6-Day Cappadocia Trekking Tour with Derinkuyu and Göreme

• Meet the group at Kayseri Airport and drive to Ihlara (2 hours).

Overnight stay at the hotel.

The narrow, steep-sided Ihlara Valley, dotted with rock-cut churches, was once the favourite retreat of Byzantine monks. This valley was formed by primeval earthquakes, and what was once a rushing river is now a quiet stream.

• As we walk through the winding valley, with cliffs reaching up to 170 m in some places, we see small garden plots that would originally have provided for the colonies and made them self-supporting. There are many rock-cut churches in this valley, with well-preserved frescoes dating from the 9th century.

• In the afternoon, we will drive to Göreme via the Underground City at Derinkuyu, where 8 subterranean levels stretch 57 metres below ground. Göreme is a town particularly renowned for its pottery, and much of it is still moulded there today.

Overnight stay at a pension (5-6 hour walk).

• We will trek through Akvadi (White Valley), perfectly eroded by time, rain, and wind over the centuries.

• As we follow a seasonal river, many curious rock formations and fairy chimneys will surround us. If we are lucky, we may also see wild birds such as the hoopoe, as well as wild animals like foxes.

• During the 3-hour walk, our route takes us up to Uçhisar village, where we will have a lunch break in a restaurant. Uçhisar village is settled around a high promontory called a citadel. From the top, we will enjoy a rewarding panoramic view of the whole surreal Cappadocia area.

• In the afternoon, we will follow a path to Pigeon Valley, where we will see some missionaries who are holy for Muslim people and are greatly revered in this area.

• To end the day, we arrive at Göreme, where we will stay overnight (5-hour walk).

• We spend the morning walking through the little-visited Pancarlik Valley, admiring its unusual formations.

• We continue on to Kızılçukur Valley. Sometimes known as the 'red hole', Kızılçukur is probably the hottest valley in the region. Hidden among its array of fairy chimneys is the Church with Grapes, where frescoes depict viticulture and fruit-growing. The wine produced in this region is very sweet and heavy.

• We reach the small village of Cavusin, which lies on top of a collapsed section of an early Christian cave city. This was caused by a huge rock slide which, together with earthquakes and natural erosion, split the plateau.

• The atrium of the church at Cavusin has cascaded down, exposing some of the frescoes, which we shall visit next. (5-6 hour walk)

• Today, we will explore the area around Cavusin.

• In the morning, we will have the opportunity to walk up Bozdağ Mountain (4 hours), the highest point in Cappadocia, for fine views of the entire area.

• In the afternoon, we will visit the Göreme Open-Air Museum, a monastic complex of rock churches and chapels covered with frescoes and one of the best-known sites in the region. Most of the chapels date from the 10th to 13th centuries, and many of them are built on an inscribed cross-plan with a central cupola supported by four columns. The first settlements in the area were founded after the missionary journeys of St. Paul in AD 53. The soft rocks were hollowed out for different purposes, and the museum also contains many rock churches (3-4 hour walk to visit the museum).

• We will continue our walk from Zemi Valley down to Göreme. It is very green inside the valley and quite different from the Kapadokya plateau. We will have a chance to see vineyards and local gardens along the valley.

• In the afternoon, we will walk through Paşabağları, known as the Valley of the Priests. Many of the chimneys here are only partially divided, showing the continuous erosion process. Interestingly, there is also a small minaret transformed from a church belfry, indicating that this place was inhabited by Muslims after the Christians. This valley is also noted for the many caves used by hermits for their retreats. A three-capped chimney was the retreat of the monk Simeon, who, unlike his counterpart in Syria, lived inside the pillar instead of on top of it.

• After the trek, we will transfer to the airport to conclude the tour.