Urgup Tourism Travel Agency

Small group tour: Visits Göreme Viewpoint, Derinkuyu Underground City, Ihlara Valley, Selime Monastery, Pigeon Valley.

Our tour starts at 09:30 by pick-up from your Cappadocia hotel. First we will drive to the Göreme panoramic viewpoint where your guide will give you an explanation about Cappadocia's history and the formation of this unique landscape.

Our next stop is Derinkuyu Underground City. Previously known as Melagobia, Derinkuyu was one of the biggest settlements in Cappadocia and its 8 level underground city is the deepest of the region today. We will explore the caves of this interesting underground settlement and your guide will explain about how people sheltered here for long periods to escape persecution. With its floors extending to a depth of approximately 60 m, it was large enough to shelter approximately 20,000 people together with their livestock and food stores. It is the largest excavated underground city in Turkey and is one of several underground complexes found across Cappadocia. Derinkuyu itself connects to Kaymakli underground city via an 8 km tunnel.

We then arrive at one of Türkiye's most spectacular gorges : Ihlara. We walk down about 400 steps right down to the bottom of the valley. The hike through the Ihlara Valley will be the highlight of our day. The Melendiz River has carved an impressive canyon through the lush green valley and we will walk about 4km (about 2 and a half miles) along the river, passing Byzantine rock-hewn chapels decorated with vibrant frescoes.  The Ağaçaltı Church in particular is one of the well-preserved churches in Cappadocia. Near Belisirma village, we will have lunch in a typical restaurant at the riverside .

After lunch, we stop at the biggest rock-cut monastery of Cappadocia, Selime Monastery. Selime is the biggest rock-cut cathedral of Cappadocia and located at the end of Ihlara Valley. It was used as a fortress by both Byzantine and Seljuk armies during 10th to 12th centuries and has magnificent views.

At the last stop of our tour, we get information about the precious and semi-precious stones of the Cappadocia region.

On our drive back we stop at Pigeon Valley near Uçhisar . Here you can see the unique panoramic view of Güvercinlik Valley and see hundreds of pigeon houses and nests.

We will then drive you back to your hotel and finish the tour around 17:00.