Göreme is surrounded by valleys and fairy chimneys, so beautiful and so natural that it made us feel like we were in a fairy tale or another world.. On clear days you see a lot of balloons in the sky early in the morning.. At sunset, you can set the sun on the reddish fairy chimneys.. When you see the places to visit in Göreme, we are sure you will find something to love about this land.
We stayed in Göreme during our Cappadocia holiday.. We also recommend the hotel Göreme Inn with our eyes closed.. It will please you with the hotel’s architecture, furnishings, cleanliness as well as the interest, pleasant conversation and friendliness of the staff.. We hadn’t decided where to visit on our way to Cappadocia, and we made our itinerary with the guidance of the friends at the reception, all of them were really helpful.
Now let’s start exploring places to visit in Göreme, respectively:
1- Love Valley
Best known as Valley of Love; It is also known as Lovers Valley and Bağlıdere Valley. It is located within the borders of Göreme and its length is 4900 meters, and it is a very convenient valley for walks.. However, the best thing you can do in this valley is to watch the sunrise and the balloons take off.. That’s exactly why the Love Valley comes first among the places to visit in Göreme, because when you think of Cappadocia, the first thing that comes to mind is the balloon.
The entrance to the valley is not very suitable for vehicles.. It was also stated that the entry of motor vehicles is prohibited on the signs.. If you want, you can go to the point where you can see the Love Valley panoramically by not turning left and continuing straight.. If you are planning to join the ATV tour, you do not need to come here separately because most of the tours stop by the Love Valley.. By the way, the entrance to the valley is free.
For those who decide to take a walk, we can say that a 3-hour walk awaits you.. Those who will participate in the balloon tour also come to this area with their off-road vehicles.. If you wish, you can explore the valley after the balloon tour.
2- Lovers Hill
A wonderful spot where you can see the whole Goreme and the valley under your feet by going up the side road near the mosque in Göreme center.. It gets very crowded during the day. If you want, you can have breakfast and relax at the cafe on the hill.
One of the beautiful spots where you can watch the sunset, although the weather was a bit cloudy when we went and there was a view like the one below.
3- Göreme Open Air Museum
You can enter the Göreme Open Air Museum, which is an old settlement 2 kilometers east of Göreme, by paying a ticket fee of 45 TL.. It is worth noting that the museum card is also used here.. It is open between 08:00 – 17:00 during the winter period (November – March) and between 08:00 – 19:00 during the summer period (April – October).
A.S. 4. from the 13th century. It is seen that there was a busy monastic life until the 19th century.. Inside, there are many interconnected churches, chapels, dining halls and sitting areas.. There are Girls and Boys Monastery, Yılanlı Church, Çarıklı Church, Saint Basil Church, Saint Barbara Church, Elmalı Church, Dark Church, Çarıklı Church and Tokalı Churches in Göreme Open Air Museum.. Some of these churches are in better condition, while others are just ruins.
The most depicted scenes in Goreme Churches are shown right at the entrance of the museum.. Examples include Apology for Sinners, Escape to Egypt, and The Last Supper.
When you take a proper route inside, you will first see St. Basil’s Chapel. Then will come the Elmalı Church, St. Barbara Chapel, Snake Church and Dark Church. Fortunately for us, Dark Church and Çarıklı Church were closed that day and we could not visit.. However, there are boards outside where you can get information.
4- Aynalı Church
After leaving the Göreme Open Air Museum, you can visit the Mirror Church on your way to Göreme. you will see. There is a sign on the road, if you are traveling by car, do not get off where you see the sign, you can drive up to the church.. The reason why it is called the Mirrored Church is that the shapes on the walls are exactly symmetrical.. Although the church is independent from the Göreme Open Air Museum, you can visit the church by paying an entrance fee of 5 TL.. They give you a flashlight at the entrance because inside there are both narrow and not too short passages between rooms and floors. Unfortunately, this church is also among the churches that were destroyed by unconscious people.
The Mirrored Church is not for those with claustrophobia, even though I know myself, I blacked out and climbed that narrow staircase and regretted it.. I would prefer to jump out of the window instead of going down that ladder again, but because there was no glass, I had to go down, that’s all I’ll tell you, you decide the rest.. There are already so many different churches to visit in Göreme that you won’t lose anything if you don’t see this place.
5- Güllüdere Valley
Right across the Kızılçukur Valley Güllüdere Valley is one of the stopping points of ATV and horse safari tours.. The color of the rocks changes with the reflection of the sunlight and it is one of the ideal spots to watch the sunset.. It is exactly between Çavuşin and Göreme and can be reached from both sides.
In this valley, Three Cross Church, Ayvalı Church, >Anna Johachim Church, Church with the Cross, Pillar Church. When you start walking in Güllüdere Valley, you will first see the Üç Cross Church.. Next comes the Crusader Church, you can take a break here. It has a cafe in front of it that makes fresh juices.. Then, when you continue, you will see Anna Johachim and Pillar Church, which most people pass by, a little further down the path.. It may seem like it’s stretching your way, but it’s definitely worth a visit.. In particular, Direkli Church is one of the most impressive places to visit in Göreme, and many people pass by without stopping by because tours and guides do not take them here.. That’s why it’s important to do your research before you go.
This valley, which is spread over an area of approximately 4 kilometers, is an ideal trekking spot.. But “Is these churches easy to reach? Does trekking make me tired?” If so, our answer is “Yes!” will be. The path in the valley must climb from place to place and go downhill naturally, as well as quite narrow.. If you want to see the different churches here, you should definitely dress appropriately and have water with you.. We even had tea in the thermos with us We need to rest in between. In order to reach the churches, you will have to climb the mountain, especially in the Church of the Three Crusaders.. This church, which will fascinate and even shake you when you enter it, has unfortunately been left to itself and has not been protected in any way.. Be careful not to have anything on hand when trying to climb the Church of the Three Crosses.. Don’t say I’ll handle it; you will probably drop. If you say that trekking is not for me, you can see the Üç Cross Church by car from Çavuşin, and you can see the valley in a panoramic way if you come from Göreme.. However, our advice is definitely to walk in the valley and see the churches that most people have not seen.
It is not very logical to come to Güllüdere valley with your own vehicle because you have to walk back the way you came.. Instead, you can take a taxi to the Three Cross Church on the Çavuşin side and start walking from there.. You can walk to Göreme and then take a taxi back to your hotel.. Do not take the opposite route because you will not find a taxi on the Çavuşin side.
All churches are relatively easy to access except the Church of the Three Crosses.. Of course, we keep aside the difficulties of walking. But rest assured, you will make a journey that will be worth all the walking fatigue.
Information boards were placed in front of every church in the Güllüdere Valley, but these boards were destroyed when we went.. A guide we came across regretted that these boards were made this way by his colleagues.. Their aim was to prevent people from traveling on their own, of course, it is not right to attribute this to all guides.. The guide we talked to was also very complaining about this issue, anyway, as a result, it is very difficult to find any information on the board or around.. For this reason, it is useful to determine your route before you go.
As you will see, every point of Göreme is waiting for you to be discovered.. However, the number of places to visit in Göreme may seem small, but they are all places that need to be spared, so it is useful to plan your itinerary by taking this into account.. In short, Cappadocia is ideal for you if you are looking for a holiday to the fullest and a little tired but learning a lot.
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