PLAN YOUR CAPPADOCIA AND CENTRAL TURKEY TRAVEL
Some of the world’s earliest known human dwellings established in the mountains and valleys of Central Anatolia, but now the main attraction here is the mysterious landscape of Cappadocia, where wind and rain have converted the area's soft volcanic rock into a kind of fairytale scene.
In Cappadocia, you'll find incredible rock formations, magnificent valleys, ancient cave churches, and underground cities that give many stories under the surface. The small towns of Ürgüp, Uchisar, Göreme, Ortahisar, and Avanos are good bases for exploring the region’s otherworldly scene. Either hiking through the marvelous terrain on foot, exploring hidden passageways, or flying over the unbelievable landscape in a hot-air balloon, you’ll obtain Cappadocia to be unlike any place you’ve ever been before.
Southwest of Cappadocia is Konya, the location of the tomb of Rumi—the 13th-century founder of the whirling dervishes—and to a charming museum dedicated to him. Known as Turkey's most religiously traditional city, Konya is not a place for those looking for nightlife or a modern dining scene. But centuries-old mosques and religious seminaries lend historical character to Turkey’s seventh-largest city.
The region's other main city is Ankara, Turkey’s capital and second-largest center. Though needing the mystique of Cappadocia or Konya, this modern urban center has one of the best archeological museums in the country and a few of interesting historical sites, including a citadel that surrounds a reminiscent neighborhood. Also in Ankara, the impressive mausoleum of Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, offers visitors lots of insight into the Turkish modern psyche.
As you travel into the Turkish heartland, you’ll see mostly rural regions—the province of Konya, with its vast fields where seeds and other crops are grown, is known as the country’s breadbasket—and meet a slice of provincial life.
In Cappadocia, you'll find incredible rock formations, magnificent valleys, ancient cave churches, and underground cities that give many stories under the surface. The small towns of Ürgüp, Uchisar, Göreme, Ortahisar, and Avanos are good bases for exploring the region’s otherworldly scene. Either hiking through the marvelous terrain on foot, exploring hidden passageways, or flying over the unbelievable landscape in a hot-air balloon, you’ll obtain Cappadocia to be unlike any place you’ve ever been before.
Southwest of Cappadocia is Konya, the location of the tomb of Rumi—the 13th-century founder of the whirling dervishes—and to a charming museum dedicated to him. Known as Turkey's most religiously traditional city, Konya is not a place for those looking for nightlife or a modern dining scene. But centuries-old mosques and religious seminaries lend historical character to Turkey’s seventh-largest city.
The region's other main city is Ankara, Turkey’s capital and second-largest center. Though needing the mystique of Cappadocia or Konya, this modern urban center has one of the best archeological museums in the country and a few of interesting historical sites, including a citadel that surrounds a reminiscent neighborhood. Also in Ankara, the impressive mausoleum of Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, offers visitors lots of insight into the Turkish modern psyche.
As you travel into the Turkish heartland, you’ll see mostly rural regions—the province of Konya, with its vast fields where seeds and other crops are grown, is known as the country’s breadbasket—and meet a slice of provincial life.
TOP REASONS TO GO CAPPADOCIA
BALLOON OVER CAPPADOCIA flying high above the magnificent terrain in a basket, you will cruise past heavenly rock cones and fairy chimneys
EXPLORE UNDERGROUND CITIES Derinkuyu, Kaymakli, and other huge, multistoried underground complexes once housed tens of thousands of citizens.
HIKE THE VALLEYS OF CAPPADOCIA Paths lead past fantastic rock forms and deposit you at cave gates that open on ornately painted churches.
LUXURIATE IN A CAVE Unusual of Cappadocia's finest hotels are stay into elaborately furnished caves, where low lighting, plushest beds, antique accents, and even Jacuzzis are standard facilities.
PEER INTO THE PAST From the images at Ankara’s Museum of Anatolian Civilizations to Konya’s Seljuk- age mosques, Central Turkey has traces of the various cultures that have kept it.
Cappadocia and Central Turkey
WHEN TO GO
- Much of Central Anatolia is burning hot in summer and cold in winter. The excellent time to visit is in the spring (May) before the masses and heat come or early fall (September) when the peoples are gone, and winter hasn't yet settled.