Red Tour ( North Tour )

Uçhisar is a troglodyte village situated 4 km east of Göreme. It is famous for the huge rock formation once used as a fortification. This extraordinary rock is the highest peak in the region and offers a magnificent panoramic view of the whole of Cappadocia with Mt. Erciyes in the distance.Most rooms in the castle are connected to each other with stairs, tunnels and passages. At the entrances of many rooms, there are millstone doors, just like the ones in the underground settlements, used to control access to these places. Due to erosion it is unfortunately not possible to reach all the rooms. Most of the rooms, located on the north side of the castle are still in use as pigeon houses (dovecotes) today. Farmers used these pigeon houses to collect the droppings of pigeons which is an excellent natural fertilizer for the orchards and vineyards. A secret tunnel from the castle to the river bed 100 m below, hewn out in order to provide the water supply in the event of siege, has been recently discovered.

Goreme Open Air Museum, Cappadocia's most famous attraction, for good reason, is the Göreme Open Air Museum, a complex of medieval painted cave churches carved out by Orthodox monks. There are over 10 cave churches in the Göreme Open Air Museum. Along with rectories, dwellings, and a religious school, they form a large monastic complex carved out of a roughly ring-shaped rock formation in the otherworldly landscape of Cappadocia. The best way to explore the cave churches of Goreme is via the clearly marked path, working counterclockwise. Each one has a modern Turkish name, given by local villages based on a prominent feature.

White and Honey valleys (the latter is better known as Love Valley) are relatively easy to walk. The total length is about 4900 m and they are situated between Uchisar and Çavusin, passing Göreme on the north side. Within Honey valley are many spectacular fairy chimneys that Cappadocia is famous for. There are hundreds of these phallic-shaped rocks, created over millions of years by wind erosion. The valley has a stream that is dry in summer but quite muddy at other times; it provides a good guide to walk from one end of the valley to the other.

Çavuşin village, located about halfway between Avanos and Göreme, is surrounded by a valley which becomes gradually wider, allowing extended farming. Until the 1920s it had a mixed population with many Christian Orthodox families. The old village, which was abandoned several decades ago due to rock falls, was all carved into the hillside. The inhabitants of Çavuşin lived in houses which were cut into a massive rock wall. Now the insides of many of the dwellings are exposed due to hundreds and hundreds of years of weathering and erosion. They are covered in rubble and huge rocks and boulders, much of their former walls and various outer bits of the buildings. So, now from a distance you can look into a church or what was once someone’s cozy little cave home. A winding narrow path takes you to the top of the village. It is worthwhile climbing up there to see the valley behind it and in the distance one can see the pink pinnacles of Zelve and in the foreground a group of spectacular fairy chimneys.

Avanos, The old city of Avanos, whose name in ancient times was Venessa overlooks the longest river of Turkey, the Kızılırmak (Red River), which also separates Avanos from the rest of Cappadocia. The most famous historical feature of Avanos, which is still relevant and very visible today, is its production of earthenware pottery. The ceramic trade in this district and its countless pottery factories date right back to the Hittites, and the ceramic clay from the red silt of the Kızılırmak has always been used. Watch the potters at work using the kick wheel, using the technique that has never changed over its generations.  It is a popular destination because of its attractive old town with cobbled streets, and superb views over the river.

Pasabag, Highly remarkable earth pillars can be seen here, in the middle of a vineyard, hence the name of the place which means: the Pasha’s vineyard. Pasha means "General", the military rank, in Turkish and it is a very common nick name. This site is also called Monks Valley. The name was derived from some cones carved in tuff stones which stand apart. Currently, there is a vineyard and a number of tuff cones standing right next to the road.

Devrent Valley, Also known as Imaginary Valley or Pink Valley, this area does not have cave churches like the other valleys of Cappadocia. So what makes it so famous? The lunar landscape! Devrent Valley hides many different rock formations within. The small fairy chimneys in the valley form a lunar landscape, or moonscape, by their strange appearance. The valley has many animal-shaped rocks. Some of the most commonly seen shapes include camel, snake, seals, and dolphin.

Urgup, Located in the historical region of Cappadocia. Ürgüp is famous for its wines and the Fairy Chimneys.