Cappadocia, Planning for the Best!
 

Hello Folks!

In the midst of our trip to Turkey, we will be spending 2 1/2 days (3 nights) in Goreme. We would like to do some independent hiking and walking to see some of the sights for at least a day. what can we do in a day?.......I thought perhaps we could do the Goreme Open Air Museum on the first day after arrival later in the afternoon. Then on day two try to walk/hike to Love or Rose Valley, Uchisar and perhaps any other walkable destinations. Can anyone tell me if this is too ambitious? Thinking on day three doing the balloon ride and maybe hiring a taxi to do more sights. Can anyone suggest an itinerary for after the balloon ride? Any towns or villages that are a must?

You may have time to walk a little of rose valley your first day, as it is near the open air museum. I found that one the least waymarked, however.
We spent a full day walking pigeon valley (to Uchisar) then love valley to Cavusin and then made our way back to Goreme. fantastic!
Some good maps here: http://www.newgoreme.com/cappadocia-maps.html
I did not do a balloon ride, but that day you could hire a driver to take you to the Ilhara valley, where you walk along a stream and explore cave churches--also fantastic. You can stop and visit an underground city on the way, and a cave fort after. One of my best trips ever! The Kelebek hotel arranged the driver for us, but tourist services are excellent in Goreme,

Thanks Yorkshire. Very helpful indeed, it sounds like we could do everything on our list! the dat you did Pigeon Valley and Love Valley both, were you able to walk all the way or did you need transportation between the two?

Tks

It was the longest walk I have ever done, but we did it!
I was trying to flag rides at the end, haha. We rested for a while in Uchisar and Cavusin. In retrospect, we probably should have looked harder for a bus or dolmus from Cavusin to Goreme. It was the last bit--getting lost on red/rose valley. that did us in.
My day three recommendation would depend on your flight time. I would be hard pressed to pick between the valley hikes with rock formations and the Ilhara Valley excursion.

If you want to do a balloon ride, schedule it for the first morning you are there. Rides are dependent on weather, and if balloons don't fly the 1st day, you have another day for it.

When we were there, balloons did not fly for 4 days in a row due to the high winds.

Yorkshire, we will be there for all of the third day, so after the balloon ride we have the whole day , the Ilhara visit would be good along with one of the underground cities. Which underground city did you do?.......and did you do it without a guide? We are staying at the Kelebec hotel, so we probably get a car and driver from them also as you did. Do you remember the price range for the car and driver?

You've already gotten some good advice. Let me underscore the importance of aiming to take your balloon ride on the first day you possibly can because they are dependent on the weather and don't fly every day.

Yes, you should be able to visit the Goreme outdoor museum on the day of your arrival. On another day, you can get a ride to Deverent, then hike through the Zelve outdoor museum and through Cavusin and the rose/love valleys back to Goreme.

Ihlara is lovely; an alternative you might consider is the Soganli Valley.

For the underground cities, I chose Kaymakli. I strongly recommend a guide for either underground city; there will almost certainly be some on site.

Its a beautiful and fascinating part of the world - enjoy!

KJA, thanks for your advice. I now don't feel like I am going blind anymore with all the suggestions I have been given.

Sorry--I don't remember the price of our driver, but it would probably be higher as it was over 5 years ago. I think we picked up a guide on the spot at Kaymakli. As you see, there are SO many options in the area. enjoy!

If you are staying in Cappadocia, please consider http://www.esbelli.com/ as a place to stay. It is one of our favorites. Unless Suha has changed his policy, you can only reserve by calling the hotel directly. He screens guests and if he doesn't like they way act over the phone, he will offer them a room.

I second kja's recommendations. The Rose-red valley is amazing, best done in the late afternoon-evening. The Pigeon valley too is great, however, get a guide for this one, I got lost here.
Cavusin has brilliant views in the evening. Zelve too is fabulous.
Ihlara is great, the Selime monastery has great views, plus the area behind the monastery is very attractive,so do take a walk here. A day in Ihlara driving by yourself is a good idea, a tour will give you only limited time. Start early and come back late.
Do have a look at my page on Cappadocia: http://ashwinbahulkar.wordpress.com/...in-cappadocia/

thank-you Ashwinb for your suggestions, I now have a lot to work with and will get a guide for the underground city.

Our trip to Turkey was probably a trip of a lifetime! Thanks to all the Fodorites who responded to my questions. We are planning to go back this year. Will follow-up with a trip report in the New Year.

I'm glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for letting us know.