Izmir and Ephesus in 2 days: a self-guided itinerary

Start the day at the highest historic point in the city. Known in antiquity as Mount Pagos, this is the hill the Agora below leans against, and the remains of its walls now stand in the middle of a busy residential neighbourhood. From the foot of the walls you take in the whole bay at once: the shoreline from Konak to Karşıyaka and the ships coming into the port. In the morning the sun lights the city from behind you, so this is the best hour for photographs; haze builds over the bay towards noon.

On the northern slope of Kadifekale, the Agora was the ancient city's state agora: a large central courtyard framed by colonnaded galleries. Most of what you see today belongs to the Roman rebuilding after the earthquake of AD 178. The real surprise is underground: in the vaulted basement of the basilica on the north wing you walk through cool corridors and see Roman-era graffiti and drawings scratched or inked onto the plastered walls. Look for the portrait relief of Faustina, wife of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, on the arch of the monumental gate on the west side.

The lanes running down from the Agora deliver you straight into Kemeraltı. This is not a bazaar you tour like a museum but a working market: coppersmiths, nut sellers, fabric shops and coffee roasters trade side by side in the same street. Step into Hisar Mosque to see its painted interior, then sit in the two-storey courtyard of Kızlarağası Han a few steps away for a tea or a Turkish coffee brewed in hot sand. Havra Sokağı, the street where several old synagogues stand, is close by. Eat lunch in one of the bazaar's tradesmen's restaurants, and do not leave Izmir without trying boyoz, the local flaky pastry.

The seaward exit of the bazaar brings you out in front of the Clock Tower, the emblem of the city. The fountains around its base and its late-Ottoman ornament repay a few minutes of close looking. Right beside it, the small Yalı Mosque, its exterior covered in tiles, is the most photogenic corner of the square. Walk to the water's edge and look across the bay: Karşıyaka faces you, and to the right runs the Karataş shore you will walk this afternoon.

Walk south from Konak along Mithatpaşa Caddesi towards Karataş; it takes about half an hour and passes streets that still carry traces of the city's old Jewish quarter. The Historic Elevator is a brick tower built to link the street below with the neighbourhood on the hillside, and its terrace at the top gives one of the finest views over the bay. On the way back, take the stairs beside the elevator down into the street named after the singer Dario Moreno: colourful façades, small cafés and steep steps make this short stretch one of the highlights of the day.

End the day the way Izmir likes to: with a walk on the Kordon. Once back at Konak, follow the shore north from the Pasaport pier towards Alsancak. As the sun drops over the west of the bay, families on the grass, cyclists and people fishing fill the waterfront. When you reach Gündoğdu Square, the side streets of Alsancak open up behind you; head in for dinner or stay a while longer by the water. Remember that tomorrow starts early.

Come from Izmir to Selçuk by suburban train, regional train or road; set off early and you will be inside shortly after the gates open. From Selçuk it is a short taxi or minibus ride to the ancient city. Starting at the upper gate on the south side means walking the whole city downhill, which saves your energy for Celsus and the theatre. See the State Agora first, then the small Odeon where the city council met and performances were held, before heading down the marble-paved Curetes Street. The fountains, monuments and temple façades lining the street show, step by step, how grand this provincial capital of the Roman era was.

Halfway down Curetes Street, under a protective roof, are seven Roman houses where the city's wealthy families lived. Built in terraces on the slope of Mount Koressos, they are arranged around open colonnaded courtyards. Coloured floor mosaics, marble-clad walls and frescoes of mythological scenes show a domestic life you will not see anywhere else in the ruins. The houses even had fountains and underfloor heating. Walkways under the roof let you look down into the rooms.

Where Curetes Street ends, the two-storey façade of the Library of Celsus, the best-known building in Ephesus, rises in front of you. Look at it from a little distance, from the last steps of the street, where the proportions of the columns and the statues in their niches read best. Right beside the library is the monumental gate into the commercial agora. Then walk north along Marble Street and climb into the Great Theatre, cut into the slope of Mount Panayır. From the upper rows, look down the Harbour Street that once ran to the sea and picture the city's link with the water. Opposite the theatre, the Ephesus Experience Museum rebuilds the city in digital form if you want to see it.

Back in Selçuk, have lunch in the town centre at a shaded table. The remains of a Byzantine aqueduct, standing near the railway station and along both sides of the main road, give the town's ordinary streets an unexpected historic backdrop; you may spot storks nesting on top of the arches. This short break is also a good chance to rest before the museum and the hill in the afternoon.

This is where the finds that once filled the buildings you saw in the ancient city are kept. The museum is organised by theme and find group: the Hall of Fountain Finds, the Hall of Terrace Houses Finds, ancient coins, finds from the Temple of Artemis and artefacts of the imperial cult. Seeing objects from the houses you walked through in the morning ties the two visits together. Do not miss the statues of Ephesian Artemis decorated with fertility symbols, the resting warrior found at the Pollio Fountain, and the marble portrait of Marcus Aurelius.

From the museum, a short but sunny climb leads up Ayasuluk Hill. The basilica on the southern slope was built over the tomb of John, one of the apostles of Jesus; what stands today belongs to the great church Emperor Justinian had built in the 6th century. Walk the marble-paved nave and see the area of the tomb and the baptistery. Then climb to the castle on the summit: from its partly restored walls and tower you see the Selçuk plain, the İsa Bey Mosque and the flat ground where the Artemision stood. Excavations have shown that one of the earliest settlements of Ephesus was on this hill.

On your way down from the hill, stop at the site of the Temple of Artemis, counted among the seven wonders of the ancient world. All that remains today is a single re-erected column and scattered marble blocks in a marshy field, yet behind the column the outlines of Ayasuluk Castle and the İsa Bey Mosque gather the region's different eras into one view. With the Artemis statues from the museum in mind, this modest site means far more.

If you still have energy before heading back to Izmir, go up to Şirince, a village in the hills behind Selçuk that has kept its heritage. Stone houses spread across the slope, narrow cobbled lanes and views over olive groves and vineyards close a tiring day among the ruins with a calm evening. A short walk, a tea on the village square and a viewpoint before sunset are enough. Return to Izmir from Selçuk the same way you came, and check the last departures before you set off.