Cappadocia Panoramas, Monasteries and Underground City
Meet your tour guide at the agreed-upon location and begin the tour.
Marvel at the Ortahisar Panorama. Ortahisar has picturesque stone houses, both old and new, and narrow streets. Its most prominent structure is the castle of Ortahisar, an 86 m high natural rock formation that was used strategically in Roman times as a castle and later for accommodation. The castle offers a magnificent panorama over the fairy chimneys of Hallaç Dere Valley and Mount Erciye.
Proceed to Mustafapaşa Old Greek Village. The old stone Greek houses, rich in decoratively carved symbols, are not to be missed. It is still possible to walk into some buildings that have the original paintings on the walls, and the town is home to the remains of the largest concentration of modern churches in the region.
Visit Keslik Monastery, a monastery complex situated in a paradise-like green valley, which contains the Church of the Archangel, the Chapel of Saint Stephen, a huge dining area, living quarters, and a pool of sacred water.
Transfer to Soğanlı Valley and enter 10 different churches with reasonably well-preserved wall paintings dating from the 10th to the 13th centuries. The locally made doll is the emblem of the village, but this symbol originated from a tragic event.
Move to Kaymaklı Underground City. It has all the usual amenities found in other underground complexes across Cappadocia, such as wine and oil presses, stables, cellars, storage rooms, refectories, and chapels.
Explore Pigeon Valley, where thousands of pigeon houses are carved into the rock. It is a surreal vision: an outrageously phallic landscape straight out of a Salvador Dali painting. The conical formations are the result of volcanic eruptions that took place millions of years ago.
Visit the onyx demonstration, where the highest quality onyx is found in the onyx mines. Brown-veined green onyx is the highest quality, followed by brown-veined beige. Local artisans are experts at making jewellery items as well as beautiful vases, chess sets, and numerous other attractive artefacts and knick-knacks.
Watch a demonstration of how the onyx stone is cut, shaped, and polished before seeing the many beautiful onyx products. Workshops often sell other traditional and precious items such as hand-beaten copperware, meerschaum pipes, and jewellery made with precious and semi-precious stones, silver, and 22 and 24-carat gold.
Behold the Göreme Panorama. The most magnificent landscape around Göreme has been formed from its solidified lava streams, ash, and tuff stone, all dating from the Neocene period.
Return to the hotel.
