The events that shaped Goreme into the breathtaking masterpiece today started millions of years ago when the mountains of Hasan, Golu, and Erciyes erupted. These eruptions covered the whole of Cappadocia in ash, which later solidified into soft volcanic rock.
The soft rock was eroded by water and wind for hundreds of millennia, sculpting the most stunning and unique of landscapes. Some of the resulting geological features can be found in the Goreme National Park and Rock Sites of Cappadocia.
Humans are known to have settled in the area as early as the Hittite era, between the 19th and 13th century BC. When Christians reached Goreme, the region became a monastic center between the 4th and 13th century AD. They carved out churches, monasteries, homes, and later on entire towns into the landscape. One of the finest examples of such activities in the region is Goreme town.
Goreme Town is a special place. With about 2,000 people, this small charming town is one of the last few inhabited cave towns in the world. The population here strives to preserve the town’s rich culture and have thus, created a vibrant atmosphere that visitors of the village love.
Nonetheless, it wasn’t always this way; a few decades ago, Goreme was a small farming town sitting in a valley a mile away from Goreme Open Air Museum. It went by the name Avcilar, and it had several cheap family pensions. When budget travelers discovered the Avcilar, they started to flock to the peaceful town, turning it into a tourist hotbed.
Since then, the small farming town has transformed into a picturesque destination. More comfortable hotels and pensions have been established from restored cave houses and excellent restaurants set up to accommodate the influx of tourists. It is this change that prompted the town to be renamed Goreme.
From the town, visitors can explore the famed Goreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia. This magnificent location encompasses most of Cappadocia’s top attractions. The park covers small mountains, rivers and river valleys, high hills, drainage deltas, alluvial streams, steep canyons, and lots of spectacular rock formations in its entire stretch. The highlight of the National Park is the iconic fairy chimneys: unusual rock pillars with mushroom-shaped caps.
Apart from its breathtaking aesthetics, the National Park is also of immense historical and cultural value to the region. Hidden within the spectacular landscape are dwellings, underground towns, and remains of a village that provide much-treasured insight into ancient Cappadocians’ lives. There are also fine remnants of Byzantine art in the rock-cut churches and monasteries within the park.
Due to its historical significance and undeniable beauty, the Goreme National Park and Rock Sites of Cappadocia were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1985.
You can reach Goreme by a variety of means, including air. Flights from Istanbul to the nearest airports in Kayseri and Nevsehir towns take about 1 hour and 30 minutes and cost around 60 USD. There are no public buses from the villages to Goreme hence you will have to rent a car or pre-book a shuttle service. The distance from Kayseri to Goreme is around 50 miles and takes approximately 80 minutes, while from Nevsehir, the distance is about 25 miles and takes 40 minutes.
Alternatively, you can take the cheaper but longest and most tiring route; an overnight bus from Istanbul. It costs around 34 USD for a one-way trip, which takes about 12 hours to complete.
Once you get to the cave town, the first activity will be to secure decent accommodation. There are a lot of excellent rock-cut hotels, guest houses, and luxury spas. For the once-in-a-lifetime experience sleeping in a historic cave, the town’s simplest rooms go for around 28 USD per head for a double room.
It in this town that your magical experience of Goreme begins. The beautifully restored cave houses, hotels, and restaurants, and the cobblestone streets give the small village an exotic look, like something constructed by elves straight out of a fantasy novel. As you explore the narrow streets, you get to see a Goreme exclusive; fairy chimneys and cones jutting into the sky, complete with windows and doors.
From the town, you can also see the adjacent village of Uchisar. A tourist magnet, Uchisar is home to the largest rock citadel in Cappadocia, Uchisar Rock Castle. You can see the illuminated fortress from Goreme at night, which makes for a magical sight since it appears as if it is floating in the darkness.
You can also explore the National Park for some of the most spectacular attractions in the surrounding areas. Goreme Open Air Museum is the most notable of attractions in the area, with Byzantine-era rock-cut churches decorated with impressive frescoes. The park also forms an excellent hiking spot with valleys full of stunning fairy chimneys along the way. These include the Valley of Fairy Chimneys, Rose Valley, Monk’s Valley, Devrent (Imagination) valley, and Esentepe viewpoint.
Goreme is near many Cappadocia top attractions like Uchisar, Avanos, underground cities, Ihlara and Pasabag valleys, Urgup, and Ortahisar.
