Would you like to enjoy the unique landscapes of Cappadocia created by volcanic eruptions? Would you like to visit the amazing and mysterious underground cities of Cappadocia? If the answer is yes, then 2 Days Trip To Cappadocia Tour From Istanbul By Bus is for you!
Cappadocia is a unique area created by volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. In the soft rock tuff as early as the 6th century BC. people began carving out their own dwellings. You will be amazed by the whole cities carved into the rocks by the early Christians. On this exciting trip, you will have 2 busy days, during which you will visit the “Red Tour” and the “Green Tour”.
The Red Tour is a classic tour of central Cappadocia (northern region of Cappadocia) that covers the most popular highlights of Cappadocia such as the Goreme Open Air Museum, the huge rock-hewn Uchisar fortress and some of the beautiful valleys of Cappadocia.
You will be amazed by the preserved frescoes of cave churches carved into the rocks on 2 Days Trip To Cappadocia Tour From Istanbul By Bus, the famous fairy chimneys in the shape of mushrooms, the valley known as the “Valley of the Imagination”, with a wide landscape of rocks resembling camels, snakes, seals, dolphins and even a stone in the form of the Virgin Mary, who in the arms of Jesus.
Green tour in Cappadocia is an exciting tour of the southern part of Cappadocia. You will walk in the open air for many kilometers through beautiful valleys. Ihlara Canyon is one of the largest canyons in the world! On the territory of this canyon, history and nature are in perfect harmony.
You will be delighted as you walk past rock-hewn churches that still dazzle the eye with images from the Bible. The Ihlara Valley is known for hundreds of ancient churches. This is a very beautiful and unusual place. The mysterious and incredible underground city of Kaymakli will surprise you with dwellings with stables, cellars, pantries, refectories, churches, wineries and even schools.
Istanbul 2 Days Trip To Cappadocia Tour price is 75 Euro for adults, 40 Euro for children from 0 to 7 years old
Please note that we have ‘no hidden costs’
Your unforgettable trip will start on Friday evening when a comfortable bus will pick you up from your hotel. You will go to the bus station and from there take another bus to amazing Cappadocia. After checking into the hotel and breakfast, you will go to explore the sights of the Red Tour. During the tour you will have lunch in a Turkish restaurant. After the tour you will be transferred to the hotel. After breakfast on Sunday you will set off to conquer the expanses of the Green Tour. Also during this tour you will have a hearty lunch in a cozy restaurant by the stream. After the “Green Tour” you will have some free time and then you will go back to Istanbul.
Travel time is approximately 11 hours. But since the road is carried out at night, these hours will fly by for you unnoticed. All Turkish buses are comfortable. You will be offered water, tea, coffee and snacks. During the trip, there will be stops at shopping centers where you can go to the toilet, have a snack or buy something for yourself in the market.
At the beginning of your exciting trip, you will go to the highest point of Cappadocia. It is located on top of the beautiful ancient city of Uchisar, which managed to preserve its national flavor and originality.
Here you will stop at the foot of the authentic Uchisar rock fortress, which is carved into the tuff rock. Inside this rock, living quarters were located at different levels, and even an ancient water supply system was built.
Not far from the fortress, you can visit the observation deck, from which you will enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view of the entire Goreme nature reserve. This is a world-famous complex of ancient rock architecture, as well as a variety of unique wildlife phenomena.
This is a large area of churches, monasteries and chapels carved into the rock, built around 900-1200 by the first Christians. You will be amazed by the colorful frescoes on the stone walls.
Cavusin is one of the oldest settlements in Cappadocia. Chavushin is known for a complex of abandoned houses on the rock. In one of these rooms is one of the oldest temples in Cappadocia – the Church of St. John the Baptist. It is known that this church was covered with frescoes as early as the 5th century.
Until 1953, people lived in these rock houses, but due to collapses, earthquakes and erosion, they were forced to leave their homes.
You will definitely enjoy walking around ancient places and imagining how people once lived in them.
You will definitely visit the beautiful Rose Valley. This extraordinary valley got its name due to the pink color of the rocks and rock formations, which look especially charming at sunset. From the outside, they resemble Italian meringue or airy pink dessert.
In addition to the enchanting landscapes in the Rose Valley, there are a lot of interesting cave churches and dwellings. The pink valley actually consists of several valleys, which are connected in different places with each other. In order to go through the valley on your own, looking into the churches and dwellings of the valley, you will need about five hours. The itinerary will be designed for you in such a way that you will see the most beautiful parts of these valleys in a short period of time.
Then you will go to the city of Avanos, where a delicious lunch of Cappadocian cuisine is waiting for you at the restaurant. Avanos is called the ceramic capital of Cappadocia and the city of potters. It is a famous center for pottery. The technique of making local ceramics was passed down through hundreds of years, starting from the Hittite times.
Red clay, which is processed by local master potters, is mined from the longest river (800 km) in Turkey called Kizilirmak, which flows through the city of Avanos.
The high quality and artistic value of local ceramic objects are widely known and recognized throughout Turkey, as well as in many other countries.
Now even fluorescent paints are used here for the modern design of clay products.
You will visit the Pottery Workshop, where you will be shown how experienced pottery masters work. And, considering all kinds of ceramic products, you can get acquainted with the results of their creativity. Many of them may well be called clay masterpieces.
After that, you will visit the stunning Pasabag Valley or, as it is also called, the “Valley of the Fairies” or “Valley of the Monks”. There are a large number of unique rocks in the form of two- and three-headed stone “mushrooms”, which are also called “fairy chimneys”. In one such mushroom, the church of St. Simeon is located. Inside there is a cell and a chapel.
Saint Simeon lived here as a hermit for about fifteen years. This is stated in ancient legends.
According to these testimonies, the Monk Simeon the Stylite was born in the 5th century in one of the villages of Cappadocia. He devoted many years to the idea of spiritual asceticism in this stone church.
In constant prayers, he kept a strict fast and helped a large number of people to be healed. Saint Simeon possessed the gift of casting out evil spirits and performed many spiritual miracles. Then the believers, who wished to retire from the world, following the example of St. Simeon the Stylite, began to settle in the Valley of the Monks, forming a settlement there.
The next part of your route is no less exciting. You will visit the Devrent Valley – this is the Imagination Valley or the Fantasy Valley, as it is also called. Walking through this magical valley, you will be able to see animal-like rock formations that look like a zoo of sculptures created by nature itself.
Further along the route you will have a trip to the symbol of Cappadocia – the city of Urgup, which is also called the main fortress of Cappadocia. This well-known center of tourism has an ancient history.
Here was the largest city in the entire region of Cappadocia in the Seljuk era and in the Ottoman period, and it was called Bashhisar, which in translation means the main fortress.
You can see here the so-called “three beauties” – these are three “mushrooms” of the largest size of all such creations of nature that exist on the territory of Cappadocia.
On the second day of the tour, you will go to the mysterious underground city of Kaymakli – this is the oldest monument of human civilization. It was discovered relatively recently – in 1964. It was presumably built in Hittite times. And the name “Kaymakli” is translated from Turkish as “creamy”. This incredible city has approximately 8 levels, possibly more. Archaeologists have completely excavated 5 floors. It is believed that about 15 thousand people could live in it. In this mysterious city of Kaymakli, there was absolutely everything for a comfortable stay – living rooms, kitchens, canteens, wineries, temples, schools, chapels, bakeries, oil pressing rooms, all kinds of workshops, armories and even stables and an underground cemetery.
About two hundred underground cities are known in Cappadocia. The underground city of Kaymakli is one of the largest underground cities in Cappadocia.
Next, you will head to the deepest and longest canyon of Cappadocia – the Ihlara Valley. This stone canyon stretches for 15 kilometers, and its depth in some places is 150 meters. The Ihlara Valley is a very beautiful natural place. This unusual beautiful canyon is famous for the fact that Byzantine monks settled here 17 centuries ago. The industrious monks carved dwellings and churches in the stone walls of the canyon. In ancient times, the population of the canyon reached 60 thousand people. In many cave churches, wall frescoes have been perfectly preserved.
In the Ihlara Valley, on the Cappadocia Green Tour, you can visit some of these fascinating and mysterious rock churches and walk about 3 kilometers along the Melendiz River.
After an exciting hike through the wonderful Ihlara Valley, a hearty national lunch awaits you in the beautiful village of Belisirma, which is located in the canyon itself. You will have a delicious lunch in a traditional Turkish restaurant right by the stream.
The next attraction on your exciting Cappadocia Green Tour tour will be Pigeon Valley or Pigeon Valley. The total length of this unusual valley is 4 kilometers. It is called so because there are a lot of dovecotes in it, which are located right in the rocks. Pigeons have been bred since ancient times in order to collect their droppings and fertilize gardens and fields with this droppings.
In the Pigeon Valley, you can take plenty of pictures of the fabulous panoramas of the valley with dovecotes. You will have the opportunity to feed the pigeons yourself (food is also sold here).
For Cappadocia, onyx is considered a special stone. There are several mines for its extraction. Since ancient times, it has been used to create jewelry, in construction, and even for worship. In the onyx workshop you can buy jewelry and various stone products for yourself or as a gift to your loved ones.
The village of Uchisar is located at an altitude of 1400 meters above sea level and is considered the highest point in Cappadocia. In the center of this village there is a 60-meter rock. In this rock, presumably in 1800 – 1180 BC, a whole fortress was carved. It served as a watchtower for the entire village of Uchisar. In the 16th century, during the reign of the Ottoman Empire, more than 2,500 people could hide in it. You can climb to the top of the fortress and enjoy the incredible views from the highest rock tower in Cappadocia – valleys, volcanoes and the famous stone mushrooms.
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