Welcome to Cappadocia: Turkey's hidden gem

Welcome to Cappadocia: Turkey's hidden gem

Türkiye’s income from the tourism sector is important and most of the country's tourist sites, such as Cappadocia, have not been affected by the earthquakes that killed tens of thousands of people in February. 

Visitors from all over the world continue to be welcomed to this relatively unknown region, which is bursting with natural beauty and history. 

Lava, ash, rain, wind and ice are the “artists” that have sculpted over millions of years Cappadocia, in central Türkiye.

Its fairy chimneys, conical structures that can reach up to 45 meters in height, are famous all over the world.

If nature was the first artist to arrange the decor, man carved the rest, creating what is now considered a national treasure.

A member of the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1984, the Göreme Open-Air Museum is a monastic Byzantine masterpiece. Churches, chapels and monasteries here have all been cut into the rock.

Inside the Dark Church, one of the most impressive, the walls are adorned with beautiful frescoes. Miraculously, the colours have retained their original lustre, thanks to the incredible technique used at that time, as Asım Çiftçi, tourist guide at the Göreme Open-Air museum, tells us.

“This church has the very well-preserved colours of our region. So, this [is] all original, it didn’t [need to be] restored. Everything is natural: the colours, the natural pigments, the fresh lime. The polish is made from wild pigeons’ eggs."

Another gem, although less known, is Cappadocia’s wine. According to history, the area is part of the region considered to be the birthplace of wine.

Viticulture is said to have first begun here during the bronze age. The unique character of the wines from Cappadocia stems from