5 días · Trabzon → Trabzon
Private 5-Day Black Sea Highlands: Uzungöl, Pokut Plateau, Macahel & Karagöl from Trabzon
Overview
A private 5-day road trip through the wildest highlands of Turkey's Eastern Black Sea, starting and ending at Trabzon Airport (TZX). Instead of the usual Uzungöl day trip, this route climbs to the Pokut Plateau, crosses into Artvin and spends two nights in Macahel, one of Turkey's most remote and protected valleys on the Georgian border.
Your own licensed guide every day: every departure includes a private, licensed English-speaking guide plus a private vehicle and driver – only your group, never strangers. Prices are per person and get lower the more people travel together (1 to 8 travellers).
The tour runs every day from May to October and is fully private: one vehicle, one driver and only your travel companions. You can change stops, add photo breaks or slow down at any time.
Why this route is different
- Pokut Plateau (about 2,000 m) – wooden plateau houses and the famous sea of clouds over Fırtına Valley.
- Macahel (Camili) – part of the Camili Biosphere Reserve, recognised by UNESCO in 2005, home to the pure Caucasian honey bee.
- Sümela Monastery – a 4th-century monastery built into a cliff at roughly 1,200 m.
- Borçka Karagöl – a forest-ringed lake in a nature park, quiet even in high season.
Good to know
Best season: June–September for the plateau roads; May and October are greener and quieter. Fly into Trabzon from Istanbul (about 1 h 50 min). Accommodation is in a lake-view hotel, a traditional plateau house and family-run guesthouses, chosen for location rather than stars.
Highlights
- Private licensed English-speaking guide and driver every day
- Sleep above the clouds on Pokut Plateau at about 2,000 m
- Explore Macahel, part of the Camili UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
- See Sümela Monastery clinging to the cliffs of Altındere Valley
- Walk the shores of Uzungöl and Borçka Karagöl lakes
- Daily departures May–October, only your group in the vehicle
Day by day
Your driver meets you at Trabzon Airport. After a coffee stop at Sera Lake, drive into Altındere Valley National Park to visit Sümela Monastery, the cliffside monastery founded in the 4th century. Continue through Çaykara to Uzungöl and enjoy an evening walk around the lake.
Overnight: Uzungöl (lake-view hotel).
Route map
Included
- Private licensed English-speaking guide for your group every day of the tour, plus a separate private driver. Guide accommodation and expenses are included.
- Private air-conditioned vehicle (sedan, minivan or minibus depending on group size), fuel, parking and tolls.
- 4 nights: 1 lake-view hotel in Uzungöl, 1 traditional plateau house in Pokut, 2 family-run guesthouses in Macahel.
- 4 breakfasts and 3 dinners.
- Airport pick-up and drop-off at Trabzon (TZX), local tastings in Macahel.
Not included
- Entrance fees to museums and archaeological sites (pay on the spot). Flights, lunches and dinners unless stated, drinks, personal expenses and tips.
- International and domestic flights are not included unless stated in the itinerary.
- Personal travel insurance is not included; we recommend purchasing it before travel.
Your guide & vehicle
A licensed English-speaking guide accompanies you every day, with a private air-conditioned vehicle and professional driver sized to your group.
Price per person by group size
1 pax
$5,770
2 pax
$3,000
3 pax
$2,220
4 pax
$1,830
5 pax
$1,600
6 pax
$1,440
7 pax
$1,330
8 pax
$1,250
por persona · 9+ → Groups over 8 — request a custom quote
Frequently asked questions
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