Ephesus

Ephesus was one of the great cities of the ancient world — a port of 250,000, with paved marble streets, a 25,000-seat theater, and the Temple of Artemis (one of the Seven Wonders). What remains is partial but staggering: the Library of Celsus façade, the terrace houses with their intact frescoes and mosaics, and the long Curetes Street that runs from the upper agora down to the harbor. The nearby town of Selçuk is where you stay; the ruins are a short shuttle away.