Central Anatolia

The heart of the Anatolian plateau, with Cappadocia's hot-air balloons and rock-cut churches, Konya's Mevlana Museum, and the capital, Ankara.

This region corresponds to Türkiye's official Central Anatolia Region, which includes the provinces of Ankara, Konya, Karaman, Aksaray, Niğde, Nevşehir, Kırşehir, Kırıkkale, Kayseri, Sivas, Yozgat, Eskişehir and Çankırı. It borders the Black Sea Region to the north (Çorum Province, home to the Hittite capital Hattusa, belongs to the Black Sea Region), is separated from the Mediterranean Region to the south by the Taurus Mountains, and provinces such as Afyon to the west belong to the Aegean Region.

Cappadocia is the main attraction, spanning Nevşehir, Aksaray, Kayseri and Niğde; Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia are a World Heritage site. Highlights include the cave-church frescoes at the Göreme Open-Air Museum, Uçhisar Castle, the fairy chimneys, the Rose Valley and Red Valley trails, the underground cities of Derinkuyu and Kaymaklı, and the Ihlara Valley in Aksaray. A hot-air balloon flight at dawn is the signature experience, and staying in a cave hotel is also very popular. Konya was the former capital of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum; the Mevlana Museum is Rumi's mausoleum, where you can watch the whirling dervish ceremony, and the Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük lies outside the city. Ankara has the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations and Anıtkabir, Atatürk's mausoleum. Also worth a look are the old Odunpazarı quarter of Eskişehir and the Divriği Great Mosque and Hospital in Sivas, and you can ski on Mount Erciyes near Kayseri.

Spend 2–3 nights in Cappadocia, plus 1 day in Konya and 1 day in Ankara. Kayseri and Nevşehir have airports, and high-speed trains run Ankara–Konya and Ankara–Eskişehir–Istanbul. Balloon flights are often canceled at short notice because of wind, so allow an extra night as a backup.

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Itineraries