Cappadocia Green Tour: Underground City, Ihlara Valley, Lunch

Walk through ancient tunnels and stand above a canyon carved by water and time.

The Cappadocia Green Tour is a full-day guided sightseeing tour through South Cappadocia that combines underground cities, scenic valleys, panoramic viewpoints and local culture. You visit Kaymaklı Underground City, Ihlara Valley, Pigeon Valley and Narlıgöl Crater Lake with a professional English-speaking guide, hotel pickup, air-conditioned transport and lunch at a local restaurant. The tour runs seven hours and is designed to move beyond the most visited areas into a deeper look at Cappadocia's history and landscapes.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. Pigeon Valley30m
2. Kaymakli Underground City1h · entry included
3. Ihlara Valley50m

Explore Cappadocia's natural and historical sites

• Pickup from hotel
• Visit Pigeon Valley viewpoint
• Explore Kaymaklı Underground City
• Stop at local onyx workshop
• Enjoy lunch
• Visit Ihlara Valley viewpoint
• See Narlıgöl Crater Lake
• Stop at Göreme Panorama viewpoint

The experience

The day starts with hotel pickup and heads straight into Cappadocia's geological story. You stand at Pigeon Valley's panoramic viewpoint and look across the cliffs where ancient residents carved dovecotes into the rock face: thousands of small holes that once housed pigeons for food and fertilizer. From there the guide takes you down into Kaymaklı Underground City, one of the largest subterranean settlements in the region. You walk through tunnels, storage rooms, kitchens and living spaces that ancient civilizations carved out for protection and daily life, descending multiple levels below the surface. The scale of it (the engineering, the darkness, the weight of stone overhead) is something you have to stand inside to understand.

After the underground city, the tour shifts to the landscape above. You see Ihlara Valley from a panoramic viewpoint: a canyon with a river running through it, rock-cut churches built into the walls, and the kind of green that stands out against Cappadocia's dry plateaus. A stop at Narlıgöl Crater Lake offers a quieter moment: a volcanic crater filled with water, peaceful and still. Göreme Panorama gives you the classic view of Cappadocia's fairy chimneys and valleys stacked across the horizon, the best angle for photographs. A short visit to a local onyx workshop shows you how artisans work the stone by hand, and you can see the finished pieces unique to the region.

Lunch happens at a local restaurant partway through the day, breaking up the stops and giving you time to sit. The guide is with you throughout, speaking English and explaining what you are looking at: the geology, the history, the way people lived in these spaces. Transportation is in an air-conditioned vehicle, which matters on a seven-hour day in Cappadocia's sun. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included, so the logistics of getting to the trailhead are already handled.

What’s included

• Professional English-speaking guide throughout the day.
• hotel pickup and drop-off in an air-conditioned vehicle.
• lunch at a local restaurant.
• entrance fees to Kaymaklı Underground City (in the full-day option with tickets).

Options for this experience

2 options

Green Tour without ticketsGuide in English · 09:00, 09:30 and 10:00Travels in a Mercedes Sprinter with air conditioning. Entrance tickets are excluded. Includes an English-speaking guide and lunch. Museum entrance fees are not included. Pickup is included

Full-day Cappadocia Green Tour that includes lunch and admission ticketsGuide in English · 09:30 and 10:00Lasts 7 hours, with local lunch, a Mercedes Vito with air conditioning, museum tickets included, and pickup included

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00, 09:30 and 10:00

AgesAdult (18 to 39 years) · Senior (40 to 80 years) · Youth (10 to 17 years) · Child (5 to 9 years) · Infant (under 5): free

GroupUp to 15

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup is optional; you can also go straight to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated yesterday

Good to know

Low physical effortPets welcomePublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Cappadocia Phoenix Travel

Is this one for you?Book this full-day tour if you want to cover both underground cities and valley landscapes in one trip: the fixed itinerary combines Ihlara Valley, Kaymaklı Underground City, and scenic viewpoints without piecing together separate half-day tours.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Youth (10 to 17 years); Child (5 to 9 years); Infant (under 5): free.

What exactly is Kaymaklı Underground City and how deep do you go?

Kaymaklı Underground City is one of the largest subterranean settlements in Cappadocia, with multiple levels carved into the rock by ancient civilizations. You explore tunnels, storage rooms, kitchens and living spaces that were used for protection and daily life, descending through the levels the guide shows you.

Is Ihlara Valley a hike or just a viewpoint stop?

On this tour, Ihlara Valley is a panoramic viewpoint stop where you see the canyon, the river running through it, and the rock-cut churches built into the walls. The tour does not include a full hike down into the valley itself.

What's included in the lunch, and do I need to pay extra for drinks?

Lunch at a local restaurant is included in the Full Day option with tickets. Drinks during lunch depend on which option you choose at checkout: some options include them and others do not.

How long is the whole tour, and what time does pickup happen?

The tour runs seven hours total. Hotel pickup is included, though the specific pickup time depends on your hotel location and the operator's schedule for that day.

Will I see Pigeon Valley and Göreme Panorama on this tour?

Yes. You start at Pigeon Valley's panoramic viewpoint to see the ancient dovecotes carved into the cliffs, and later stop at Göreme Panorama for views of Cappadocia's fairy chimneys and valleys: one of the best photo spots in the region.

Do I need to be fit or experienced to do this tour?

The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels. You spend time at viewpoints, walk through the underground city's tunnels and passages, and visit the crater lake and workshop, but there are no strenuous hikes or climbing required.