Should we drop Cappadocia?
 

Well, we have our plane tickets and hotel reservations for the first four nights in Istanbul, but I'm having difficulty arranging the rest of the trip. We're arriving in mid May, and wanted to spend four days Istanbul, three in Cappdocia, five days around Ephesus and points southeast, then return to Istanbul for one day before our flight home.

However, getting to and from Cappadocia seems either inconvenient -- early morning flights from Gokcen Airport, onward flights to Izmir on the wrong days -- or very expensive on Turkish Air. Wile the area sounds fascinating, It's obvious there will be plenty to keep us occupied between Izmir and Antalya.

Still, I'd regret missing Cappadocia. Anyone have any ideas for getting from Istanbul to Kayseri, then to Izmir? As far as I can make out, Sun Express is the only carrier flying directly between the two latter cities, and they fly either a day before we want to leave, or two days after . . .

Thanks.

Whatever you do, do NOT drop Cappadocia. Do the early morning flights. We took overnight busses all over Turkey (ten years ago), and I'm so glad we took the time to get to Cappadocia.

Try your hardest to get to Cappadocia - it will be worth it! I was on a tour so I can't help with getting there on your own.

It will feel so worth it if you can swing it, but sometimes the itinerary won't allow and you'll be none the wiser (until you return and visit on your second trip).
Also try Nevsehir airport.

Yes, try Nevsehir; please don't give up on Cappadocia! You might want to contact Rock Valley Travel http://www.rockvalleytravel.com/. They're in Urgup, in Cappadocia, and they were very good to work with.

I don't think you should consider only direct flights; we flew from Cappadocia (Nevsehir) to Izmir and had to connect in Istanbul. Yes, it took a little longer, but the connection was easy and quick. You won't regret working a little harder to figure out how to get there!

I concur-Don't miss Cappadocia-Its incredable,as all of Turkey is. I have a wonderful guide there-let me know if you are interested.

Is there any vegetation in Cappadocia?It looks extremely brown . Just wondering as we are trying to decide whether to include it as well.

You should not expect trees growing out of carveable rocks. However, the areas in between the fairy chimneys are reasonably green and the valleys, especially the Ihlara canyon are quite lush.

It also depends on the time of the year, as cappadocia region does not get much rain June-September.

If you are interested in dense vegetation and marvelous mountains covered with forests, you should check the Eastern Black Sea region where each valley is different and special and Macahel area near the Georgian border is a veritable rain forest.

HappyTrvlr,

Yes, there is vegetation. I obviously don't know where you're from, but it reminded us somewhat of the SW desert in the US. But the rock formations are like nothing you've ever seen - absolutely amazing.

You should google pictures of it, including the Ilhara Valley which is dense trees with a picturesque river, surrounded by tall canyon walls with cave dwellings.

Pegasus airline flies between Istanbul SGoksen and Kayseri daily. http://www.flypgs.com/en/.
They also have daily flights from Izmir to Istanbul as does Atlasjet.