Viking Vela Guests: House of the Virgin Mary by Yellow Taxi

Viking Vela calls in November 2026 and early 2027, times not announced. How to visit the House of the Virgin Mary respectfully by yellow taxi.

Viking Vela's Kuşadası calls in the port schedule we follow fall in November and December 2026 and February 2027, and on every date the arrival and departure times have not been announced. While you wait for them, it is worth getting ready for the one stop on the usual route that asks something of you as a visitor: the House of the Virgin Mary.

At Meryem Ana Evi: how to visit with respect

The House of the Virgin Mary, Meryem Ana Evi in Turkish, is a small stone house on Bülbüldağı, also called Mount Koressos, in the hills above Ephesus. It is a place of pilgrimage for Catholics and other Christians, and Muslims respect it too. Three popes have come here: Paul VI in 1967, John Paul II in 1979 and Benedict XVI in 2006. You will share the path with people who have come to pray, not only to look, and a little preparation lets you enjoy the visit without getting in their way.

What to wear

Dress modestly. Covering shoulders and knees is a simple choice that works for everyone. A light scarf or shawl in your day bag solves the problem if you are dressed for the beach or for Ephesus in the sun.

Inside the house

The house is quiet inside, and visitors keep it that way. Speak softly or not at all, move through without stopping in the doorway, and keep your camera and phone down: photos are not allowed inside the house. Outside in the grounds, taking pictures is fine, so save them for there.

The wishing wall and the spring water

Below the house you will find a wall where visitors tie small notes with a wish or a prayer. Bring a pen and a scrap of paper if you would like to leave one. Close by are taps with spring water, a natural place to pause before you walk back to the car.

Time and walking

Allow about 30 to 45 minutes. The walk from the car park is short. The entrance fee is not included in the taxi and is paid at the site; fees and opening hours change by season, so check current opening hours before your call. Your driver waits at the car park while you visit.

Three ways to fit the house into your Vela day

When Viking confirms the hours, take the departure time, subtract 60 minutes for your return to the port, and allow roughly 15 to 30 minutes to get from the ship to the taxi at the port exit. If the all-aboard time printed on board is earlier, that is the time that counts. Then choose the line that matches what is left.

• Short call (about 4.5 to 5 hours port to port): port, then the House of the Virgin Mary, then down to the Ephesus upper gate, which is about 15 minutes away. Walk downhill through Ephesus to the lower gate where the driver is waiting, then back to the ship. Starting at the house means you arrive at Ephesus ready to walk without watching the clock.
• Medium call (about 5 to 5.5 hours port to port): the same pair, plus a short stop at the Temple of Artemis on the edge of Selçuk, about 5 to 10 minutes from Ephesus. One re-erected column in a field; 10 to 20 minutes is enough.
• Long call (about 7.5 to 8.5 hours port to port): all four stops. Ephesus, the house and the Temple of Artemis, then up to Şirince for lunch and a slow hour in its stone lanes before the drive of roughly 35 to 40 minutes back to the port.

If your Vela call turns out shorter than the first line, the honest answer is Ephesus alone, about 3.5 to 4 hours port to port, and the house on another trip. Tell the driver at the port exit which line you want; the stop order is yours to decide, and you can change it together on the day.

Viking Vela at Kuşadası

These come from the port schedule we follow, and the cruise line can change times or calls, so rely on your own Viking documents. Port pickup for this ship is on our Viking Vela page.

Before you write to us

The licensed yellow taxi is paid in cash to the driver; there is no card in the car. Site tickets, meals and drinks are not part of the booking and are paid on the spot. Tell us the ship name, your date, how many of you are travelling and what matters most, for example a longer stay at the house or extra time at the wishing wall. You can request your car on the port to Ephesus yellow taxi page.

The House of the Virgin Mary sits outside the basic port-Ephesus-port ride, so it is added at an extra charge, as are the Temple of Artemis and Şirince. Mention the house when you book.