Ephesus Self-Guided Audio Walk: Library of Celsus, Great Theater and Curetes Street from the Upper Gate
1 hour and 30 minutes
About this experience
Ephesus was the capital of Roman Asia, and it never stopped rebuilding. Earthquakes and wars knocked it down, and each time its people put it back together from old columns and carvings. Then twentieth-century archaeologists did the same. This walk teaches you to see the joins. Start at the government square by the Upper Gate, pass the council house and a monument rebuilt in raw concrete on purpose, and walk down marble Curetes Street past the Fountain of Trajan and the Temple of Hadrian. Stand before the Library of Celsus, cross the great market to the Great Theater, scene of the riot in the Book of Acts, and end on the harbor street that now runs toward fields. Eleven stops, about 1.2 km and 90 minutes, all downhill, in English and at your own pace. Site entry and the Terrace Houses ticket are not included.
- Experience type
- Day tour or activity
- Duration
- 1 hour and 30 minutes
- Guide
- English
- Audio guide
- English
- Categories
- Walking tour · Cultural and theme tours · City tours
What's included
Self-guided audio tour in English: 11 stops, 1.2 km, 1.5 hours Stops at Library of Celsus, Temple of Hadrian, Fountain of Trajan GPS map and walking directions in your phone browser, no app needed Lifetime access: start any day, at any hour, and replay it
What's not included
A live guide: you set the pace and the pauses A fixed start time: begin whenever you arrive The entry ticket for the ticketed site (about EUR 40 full price), bought at the gate or online Tip or gratuity Food and drinks Entry or admission fee
Please note
To start the tour, enter the ticket code from your confirmation on the Roamer redemption page linked there. Do this before you set off, while you still have signal. The tour then opens in your phone browser, with no app to download. Bring a charged phone and earphones. Mobile data helps; if you have none, open the tour on wifi before you set off. Best time: Come at opening time, 8:00, before the heat builds; the site is exposed and there is little shade until the tree-lined path at the very end. The Library of Celsus faces east, so its front is lit in the morning. In summer, the evening openings (see stop 1's card) are cooler. Checked 5 October 2026. This walk runs downhill from the upper entrance to the lower entrance. If you arrive at the lower entrance, take a taxi up to the upper entrance first, then walk down and leave by the lower one. Play the introduction before the ticket check or in your first minute inside: the first stop starts about thirty meters past security. If you plan to see the Terrace Houses, buy that separate ticket (€15, checked 5 October 2026) at their own entrance on Curetes Street; it is worth the time. Many originals from this walk are in the Ephesus Museum in Selçuk: the frieze panels from the Temple of Hadrian, the two statues of Artemis found in the town hall, the statues from the Fountain of Trajan, the Resting Warrior from the Pollio fountain, and the statues of Augustus and Livia. It is open every day 08:30 to 17:30, ticket office until 17:00 (checked 5 October 2026). The four statues on the Library of Celsus are copies; the originals are in the Ephesos Museum in the Neue Burg, Vienna. The Cave of the Seven Sleepers is a little over a kilometer from the lower entrance. It is not on this walk; check locally whether it is open before you go. Your site ticket also covers the Ephesus Experience Museum (checked 5 October 2026). The site is exposed, with almost no shade, and the marble paving of Curetes Street is worn, uneven and slippery. Wear flat shoes with grip, a hat and sunscreen, and carry water. Stay on the paths and walkways. Never climb on the ruins or step past ropes; many areas are closed to visitors. Visitor reports from February to June 2026 say the Great Theater's seating and Marble Street (from the library to the theater) have been closed for restoration since April 2025, with visitors routed through the Commercial Agora (checked 5 October 2026). This walk is written to work from the theater square either way. The Library of Celsus is under conservation planned to run to the end of 2027, so part of its front may be behind scaffolding. Most of the Arcadian Way beyond its open end near the theater is roped off; the walk looks down it rather than walking it. The route has no steps, but Curetes Street is steep and rough-paved, which is hard going for wheelchairs and strollers. Opening hours change with the season; check the official page for winter hours before you go. Public transportation nearby
Itinerary
- 1Day 0
Upper Gate and State Agora: A City Moved by Flood
Ephesus Upper Gate (South entrance), Selçuk
The government square by the upper gate. A king once flooded the people out of their old homes to move them here.
- 2Day 0
Odeon and Prytaneion: Council House and Town Hall
Βasilica Stoa, Selçuk
The council met in this small roofed theater. Beside it, the inscribed columns of the town hall gave the main street below its modern name.
- 3Day 0
Gate of Hercules: Old Carvings in a Newer Gate
Curetes Street, Selçuk
Old carvings reused in a later gate. Beside them stands a monument rebuilt in raw concrete on purpose.
- 4Day 0
Curetes Street: An Emperor Reduced to a Foot
Curetes Street, Selçuk
A marble main street named by archaeologists. An emperor's fountain stands re-erected at a smaller size.
- 5Day 0
Temple of Hadrian: One Family's Gift
Curetes Street, Selçuk
One family paid for this small temple porch. A goddess of fortune is carved on its arch, and the panels inside are copies.
- 6Day 0
Terrace Houses: Seven Roman Homes Under One Roof
Academy Street, Selçuk
Seven Roman houses under one modern roof. Painted walls and mosaics were left where they were found; a separate ticket worth buying.
- 7Day 0
Library of Celsus: A Son's Monument, Stood Back Up
Curetes Street, Selçuk
A son built this library front over his father's tomb. It was put back up from its own blocks in the 1970s.
- 8Day 0
Commercial Agora: The Market Fed by the Sea
Marble Street, Selçuk
Shops lined this great market square. Its goods came up from the harbor, and the theater rises beyond.
- 9Day 0
Great Theater: Great Is Artemis of the Ephesians
Marble Street, Selçuk
A theater for about twenty thousand people. The Book of Acts places a silversmiths' riot here.
- 10Day 0
Arcadian Way: The Street to a Vanished Sea
Arkadiane, Selçuk
The harbor street now runs toward fields. Silt pushed the coast miles away.
- 11Day 0
Theater Gymnasium and the Lower Gate: The Long Afterlife
Ephesus Lower Gate path, beside the Theater Gymnasium, Selçuk
A Roman gymnasium by the lower gate. The story closes with the city's long afterlife, from church councils to the excavators.
Meeting point
Upper Gate and State Agora, Selcuk (Ephesus) Ephesus Upper Gate (South entrance), Selçuk, İzmir, TR
Pick up
Pickup is not provided.
Cancellation policy · Ephesus Self-Guided Audio Walk: Library of Celsus, Great Theater and Curetes Street from the Upper Gate
Standard Viator policy
- Cancellation 0–24 hours before departure: 100% cancellation fee.
- Cancellation 24–24000 hours before departure: 0% cancellation fee.
Good to know
Operated by Roamer and sold by AGORA. Your voucher and booking reference arrive by email straight after payment.