelles, the strait between Europe and Asia. In one day, choose between Troy, about 30 kilometers (19 miles) to the south, and the Gallipoli peninsula across the water. Here is how we plan each day around your all-aboard time.

Which cruises call at Çanakkale?

Some voyages through the Dardanelles call at Çanakkale. For example, Viking’s Ancient Mediterranean Treasures voyage lists the stop as Troy (Çanakkale), after two days in Istanbul; see our page for Viking guests. Your booking shows the arrival and all-aboard times, so we plan the day backward from the second one.

How do you see Troy on a Çanakkale cruise stop?

At Troy, people built nine cities, one on the ruins of the next, from about 3600 BC to Roman times. So your guide reads the low mound like a book. First comes the stone ramp of Troy II, a rich town of about 2500 BC. Then you walk along the smooth, sloping walls of Troy VI, from the Late Bronze Age. Finally, you stand at the edge of the trench that Heinrich Schliemann cut through the hill in the 1870s.

Next door, the Troy Museum holds finds from all nine cities, among them the carved Polyxena sarcophagus. Troy joined the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998. The site has little shade, so in summer bring water and a hat.

How do you see Gallipoli on a Çanakkale cruise stop?

The Gallipoli peninsula forms the European shore of the strait, so a ferry carries you across. There, the land battles of 1915 lasted about eight and a half months. Your guide takes you to Anzac Cove, where Australian and New Zealand troops landed on April 25, 1915, and up to Lone Pine. Then you reach Chunuk Bair, where the New Zealand memorial stands next to the statue of Mustafa Kemal. He commanded the Ottoman defenders here and later became Atatürk. Nearby stands the memorial of the 57th Regiment.

If a relative fought here, send us a name and a unit before your trip, and we find the cemetery.

What can you see in Çanakkale itself?

With a short call, stay in town. Çimenlik Castle, built by Mehmed II in 1462, stands on the Asian shore. Kilitbahir faces it across the narrowest point of the strait. Then walk the Kordon along the water to the Trojan Horse from the 2004 film. In town, the Çanakkale Ceramic Museum fills a bath built for soldiers in 1904. For something sweet, try peynir helvası, the warm cheese dessert of the town.

Our suggestion

Choose one place per call. Troy is the shorter outing, since it lies on the same shore. Gallipoli takes a full day, because of the ferry and the distances on the peninsula. With your own guide and driver, the day follows your own plan, at your own pace. Ask us through our shore excursions service, and for a longer stay, see our two-day Gallipoli and Troy tour.

Is your ship calling at Çanakkale? Tell us the date and the hours in port, and we will plan the day.