Cappadocia Turkey Itinerary

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Central Turkey Itinerary
– from Antalya to Cappadocia to Istanbul

Golden Goreme

You should be very excited if you are planning a trip to Turkey.  It is easy to travel on your own. For advice on how to plan and travel in an economical way, see the TripAdvisor page Turkey: Planning a Self-Guided Turkey Trip.   Now comes the hard choice of deciding where to go.  Even if you have a whole month, you cannot see everything.  Turkey is the size of Great Britain and France combined!  

The following suggestions are based on an actual 31-day trip, which was split into two parts. Stay-overs are shown in capitals followed by the number of nights.  Each destination was assigned zero to three dots to give a sense of which sites are most worthwhile seeing.  Hyperlinks will bring you to posts with more details.  This itinerary gives the best places to go for a 14-day trip through Central Turkey from Antalya to Istanbul.

  

RECOMMENDED ITINERARY

See a map of Central Turkey Itinerary
      

ANTALYA 2 nights 

Antalya is dissed by many travellers as just a big city but staying in an old Ottoman house in Kaleiçi (the old city) is worthwhile and it makes a useful base for nearby sights.  Yes, Antalya is a big city but the old quarter, Kaleiçi, is a quiet oasis. 

Ottoman Delight

Staying in an old Ottoman house is a beautiful introduction to Turkey.  It is a much easier way to start your trip than overpopulated Istanbul. 

Kaleiçi ● It is very touristy but there are not as many touts as in Istanbul.  The old town has a very clean, restored look but it is still pleasant walking, as there are few cars.  See the view of the sea framed by the snowy Taurus Mountains near the Hidirlik Tower, especially in early AM before breakfast – and few tourists wake up early so you'll have the park to yourself. 

Antalya Archaeological Museum ●●● is one of the best arranged museums anywhere.  Ancient Roman statues are set into Romanesque-style arches with romantic lighting (not good for photography)

Stupendous Aspendos

Day Trips: 
Aspendos Theatre ●
is basically a large intact Ancient Roman theatre with lots of tourists.  Climb up to the acropolis (included in the price) for more dramatic views of the theatre and the very green countryside. 

Colourful Köprülü

Köprülü Canyon ●● is a spectacular green river visible from the country road.  The Termessos ruins is another good place to go from Antalya.  On the way east from Antalya along the old highway(there will soon be a new expressway), stop along the road for...

Turquoise Treasure

Turquoise Coast ●●●
for perhaps the second most beautiful turquoise coastal views.

KIZKALESI  1 night 

  

Medieval Maiden Castle, on an offshore islet, seems to float just above the sea.  It's OK but not a must-see. The beach is very small but the sand is so soft.  Plus there were few tourists. It made for a pleasant stopover on the long drive to Cappadocia.  

Sensational Sunset

CAPPADOCIA ●●●●  4 nights 

The region of Cappadocia is probably the best must-see area for natural beauty in the country – so don’t miss it!!!  Göreme is just one of the towns in this region but it is still a wonderful base due to its central location.  

Göreme Sunset View ●●● is an easy walk up the hill to the east of the hotel area main drag for spectacular views at sunset of Rose Valley and Göreme.

Car or Dolmuş Trips: 

Not a Fairy Tale

Cappadocia Fairy Chimneys ●●●● are extraordinary even the touristy Paşabagh site.  There are too many hikes to list here. Most are fairly easy, at least at the beginning, or you could simple go for as long as you want and return when you feel like it.  the best hikes were are Love Valley, Zemi Valley, and... 

Kizilçukur

Rose Valley ●●●●
you could walk here on a car-less dirt road but you can drive on a parallel road.  This area has many side trails.  The best spot was the Kizilçukur Viewpoint, located between the "parking lot" and the dirt road below the hill. Again, it's best to come here for the late PM or sunset lighting

Çavuşin has a less touristy, old section of town at the end of the "parking lot" road to Rose Valley

Uchisar ● there is an excellent view of the volcanic plug/castle right from main highway into Göreme but this is a very touristy spot with stalls and even a camel.  There also is good viewpoint of Göreme on the right just a short way towards the town. 

Ogling Ortahisar

Avanos – overpriced pottery

Ürgüp – good food at local prices, except for the excellent but pricey ice cream

Ortahisar ●●
there is a spectacular view of the volcanic plug in the middle of town. 

Day Trips: requires car or tour

   
Mustafapaşa ●● is an old Greek village with interesting architecture

Soganli Valley ●●

Soganli Surprise

is full of fairy chimneys, basalt columns, rock-cut churches and frescoes without the crowds in a country atmosphere. But the best part was getting there with spectacular wide open views of snow-capped mountains in early spring.  

Ihlara Valley – is another place with rock-cut churches 

SAFRANBOLU ●●●  2 nights

Super Safranbolu

Safranbolu Çarşı ●●
You can spend a day visiting and shopping in the old city with its restored Ottoman buildings.  But the views from the ring road high above the market area (çarşı) were very special. 

 

Ottoman Yörük

Car Trips: 
Yörük ●● 
it’s 10 km away to a fairy tale village full of timber-framed Ottoman buildings that are far more nostalgic and run down than Safranbolu.  

İncekaya Aqueduct – 
is very high and in mint condition.   But it is Ottoman not ancient.  It comes with a walking trail into the countryside. 

Grand Fashion

ISTANBUL ●●●●  4 nights

 

Grand Bazaar ●
It is NOT the oldest bazaar as it was only built after the 1453 conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans.  But it is probably the first covered shopping mall in the world. 

Don't Look at Medusa

Basilica Cistern ●● 
is an underground forest of Byzantine columns surrounded by a pool of water.  Make sure that you do not look at the head of Medusa or you will also turn to stone!  The ancients were very superstitious.  For instance, getting up on the left (sinistra) side of your bed was a very bad omen.  This is very much part of Western culture – you don't believe it?  Guess where the English word sinister comes from?  

Hagia Sophia

Hagia Sophia Dome-ination ●●
had the highest dome built since the Pantheon in Ancient Rome until the Duomo in Renaissance Florence. It was the model for most major mosques in the Ottoman Empire. 

Hippodrome – 
How did a horse race end with 30,000 dead? How is this related to Hagia Sophia?  That's your homework for tonight!  Hint: check the web sites below. 

the not so Blue Mosque

 Blue Mosque ●●●
is not really blue; it’s pastel patterns and graceful symmetry and definitely worth seeing. 

Music in Kadıköy

Kool Kadıköy ●●
is the real Istanbul where the locals work and play. It's a great place to hear Turkish folk music on the streets. 

Bosphorus on a Budget

Bosphorus on a Budget ●
Choose the cruise or the non-cruise (i.e. use the cheap ferries) to see the Bosphorus

Spice Bazaar, Spicy Istanbul ● come here for the spices, the Turkish Delights, and buy the Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi kahve (coffee) beans.

  

RESEARCHING WHERE YOU WANT TO GO

   

There are many travel sites on the Web.  It is very useful to see what other tourists think are the best sites. Each city, region and country in TripAdvisor has a Things To Do section.  However, tourists have their own bias that may not match your interests.  Also many tourists have not travelled around the world to be able to compare places or know what is unique.  For more detailed information on each location, you can also review the Thorn Tree Turkey Forum, Turkey Travel Planner and Terra Encounters - Turkey web site.  For other countries around the world see our Terra Encounters WordPress web site. 

West Turkey Itinerary

Terra Encounters Turkey Trip – 31 days

Göreme

Overall, this was one of our best-ever vacation trips.  This is because of the friendliness and hospitality of the people and not just the sights.  Our trip summary gives the best places to go, in our opinion, for a 31-day trip.  We have also attached stars to each destination to give a sense of what is most worthwhile seeing.  Our ratings take into account the many places we have seen around the world.

  

Because this trip report is very long, we have split our itinerary into two segments so that those of you who only have a couple of weeks can use one or the other.  Do not ask which is better: all the places we visited in Turkey were good choices.  But first, we will cover some of the logistics. 

Accommodation

Every traveller goes to hotels at the standard of living s/he desires and the budget they have.  We prefer places that provide good value.  We did not go to the cheapest places like when we backpacked around the world.  We chose to stay in family-run or small hotels (sometimes called pansiyon in Turkish).  In the off-season, we could go to places that in high season would be much more costly.  Istanbul and Bursa are more expensive: we averaged TRY 192/day in low season.  In the rest of the country, we averaged TRY 128/day for a double.

Travel Pace

Once you decide on your primary destination, you should assign at least three nights and preferably four to it.  In our case, we chose four nights in Istanbul and Göreme.  Then with the remaining days, you can determine the number of additional stopovers by using our rule of thumb of a minimum of two nights for each destination since at least half a day of that is required for travel.  Even though we had 31 days, there are always choices to be made.  Turkey is the size of Britain and France combined. 

Each place listed below is described in more detail along with photos in our posts on the Terra Encounters blog.  All underlined text below are hyperlinks that will take you directly to the most relevant post.  

For shorter trips, it is recommended that you focus on one geographic area reducing the number of places as well as travel time.  On the other hand, you may be able to add some of the other places we considered on our More Places page. 

Travel Mode

For this 3700 km trip, we rented a car.  Yes, that is very expensive, especially with the TRY 4.60/liter gas.  Some Aussie travellers had a neat idea.  They travelled between major destinations by public transport.  Then they rented a car to do side trips to national parks and more remote places.

West Turkey Itinerary

For a visual overview of the first part of our trip, see Itinerary Map 1.  

Istanbul **** 4 nights

Spent 8 nights in IST altogether: Yes, there is that much to see but on a shorter trip, you can spend less time here by reducing what you do. The following is what we saw in the first stay there. 
 

Sirkeci Mansion

AIRPORT: very inefficient, very long lineups to go through security and immigration.  Allow sufficient time.


HOTEL: Hotel Ilkay upgraded to Sirkeci Mansion **** great location, fabulous staff, like having personal travel advisors, unbelievable breakfasts.  Book directly to get free airport shuttle for a long (4 day) stay.

 

Live Like a Sultan

Topkapi Palace Paradise – definitely worth a day.  There is a separate ticket the Harem.  We would highly recommend it if you have the time.  Here you will see close up the beautiful Iznik tiles and carved wood decorations where the Sultan's family lived.  It is also useful to go there when everywhere else is so busy and then go to the jewel and weapon rooms (the most congested areas) at the end of the day.  

Hagia Sophia Dome-ination –

Dome of Dreams 

the most significant dome and building of the Byzantine era that influenced Ottoman and thus Islamic architecture

Istanbul Archaeology Museums – meet Alexander the Great, Iznik tiles, and other important artefacts that talk about the impact of Turkey on the world



St. Peter

Chora Church Mosaics – magnificent Byzantine gold mosaics

Süleymaniye Mosque Dome-ination – incredible domes of this Ottoman masterpiece

Spice Market – buy delicious Kurukahveci Mehmet Efendi kahve (coffee), Turkish Delight, and hazelnuts

We did all the “museums” at one time because the weather was cold and dreary and we bought the Museum Card.  We do not recommend the card.  You are limited to five days, can only go to each museum once, and must visit all museums at one time.  Not many tourists want to spend all their time indoors.  Secondly, there is no discount if you only go to the top three places.  Any National Park card gives unlimited visits over a significant timeframe at a significant discount.
 

Bursa ** 2 nights

HOTEL: Hampton by Hilton very modern, business like, north of downtown, free parking, VG self-serve breakfast

Emerald Wonder

Green Mosque & Tomb *** – it is really Yeşil Türbe (Green Tomb)  opposite the mosque that blew us away and is the must-see with its unbelievable shades of green, so do not miss it!

Cumalikizik

Cumalikizik, Bursa – Ottoman Delight ** – the first is a small, old Ottoman village (do not expect incredible architecture like the wealthier Safranbolu but it was pleasant walk in the off-season when there were very few tourists) and the second is the old walled district of Bursa with nice views from the ramparts near the Türbe.

 

Acrophobics Avoid!

Bergama ** 1 night

HOTEL: Red Basilica very nice manager, E breakfast, good location

Pergamum Acropolis ** – loved the spectacular setting and the precipitous theatre

Selçuk *** 3 nights

HOTEL: Homeros Pension – great place, location, decor, and breakfast; can easily meet other travellers in dining/living room; we even ate supper here just for that reason

Famous building was a library

Ephesus *** – the top archaeological site of Turkey but overrun with tourists; spent all day here; actually is busiest from the opening until lunch then much less people the rest of the day

Şirince * – old Greek town famous for white-washed houses, wine, et al.; spent afternoon of our arrival day here
 

Ionic Columns are from Ionia

Priene – Connection to Architecture? *,
Miletus – What is a Vomitorium? *,
Didyma and the God Apollo – these ancient ruins are all close together but require a car or a tour; we spent all day and did not have enough time to visit Lake Bafu.

 



What's a Tetrapylon?

Afrodisias – Archaeology Aphrodisiac ***

If you have a car, you can visit nearby Afrodisias, on the way to Pamukkale.  However, it is very difficult to get to by dolmuş.  Rent a car or take a tour.  It is one of the nicest archaeological sites in Turkey with some actual buildings still standing or reconstructed!  Its’ fairly compact size gives a very good idea what an Ancient Roman city looked like.  Needs a half day.

Pamukkale – 2 nights

First day was Afrodisias and travel time; so we really had only one day here. 

HOTEL: Melrose House Hotel very warm owners, good conversations, E breakfasts and suppers

 

Where has all the water gone?

Pamukkale Terraces – notice no stars.  Only a few places in Turkey were disappointing.  The Pamukkale Terraces were very disheartening with hardly any water in the "thermal pools".  They are not worth the price of admission. 

Most of the water goes into pools that visitors can walk into.  I am sure this appeals to many tourists but it is not what a thermal area should look like.  If you want to see thermal areas go to Whakarewarewa (Rotorua), Orakei Korako (New Zealand) or Yellowstone National Park (USA). 

Theatre Stage

Hierapolis Ruins ** especially the theatre ***

However, Pamukkale admission also includes the Hierapolis Ruins, which were a pleasant surprise.  The theatre made the price of admission.

Dalyan ** 1 night

Lycian Tombs

Dalyan was one place that deserved more time – not for the laid-back town but for the places nearby.  This is a case where one day really is only a half day at your destination.  If it were beach weather, wouldn't you want to spend time swimming at one of the best beaches in Turkey? 

Iztuzu Beach ** –  Trip Advisor ranks it as one of the top 25 beaches in the world!

Kaunos Lycian Tombs *** –  spectacular, high up on a tall cliff.  But who are the Lycians?  Click the link to find the surprising answer. 
 

Kaş *** 2 nights

HOTEL: Hideaway Hotel was one of the best in TR; E breakfast with a terrace view, E coffee

On the way there: Ölüdeniz – overrated, narrow beach with the sea that is not as turquoise as in the over saturated photos in the tourist brochures

Soft Sand Patara

Patara *** – best beach we saw in Turkey, a world class beach with historically significant ruins – the site of the world's first parliament, whose constitution has influenced most democracies

Kaputaş Beach * – cute beach in a cliff-enclosed cove fringed with turquoise water; near to Kaş so probably dolmuş to get there

Off-season Kaş 

Old Kaş – small but enjoyable with overhanging balconies and plants

Kaş Market – every Friday, be sure to eat here the gözleme

View high up from park on road going down from main highway; Çukurbağ Peninsula; Old Roman Theatre

Kekova Kaarst

Day Trips: Kekova Sound *** spectacular karst scenery but need car so you can stop for views, else book a boat trip over sunken ruins

Could easily spend more time in Kaş, a great "vacation from the vacation" spot

Kiyi Hospitality

Çıralı 1 night

HOTEL: Kiyi Pension E owners, fantastic so meals, so welcoming

Çıralı itself could be skipped but we had a great stay on a farm B&B.  Beach is pebbly and overrated.

 

Turquoise Treasure

On the way to Çıralı:

 

Demre - Turquoise Coast Treasures for perhaps the most beautiful turquoise sea views **

 

 

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