2015 Gallipoli Ballot - 100th anniversary of the ANZAC landings

[kpc]

If anyone is in to ancient history and wants to make a trip of it, Troy is very nearby (near to Cannekale that is) and the wonderful Ancient Greek ruins at Pergamon and Ephesus are not far away.

Agree. .I did a private tour of Southern Turkey, including these places, in 2006...it was absolutely fantastic!

 

[Gogo65]

Stage 1 complete. Outbound flight booked (F/ MASA ) gets us to London.

Gogo65 or anyone else have a contact for a private tour option? Sounds preferable to an organised Big Red Bus affair

Sorry I haven't replied, on holidays at the moment, just finished a week cruise of the Caribbean prior to spending another 6 weeks in the US and Europe.
We have also booked our flights, however we only managed business class to Paris with Singapore airlines, very jealous of your F flight!! We plan on going over end of March, then finishing the trip in Turkey.

so far I have looked at fairy chimneys, for a private tour, however they haven't got back to me yet. I have also looked on tripadvisor and someone has recommended anzactoursturkey.com.au, is difficult at the moment being on holidays to look into it much, however I don't want to miss out either.

 

[Pushka]

We are going to Turkey this July. We'd planned to do this last year but amongst other things Taksim Square was in turmoil. This time we are visiting Kusadasi on a cruise and then Istanbul for a few days. Everyone who has been to Turkey says it's a must do place and wonderful.

 

[Sprucegoose]

My great grandfather was also at Gallipoli and in Palestine. Mum and I were both in the ballot and it would have been good to get the ticket. But I'm probably more interested in Palestine, as well, especially as I served in the same unit so it is part of my unit history as well. I also think Gallipoli would be more poignant to experience the dawn without the crowds.

My thoughts as well, no crowds.

Hope everyone gets what they are wanting

 

[amaroo]

For those planning a visit. I'm looking at a couple of tours....one has provided this honest assessment on the days activity...
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Anzac Day is by far the busiest day of the year for Australian and New Zealand visitors to Gallipoli – half of the annual number of Australian and New Zealand visitors come on Anzac Day. Tourism infrastructure on Anzac Day is stretched to capacity, so expect to spend long periods of time waiting and queuing, and large crowds.

Most tour operators generally leave their Canakkale hotels at about 9pm on April 24, and join a queue of coaches crossing the Dardanelles on ferries. On arrival at Eceabat, the coaches join a long queue which snakes its way across the peninsula for several hours. On arrival in the Anzac sector, coaches are allocated a number, which passengers will use the next day to co-ordinate pick-up at the completion of the Anzac Day services. Passengers then leave the coaches and must walk for about a kilometre, before passing through security checkpoints and accessing the commemorative site at North Beach. (Please note, the Anzac Day Dawn Service is NOT held at Anzac Cove. The Dawn Service site is at North Beach, several hundred metres north of Anzac Cove.) It is important to remember that, once you leave your coach, you will not have access to it until it picks you up on the afternoon of Anzac Day, so you need to carry with you everything you will need for a full night and day spent in the elements. Layered clothing is the key – during the night temperatures can fall close to freezing. During the day the temperature can rise into the high 20s, so you will need to be able to strip off clothing as it warms up. Bear in mind that you will need to carry all the clothing that you remove, so a good backpack is an important accessory.

Visitors are usually seated at the Dawn Service site by about 1am, and must then wait in the cold until the Dawn Service begins at 5.30am. It will be VERY cold, with temperatures often close to freezing, and the site is exposed to the elements, with no shelter. Thermal underclothes, gloves, scarfs, beanies and sleeping bags will not be out of place. Also bring wet weather gear in case it rains. There are food and toilet facilities at the site, but you may also want to bring some snacks. Expect that you will not sleep during the night – you will most likely be seated in a plastic chair, and it is unlikely you will sleep.

The Dawn Service runs for one hour, from 5.30am to 6.30am, by which time the sun has risen. Following the Dawn Service, there are two National Services later in the morning, one for Australians at Lone Pine, and one for New Zealanders at Chunuk Bair. To reach these sites, visitors must walk for about two kilometres south, to a track known as Artillery Road, which climbs from the beach up to Second Ridge. Artillery Road is rough and steep, and the walk up to Lone Pine is about another two kilometres.

Australian visitors must pass through another security checkpoint before entering the site at Lone Pine Cemetery, where they find a seat and wait for the Australian National Service to begin at 10am, finishing at 11am. New Zealand visitors continue past Lone Pine and then must walk uphill along a sealed road for another three kilometres to Chunuk Bair. Allow about 90 minutes for the walk, which can be challenging. The New Zealand service at Chunuk Bair begins at 11.45am and finishes at 12.30pm. In summary, Australian visitors must walk for more than four kilometres to reach the National Service sites, and New Zealand visitors must walk for more than seven kilometres, much of it uphill. Considering that this must be completed after a night spent without sleep and exposed to the elements, and you can see why Anzac Day at Gallipoli requires a large amount of commitment from visitors!

Following the completion of the Chunuk Bair service, coaches will begin picking up visitors from Chunuk Bair and Lone Pine. Given the hundreds of coaches that must stop and collect visitors, the last coaches will not pick up passengers from Lone Pine until mid- to late-afternoon. Coaches then travel back across the peninsula to Eceabat, and board ferries back to Canakkale. Expect to arrive back at your hotel late in the afternoon or early in the evening.

It is expected that the need to check ballot tickets on Anzac Day 2015 will cause even more delays to the above schedule, so expect to spend a good quantity of your time on Anzac Day waiting.

It is also important to note that it is difficult to see many battlefield sites on Anzac Day, so plan to tour the battlefields either several days before or after Anzac Day.

 

[sinophile888]

Thank you, amaroo. My son is going in 2015 and is looking to make his arrangements.

 

[Pushka]

Thank you, amaroo. My son is going in 2015 and is looking to make his arrangements.

Are you on the mend now?

 

[sinophile888]

Are you on the mend now?

I hope so, thanks Pushka.
I read your thread on the cruise; it was a bitter sweet read for me.
I have had quite a time but I hope I have now turned the corner. A friend has likened my experience to a Normal bell-shaped curve but at times it felt more like a J curve. 6 hospital admissions and 5 procedures in a 2 month period have been a touch tiring.
I am still planning to travel when everything is finished, but my husband is very reluctant to be more than a short distance from a hospital.

 

[amaroo]

How is everyone going with bookings?

Thought I found a tour worth investigating Tour 1 | Gallipoli Tours 2015 called to get some details and was advised they still had plenty of availability. Enquired on the size of the tour and was told they already had confirmed bookings >1000 :shock: When they heard my horror; they quickly advised each bus only holds 35!

Quickly coming to the conclusion that a short and not so sweet tour for the actual service - followed by a private tour of Ephesus, Aphrodisias, Pemukkale, Pisidian Antiochia, Cappadocia, etc.....and then a return visit to ANZAC cove after the crowd has dispersed might be a better option.

 

[Pushka]

Not sure if anyone here would know but in July we are on a cruise that arrives into Istanbul at 1pm. We will pass Gallipoli on the way that morning and was just wondering how early that might be? I know it will depend on cruising speed but some of the cruise itineraries might be able to pinpoint the hours between Gallipoli and Istanbul. It's about 4 hours or so by land but sea obviously is different.

And best wishes to all our diggers for tomorrow.

 

[Ric]

Congratulations to those who were successful in the lottery for tickets to Anzac Day 2015.

I was at Gallipoli for a brief visit 3 years ago, and I found it to be an incredibly moving experience. Near Anzac Cove you'll find a wall with the following statement by the Turkish President Attaturk written in 1934: "Those heroes that shed their blood and lost their lives... You are now lying in the soil of a friendly country. Therefore rest in peace. There is no difference between the Johnnies and the Mehmets to us where they lie side by side now here in this country of ours... you, the mothers, who sent their sons from faraway countries wipe away your tears; your sons are now lying in our bosom and are in peace. After having lost their lives on this land they have become our sons as well." What an incredibly generous statement for him to make, given that we were the invaders of Turkey and killed so many of their men.

Here's pic of that wall



And that reminded of of my promised TR from last May!

 

[turtlemichael]

Not sure if anyone here would know but in July we are on a cruise that arrives into Istanbul at 1pm. We will pass Gallipoli on the way that morning and was just wondering how early that might be? I know it will depend on cruising speed but some of the cruise itineraries might be able to pinpoint the hours between Gallipoli and Istanbul. It's about 4 hours or so by land but sea obviously is different.

And best wishes to all our diggers for tomorrow.

Last October we sailed from Istanbul and on into the Aegean. We left Istanbul at 9.00pm and got to the end of the Dardanelles and entered the Aegean about noon the next day. I think we were going quite slowly but we had good views of the Dardanelles and the Gallipoli Peninsula for the last few hours. My guess is that you'll be closest to land, which is at the Aegean end, in your darkness hours. The only way to be sure is to check with the captain the day before as to where he anticipates to be at what time.

Of course, on the Dardanelles side you don't see much and you are probably aware of that. Anzac Cove is on the other side of the Peninsula but you do see some of the Turkish and British memorials in the distance. Nevertheless it is still a moving experience. On another cruise a few years ago we passed the area in the evening and the memorials you could see were lit up.

 

[Pushka]

Thanks turtlemichael. I thought it might be in darkness. We are only in Istanbul for such a short few days so the one day land trip is just a remote possibility.

On another note I heard on the radio today that in Adelaide next year there is a one night camp out on 24th April at the place where troops assembled prior to travelling to Gallipoli. With the appropriate dawn service and cross to Gallipoli. That sounds like an excellent thing to do. They are selling commemorative swags hopefully as a troop fundraiser.

 

[Danger]

I'm sitting in the stands at Anzac Cove waiting for the dawn service at Gallipoli in a couple of hours.



Not much of a photo at this time of morning but that's looking towards the ocean of the peninsula.

Lest we forget.

 

[Atleastonce]

How is everyone going with bookings?

Thought I found a tour worth investigating Tour 1 | Gallipoli Tours 2015 called to get some details and was advised they still had plenty of availability. Enquired on the size of the tour and was told they already had confirmed bookings >1000 :shock: When they heard my horror; they quickly advised each bus only holds 35!

Quickly coming to the conclusion that a short and not so sweet tour for the actual service - followed by a private tour of Ephesus, Aphrodisias, Pemukkale, Pisidian Antiochia, Cappadocia, etc.....and then a return visit to ANZAC cove after the crowd has dispersed might be a better option.

amaroo, this is the tour we have booked. We took the gold option.

 

[Pushka]

I'm rethinking that I will make the time for us to make the land trip to Gallipoli in July this year.

 

[amaroo]

amaroo, this is the tour we have booked. We took the gold option.

Small World....tour 1?

I was amazed when she told me the numbers that have already confirmed. If we go this way we'd probably do the 7 day Discover Turkey extension tour.

I've made some enquires with private tour operators and will wait until I've got some detail/pricing before committing.

 

[Atleastonce]

Small World....tour 1?

I was amazed when she told me the numbers that have already confirmed. If we go this way we'd probably do the 7 day Discover Turkey extension tour.

I've made some enquires with private tour operators and will wait until I've got some detail/pricing before committing.

Yep, tour 1. I am amazed at the number of people I know who have secured ballot tickets, considering the ratio of successful to total applicants.

 

[Sprucegoose]

No ballot tickets 100 years ago !!

 

[Pushka]

No ballot tickets 100 years ago !!

There was for the Vietnam War though.