These two days were undoubtedly the highlight of my trip. The hot air balloon experience is a once in a lifetime experience that I will treasure forever! Two full days is just enough time, as you will need to book the hot air balloon for your second morning there.
Day 1
We arrived early (6:30am) in Cappadocia and in need of a good shower after overnight bus trip with Metro Turizm!! See my review of our hotel Royal Stone Houses on Tripadvisor:
I was a bit regretful that I didn’t stay in a cave hotel but this luxurious place was just what we needed!
Goreme has unique “fairy chimney” rock formations, making the landscape look other-worldly..
We made it in time for a Green tour on our first day which took us to Derinkuyu Underground City, Ihlara Valley hike (where we saw amazing cave churches – see pic below) and Selime Monastery amongst other places.
In the evening we just walked around the town and had dinner at Fat Boyz bar, and then had Turkish coffee and baklava (with some pistachio ice cream – yum!)
Day 2:
The next morning we woke up early – the day we had eagerly anticipated was finally upon us! We did the sunrise hot air balloon ride with Royal Balloons and had the most indescribable time. I cannot put down in words how mind-blowing this was for hubster and I. Look at these pictures!!!!
Aerial view pics:
See my review on Tripadvisor here:
After we got back to the hotel and had a little bit more breakfast we left for the Red Tour which included the Goreme Open Air Museum, Uchisar and the fairy chimneys.
I would recommend taking these tours as the guides are knowledgeable and the distances between each place is too great and too much of a hassle to navigate on your own. They allow enough time for photo opportunities and to explore by yourself. Lunches are included which is great! The last stops are usually at a touristy shop – onyx jewelry or wine tasting.
When in Cappadocia you must have testi kebabs which is either lamb, beef or chicken kebabs slow cooked in a clay pot.
Cappadocia is unashamedly touristic, but thoroughly enjoyable! A definite must-see to include when travelling through Turkey.