Things to do in Cappadocia, Ankara & Konya

At dawn, dozens of hot-air balloons rise over the fairy chimneys and valleys around Göreme, where the UNESCO-listed Göreme Open Air Museum gathers rock-cut churches and monasteries with Bible-themed frescoes in the Dark Church, Elmalı Church and Tokalı Church. Zelve and Paşabağ share one site of multi-capped fairy chimneys, cave churches and carved pigeon houses spread over three valleys, Uçhisar Castle gives the panoramic view from the highest point over Göreme, Avanos and Pigeon Valley, and Kızılçukur (Red Valley) glows crimson at sunset. Underground, Derinkuyu reaches about 85 m deep with stables, cellars, churches and a 55 m ventilation shaft, the Ihlara Valley hike follows the Melendiz stream for about 14 km past rock-cut churches, and in riverside Avanos you can try throwing a pot in the red clay that has made it a pottery centre since the Hittites. In the capital, Ankara, Anıtkabir, the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Republic, stands on a hill with museum sections inside, and the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations traces Anatolia from the Palaeolithic through the Hittites to the Urartians in two Ottoman buildings. In Konya, the free Mevlana Museum is built around the shrine of Rumi (Mevlana), the Mevlana Cultural Center holds the whirling sema every Saturday evening, and the annual Şeb-i Arus ceremonies mark the anniversary of Rumi's death.

Good to knowBalloon flights depend on the weather and can be cancelled on the day, so keep a spare morning, and start a Red Valley walk just before sunset. At Göreme Open Air Museum the ticket office closes 45 minutes before closing time, Derinkuyu's low, narrow passages may not suit those uneasy in tight spaces, and at Ihlara the official site asks visitors to use main gate No. 2. Anıtkabir opens daily from 09:00 with closing times that vary by season, some halls of the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations are temporarily closed, and the Mevlana Museum's ticket office opens at 10:00 on Mondays. Tickets for the Saturday sema and the Şeb-i Arus sema are sold on biletinial.com.