Private 5-Day Black Sea Highlands: Uzungol, Pokut & Macahel

Every departure includes your own licensed English-speaking guide plus a private vehicle and driver – only your group. Price per person drops as your group grows (1–8 travellers). A private 5-day road trip through the wildest highlands of Turkey’s Eastern Black Sea, starting and ending at Trabzon Airport. Instead of the usual Uzungöl day trip, this route climbs to Pokut Plateau (about 2,000 m) to watch the sea of clouds over Fırtına Valley, crosses into Artvin and spends two nights in Macahel – part of the Camili Biosphere Reserve recognised by UNESCO in 2005 and home of the Caucasian honey bee. You also visit Sümela Monastery, built into a cliff in the 4th century, Uzungöl lake and Borçka Karagöl. Only your group travels in the vehicle, so you can stop for photos, tea and village food whenever you like. Stays: lake-view hotel in Uzungöl, a traditional plateau house in Pokut and family-run guesthouses in Macahel. Best from June to September; May and October are greener and quieter. Entrance fees are not included.