Overview
The Ephesus Ancient Theatre is a venue that deserves serious second thoughts before attending a concert. The setting is genuinely beautiful, but the sound system is terrible, entry and exit involve endless parking and ticket queues, the stone seats have been baking in the sun all day so they're scorching hot, and, most critically, there is a definite scorpion problem. A person 5-6 rows ahead of us screamed about a scorpion, and when we shone a light under our seats, there it was. When we reported it to security on the way out, their response was a casual "yeah, we usually get 3-4 scorpions per concert." That level of nonchalance and terrible organization is unacceptable.
If this were in another country, it would probably host some of the finest cultural events in world history. Instead, it's the quintessential Turkish way of doing things: a spectacular venue ruined by awful organization, hosting an annual opera-ballet festival that falls far short of its potential.
My Place Reviews
Restaurants
7 Bilgeler Winery & Wineyards2025★★★★★
You can do a paid tasting until 5 PM. The person conducting the tasting was really knowledgeable and attentive. Their wines are generally tasty, but the best one is hands down the Pythagoras. We'll definitely go try the restaurant one day too.
2 years later we got the chance to try the restaurant as well. The food is generally good. Seafood papardelle, Cretan zucchini, and mücver quiche were our favorites.
Attractions
Ephesus Ancient Greek Theatre2025★★★☆☆
Think twice before going to a concert here. The setting is truly beautiful but the sound system is terrible, there are insane parking and ticket lines at entry and exit, and the stones have been baking in the sun all day so they burn like crazy. And most importantly, there is definitely a scorpion problem. After someone 5-6 rows ahead of us screamed about a scorpion, we shined a light under our seats and spotted scorpions right away. When we told security on the way out, they casually said yeah there are 3-4 scorpions at every concert. That level of nonchalance and that level of bad organization is unacceptable.