🎈 Cappadocia in Colour

DAY 1 · Göreme and the fairy chimneys

Rock churches, pottery and your first sunset

1. 09:00

   Göreme Open-Air Museum

   A valley of rock-cut monasteries with painted churches from the 10th to 12th centuries. Pay the extra ticket for the Dark Church (Karanlık Kilise): its frescoes are the best preserved, because almost no light gets in.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
2. 11:30

   Paşabağ (Monks Valley)

   The most famous fairy chimneys, some with two or three stone "hats". Monks once lived inside them.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
3. 12:30

   Çavuşin

   A village climbing up a cliff full of old cave houses, and the Church of St John the Baptist at the top.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
4. 13:30

   Avanos: lunch and pottery

   A town on the Red River (Kızılırmak) famous for its red clay. Eat by the river, then try the potter's wheel in one of the workshops.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
5. 16:00

   Devrent (Imagination) Valley

   Pink rocks that look like animals. Find the camel, the dolphin and the Virgin Mary.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
6. 17:45

   Sunset Point, Göreme

   Climb to the hill above Göreme and watch the valley change colour, from gold to pink to purple.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›

DAY 2 · Balloons and valleys

Sunrise in the sky, then a walk through rose-coloured rock

09:30 Breakfast on a rooftop Back at your cave hotel for a long Turkish breakfast with a view.

1. 05:30

   Hot-air balloon flight

   The dream of every visitor. Book with a licensed company in advance, and keep a second morning free because flights are cancelled in wind. Not flying? Watch a hundred balloons from the hills above Göreme, it is free and magical.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
2. 10:30

   Rose Valley and Red Valley hike

   The most beautiful walk in Cappadocia, about 2 to 3 hours. Pink and red rock, hidden churches cut into the cliffs, and small fruit-juice stands on the way.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
3. 14:00

   Uçhisar Castle

   The highest point of Cappadocia: a giant rock full of rooms and tunnels. Climb to the top for a 360° view.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
4. 15:30

   Pigeon Valley (Güvercinlik Vadisi)

   Walk downhill from Uçhisar to Göreme through this valley, past old pigeon houses carved into the rock.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
5. 19:00

   Dinner: testi kebab

   Meat and vegetables slow-cooked in a sealed clay pot. The waiter breaks the pot open at your table.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›

DAY 3 · Underground cities and canyons

The south of Cappadocia

1. 09:00

   Derinkuyu Underground City

   A city carved up to 85 metres under the ground, where thousands of people hid with their animals. Narrow tunnels and rolling stone doors. Not for people who fear small spaces.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
2. 11:30

   Ihlara Valley

   A green canyon 14 km long along the Melendiz river, with painted churches in the walls. Walk the most beautiful part, from the main stairs to Belisırma.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
3. 13:30

   Lunch in Belisırma

   Sit on wooden platforms right over the river and eat grilled trout.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
4. 15:00

   Selime Monastery

   A whole rock-cut monastery with a church, kitchen and stables, the largest in Cappadocia. It looks like a movie set.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
5. 18:00

   Evening in Ürgüp

   Back north for dinner and a glass of local Cappadocian wine in Ürgüp's old centre.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›

Got more time?

1. +

   Kaymaklı Underground City

   Wider than Derinkuyu and closer to Göreme. A good choice if you only see one.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
2. +

   Ortahisar

   A quiet village with its own rock castle and old cave cellars where lemons and potatoes are still stored.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
3. +

   Soğanlı Valley

   Remote valleys with painted churches and doll-making villagers. Very few tourists.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›
4. +

   Horse riding at sunset

   Ride through Love Valley and Red Valley at golden hour.

   📍 Open in Google Maps ›