This Pickyourtrail Traveller Has Been to 32 Countries & 81 Cities. Here’s What He Has To Say About His Trip to Turkey With PYT

From staying in a cave hotel and exploring the fairy chimneys to taking to the skies in a hot air balloon, there are so many amazing things to do in Cappadocia, Turkey.

Cappadocia isn’t like anywhere else in the world. With its unique rock formations, you’ll feel like you’ve landed on another planet. The only other places that come close are Saxon Switzerland in Germany and the Valley of the Moon in Chile. But for me, Cappadocia is the clear winner! Alongside that experience, there are a few other attractions I’d definitely recommend making time for. It’s a wonderful area — Taking to the skies in a hot air balloon, soaring above Cappadocia’s other-worldly landscapes in a hot air balloon was the highlight of my trip. Not only are the views incredible, but it’s also really special taking to the skies with so many other balloons around. The Cappadocia region of Turkey is the most popular location in the world for hot air ballooning. It’s also one of the few places in the world you can balloon almost all year round. Trips run in boiling hot summers and snowy winters – and the landscape looks incredible in both. While on a flight, you won’t just see a few balloons, the sky will be filled with around 100 balloons of different colors and designs. Every day is like a fiesta. Don’t worry though, it happens to be one of the most highly regulated places, and has an excellent safety record. To fly here, pilots must train for around 5 times as long as in other parts of the world. It was my first trip in a hot air balloon. I didn’t really know what to expect, or whether I would enjoy the sensation. With 16 to a balloon, I listened to other passengers as they recounted tales of previous balloon trips. Over the next hour or so we floated up to a maximum height of 800m, soaring high in the morning sky alongside around 100 other balloons. The views were breathtaking – and constantly changed as we drifted through the different areas. We passed the famous Fairy Chimneys, Monk’s Valley, Imagination Valley, pigeon houses, plenty of cave houses and vineyards. The landscape seemed to change color as the minutes ticked by. From the highest points, the panoramic views of the region were completely mind-blowing, while from the lowest points you could almost pick fruit from the trees! There was more to it than just the weird and wonderful landscape, the view of the other balloons in the sky made it a completely magical experience. It didn’t look real!

If horseback riding isn’t your thing, then you may want to go on an ATV ride instead. This tour started off at a panoramic spot overlooking the Goreme Valley, which was beautiful, to begin with. We stopped by Cavusin for a short hike through their caves where the tour told me a few things about the history of these areas. Cavusin (or Cavus’in) is a small village on the road linking Goreme. It’s pretty much a ghost village now. The abandoned village at Cavusin is a physical reminder of one of the symbols of the Turkey Independence movement. Besides, I learned something interesting about the structures of the caves in the village. The inhabitants of Cavusin lived in houses that were cut into a long rock wall and they designed the architecture of the caves to protect themselves from the Arabs. Then a break was taken at the Uchisar Castle which was fascinating for me with the fact that it is a cave castle. It’s not like any other castles. Too awesome to see!!

Exploring Cappadocia’s Magical Landscapes And Historic Caves – Whooaa! - the expression that struck me when I first looked at that sci-fi scenery! It’s so amazing when you reach the area and start seeing the rock formations for yourself. Several volcanic eruptions followed by natural weathering and erosion, have created the weird and wonderful landscape of craters, canyons and fairy chimneys (they’re the tall pillars with little caps on). It’s also fascinating when you find out how much used to happen underground. There are vast underground cities and cave houses dating back to 1800 BC. To get a good flavor of the area I’d recommend booking a Cappadocia day tour which will take you to see some of the key places including Pigeon and Monk’s Valleys, Urgup Fairy Chimneys, Kaymakli & Derinkuyu Underground Cities and of course the unusual rock castle – Uçhisar Castle. Believe it or not, there are 36 underground cities that were once used by Christians to hide from Roman armies. I’d strongly recommend taking a tour to Kaymakli or Derinkuyu to explore the hundreds of passages that were built deep into the ground. You’ll find everything below ground including churches, bedrooms, storage places, kitchens, and even wineries. I love how this area of history is still being pieced together. Over the last few years, archaeologists have unearthed a city of several kilometers of tunnels, complete with churches dating back around 5,000 years. Then there’s the intricate system of caves above the ground. The best way to get to grips with Cappadocia’s history is by visiting the UNESCO World Heritage – Goreme Open Air Museum. There are plenty of beautiful cave hotels/suites/restaurants to choose from. Even though I didn't choose the cave hotel to stay, I had a lovely dinner in the cave restaurant.

In the evening be sure to head up to the Sunset Point in Goreme for Sunset. If you’re staying in Goreme as I did which is just a few minutes from the center, give yourself about 20 minutes to walk up there and try to get there about 20 minutes before the sunset time. You may need a map on your phone as the roads are quite twisty but basically just head up the hill towards the huge Turkish Flag on the hill above Goreme. Once you get to the hill, turn left as I found it was a lot quieter here that makes it the best spot to watch the sun go down in front of you whilst looking over Goreme Town that sits in the Valley.

Finally, you can go for Paragliding in Urgup. I couldn’t do it but for sure it will be an amazing experience. You will see the fantastic view of Cappadocia from the sky and feel full adrenalin. You just need to run a few steps to be airborne. Cappadocia has one of the amazing views in the world (for those who have had experiences diving into Brazilian-Argentina waterfalls from the helicopter, this is gonna be familiar). You will definitely feel you are on another planet.

I hope you will enjoy Turkey as much as I did!