Göreme
This Unesco World Heritage site is an essential stop on any Cappadocian itinerary. First thought to be a Byzantine monastic settlement that housed some 20…
Must-see attractions in Cappadocia
Cappadocia
The road between Çavuşin and Avanos passes a turn-off to the Zelve Open-Air Museum, where three valleys of crumbling cave-habitations and churches…
Cappadocia
Kaymaklı underground city features a maze of tunnels and rooms carved eight levels deep into the earth, though only four are open to the public. The…
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Cappadocia
Some of Cappadocia's best-preserved and most captivating frescoes are hidden within this rarely visited rock-hewn monastery that was only rediscovered in…
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Göreme
The trails that loop around Güllüdere Vadısı (Rose Valley) are easily accessible to all levels of walkers and provide some of the finest fairy-chimney…
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Cappadocia
Let's get one thing straight: despite its science-fiction setting, no scene in Star Wars was ever filmed near Soğanlı. But don't despair Chewbacca fans;…
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Cappadocia
One of the best views of Kızılçukur (Red) Valley's fang-like rock cones and wavy cliff ridges is from this lookout point, signposted off the highway,…
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Göreme
The Buckle Church is 50m back down the hill towards Göreme and across the road from the main Open-Air Museum complex, but is covered by the same entrance…
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Cappadocia
On the main highway into Gülşehir, just before the turn-off to the centre (another 500m further) is a signposted trail leading to the incredible 13th…
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Ürgüp
The back alleys of Ürgüp are home to many examples of the traditional stone architecture of this region. In particular, in the northern section of the old…
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Göreme
The highlight of Göreme Open-Air Museum is the stunning and fully restored Dark Church, famed for the vivid colours and excellent preservation of its…
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Cappadocia
About 15km north of Avanos, the village of Özkonak hosts a smaller version of the underground cities of Kaymaklı and Derinkuyu, with the same wine…
Cappadocia
Look: it's a camel rock! Nicknamed 'Imagination Valley' locally, Devrent Valley's rock formations are some of the best formed and most thickly clustered…
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Cappadocia
The 4.5km Monastery Valley is full of rock-cut churches and dwellings cut into the cliff walls. Exploring it makes for a scenic stroll. From Güzelyurt's…
Cappadocia
Slap in the middle of Ortahisar's town centre, this 18m-high rock outcrop was used as a fortress in Byzantine times. It was reopened after a restoration…
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Cappadocia
This small valley, halfway along the turn-off road to Zelve, has a three-headed rock formation and some of Cappadocia's most famous examples of basalt…
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Cappadocia
Right in Hacıbektaş' centre is this tranquil dervish dergah (lodge), now a museum as well as a place of pilgrimage for those of the Bektaşı faith. Several…
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Cappadocia
Follow Zafer Caddesi to the old bridge at the end of the village to head out into this small valley studded with fairy chimneys. There are four rock…
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Cappadocia
Derinkuyu underground city, 10km south of Kaymaklı, has cavernous rooms arrayed on seven levels reached by skinny long tunnels. When you get all the way…
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Cappadocia
Hasan Dağı (Mt Hasan), Cappadocia's second-highest mountain, provides a challenging summit-bagging hike. The closest village to the 3268m inactive volcano…
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Cappadocia
Rimmed by high cliffs that hide rock-cut churches, the lush Ihlara Valley is one of Cappadocia's most popular hiking destinations. Most visitors arrive on…
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Cappadocia
Carved into Çavuşin's craggy cliff face is a labyrinthine complex of abandoned houses that you can wander through by climbing up the short cliff path that…
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Cappadocia
Built in 1249, and restored in the late 1980s, the small, Seljuk-built Saruhan has an elaborately carved entrance gateway topped by muqarnas (tiered,…
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Göreme
You get one of the best panoramas across Göreme by walking up the steep hill through alleyways to this wooden platform suspended on the edge of the cliff…
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Cappadocia
Mehmet Ali has thrown open the door of his old family home (which they moved out of in the 1970s) so that visitors can get a taste of what Cappadocian…
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Cappadocia
About 200 monks once lived at this rock-cut Byzantine monastery complex amid its labyrinth caverns, which include living quarters, refectory and kitchen…
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Ürgüp
These three black-capped fairy-chimney formations (also known as 'the three beauties'), overlooking the rolling countryside just outside of town, are…
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Cappadocia
By far the most interesting religious building in Monastery Valley, this small monastery, centred around a small courtyard and semi-built into rock cones,…
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Cappadocia
The facade of this rock-cut complex has some of the most colourful geometric pigeon-house decorations in Cappadocia while inside there are unusual…
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Cappadocia
This Ramsar-listed wetland area encompasses over 24,000 hectares of marshland and is one of Turkey's most important birdwatching sites. A major resting…
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Cappadocia
This tiny museum is housed in an ugly building 1km from the centre. The collection includes a surprisingly good archaeological room with Phrygian, Hittite…
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Hacıbektaş Archaeological Museum
Cappadocia
This surprisingly good museum on the main road contains a large collection of ceramics from the Chalcolithic era up to the Iron Age, including pieces from…
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Cappadocia
Niğde Museum houses a well-presented selection of finds from the Assyrian city of Acemhöyük near Aksaray, through the Hittite and Phrygian Ages to…
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Cappadocia
This fine rock-cut monastery complex has a cluster of churches, refectories, dormitories and a kitchen, all carved out of fairy chimneys and dating from…
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Cappadocia
This rarely visited 11th-century church is snuggled amid a particularly photogenic vista of orange-hued rock. The small nave has a dazzling interior of…
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Cappadocia
This Roman-era site is signposted off the main route heading to Soğanlı, right after the entry to Şahinefendi village. A walkway leads past various…
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Cappadocia
Just after the Monastery Valley ticket office, you come to the large Büyük Kilise Cami (Mosque of the Great Church), which began life as the Church of St…
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Cappadocia
This tall volcanic-rock outcrop is one of Cappadocia's most prominent landmarks and visible for miles around. Riddled with tunnels, it was used for…
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Cappadocia
This pottery gallery, in the alley opposite the post office, is home to Cappadocia's infamous hair museum. Yes, that's right: it's a museum dedicated to…
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Göreme
It's posited that Byzantine soldiers carved the 11th-century Azize Barbara Şapeli (Chapel of St Barbara), dedicated to their patron saint who is depicted…
