Göreme - 38.640625°, 34.845128°
Göreme (pronounced [ˈɟøɾeme]; Ancient Greek: Κόραμα, Kòrama), located among the "fairy chimney"
rock formations, is a town in
Cappadocia, a historical region of Turkey. It is in theNevşehir Province in Central
Anatolia and has a population of around 2,500 people.
Former names of the town have been Korama, Matiana, Maccan or Machan, and Avcilar. When Göreme Valley nearby was designated an important tourist destination, a "center" for all tourism in Cappadocia, the name of the town was changed to Göreme for practical reasons.
The Göreme National Park (Göreme Milli Parklar in Turkish) was added to the
UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985.
The location of Göreme was first settled back in the Roman period.
Christianity was then the prevailing religion in the region, which is evident from many rock churches that can still be seen today.
Among Göreme's historically important sites are Ortahane, Durmus Kadir, Yusuf Koc and Bezirhane churches, in addition to the richly decorated
Tokali Kilise, the Apple Church, and a number of homes and pigeon houses carved straight into the rock formations in the town
Zelve Açık Hava Müzesi - 38.669693°, 34.863751°
Zelva vadisi Kapadokyada çok özel bir manzaraya sahiptir.1953'de burası bir yerleşim yeriydi. 20. yy. kadar Zelve, Hristiyan ve Müslümanların beraber yaşadığı bir yerdi. 1967'de açık hava müzesine çevrildi. Labirent bir yola sahip olan bu vadi keşfedilebilir. Burada manastırlar, kiliseler, yerleşim yerleriyle, tünel, değirmen, cami gibi yapılar bulunmaktadır.
Uçhisar Kalesi - 38.629867°, 34.805214°
One of the few important regions in Anatolia of the Antiquity, Cappadocia covered approximately all of the provinces of Kırşehir, Nevşehir, Aksaray, Niğde, Kayseri and Malatya; eastern part of the province of Ankara; southern parts of the provinces of Yozgat and Sivas and the northern part of the province of Adana in the middle of the Anatolian peninsula. The name Cappadocia, which does not bear any ethnical meaning, is encountered in the form of “Katpatuka” in the inscription engraved on the Behistun Cliffs in the late 6th century BC by the Persian King Darius I (522-486 BC), in which the countries annexed to the Kingdom were listed. This word is considered to mean Land of “Tukha” or “Dhuka” or the “Land of Beautiful Horses” in the Persian language. The Great Cappadocia (Megale Cappadocia) region covers a large part of Central Anatolia containing the area extending from the Salt Lake in the west; the south of the Halys (Kızılırmak-Red River) in the north to the Euphrates in the east and the Taurus Mountains in the south. The Hittite civilisation prevailing between the 18thcentury BC and the 7th century AD is one which deeply affected the Cappadocia region. The roots of any graces observed in the region go back to the Hittites.
Ortahisar Palace - 38.620134°, 34.863700°
Ihlara- 38.253583°, 34.302064°
Ihlara is a township with own municipality in Aksaray Province, Central Anatolia, Turkey. It is situated at about 40 km (25 mi) from the province seat of Aksaray and near the town of Güzelyurt. The township is famed for the nearby valley of the same name, Ihlara Valley, which is a 16 km (10 mi) long gorge cut into volcanic rock in the southern part of
Cappadocia, following several eruptions of
Mount Erciyes. The
Melendiz Stream flows through the valley.
What makes the valley unique is the ancient history of its inhabitants. The whole canyon is honeycombed with rock-cut underground dwellings and churches from the Byzantine period.
Due the valley's plentiful supply of water and hidden places, here was the first settlement of the first Christians escaping from Roman soldiers. In the Ihlara Valley there are hundreds of old churches in the volcanic rock caves. The most known churches are Ağaçaltı Church with cross plan, Sümbüllü Church, Pürenliseki Church, Kokar Church, Yilanli Church, Karagedik Church, Kirkdamatli Church, Direkli Church, Ala Church, Kemerli Church and Egritas Church.Kızıl Çukur Vadisi - 38.652342°, 34.861645°
Pasabag (Monks Valley) - 38.677941°, 34.854692°Pasabag in Cappadocia is located on the road to Zelve, coming from Goreme or Avanos. Highly remarkable earth pillars can be seen here, in the middle of a vineyard, hence the name of the place which means: the Pacha's vineyard. Pacha means "General", the military rank, in Turkish and it is a very common nick name. This site is also called Monks Valley. The name was derived from some cones carved in tuff stones which stand apart. Currently, there is a vineyard and a number of tuff cones standing right next to the road.
Güvercinlik (Pigeon) Valley - 38.632342°, 34.809333°
Güvercinlik (Pigeon) Valley - You can hike the Pigeon Valley between
Göreme and Uçhisar. The 4km trail starts from the road near the Ataman Hotel on the south side of
Göreme or on the paved road on the north side of the hill where
Uçhisar Castle sits in Uçhisar. Both trailheads are signed. Stick to the more traveled trails and you will have no trouble finding your way on this moderately hilly hike. The path through the valley offers spectacular views of the natural cliffs and the man-made caves and passes through a few tunnels carved into the rock.
Devrent Valley - 38.632832°, 34.836657°
Devrent Valley, which is also known as Imaginary Valley and also as Pink Valley does not have cave churches like the other valleys of Cappadocia. There are no Roman castles or Roman tombs in Devrent Valley, either. Actually it was never inhabited. So what makes it so famous? The lunar landscape!
Soğanlı Valley - 38.336280°, 34.987531°
The Soganli section of Cappadocia is one of the region's best-kept secrets. The two Soganli valleys (Upper Soganli and Lower Soganli) are located about 50 km south of Urgup and are visited by only a small fraction of the tourists that visit the better known areas of Cappadocia such as Goreme, Uchisar, Derinkuyu, and Urgup. However, if you make the effort to reach the Soganli valleys, you will be rewarded for your efforts. The valleys contain a number of abandoned cave churches and monasteries that you can explore on your own with no crowds to bother you. We explored the Upper Soganli Valley, which had five five cave churches that are open to the public, three of which are accessible from the road and two of which you reach via a short hike (about 1/2 km). The whole time were were there, we only saw about 10 people in total, and most of the time, we had the places to ourselves.
Derinkuyu is a town and district of Nevşehir Province in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey. According to 2010 census, population of the district is 22,114 of which 10,679 live in the town of Derinkuyu. The district covers an area of 445 km2 (172 sq mi), and the average elevation is 1,300 m (4,265 ft), with the highest point being Mt. Ertaş at 1,988 m (6,522 ft).
Özkonak Underground City is an ancient city built on the northern slopes of Mt. Idis about 14 km northeast of Avanos in Turkey. The city has many strata made up of volcanic granite its larger areas are connected to each other by tunnels. Özkonak had a built in communication system of pipes to each of its levels, unlike Kaymaklı and Derinkuyu which have no such communication systems. Each carved out room had ventilation provided by holes when the city was closed against enemies.[wikipedia]