Your Tour Guide and Driver will pick you up from your hotel in Cappadocia between 9:30 and 9:45am for a full day hidden gems of Cappadocia private tour.

The tour starts with a vist to Mazi underground city, which is an ancient underground settlement almost 30 km away from the center of Cappadocia. The ancient name of the city was known as Mataza. The presence of the city dates back to as early as the Roman period. The city contains tombs dating back to the early Roman period and also contains aspects of the Byzantium period.

It is estimated that this underground city, which has entrances from 4 different places, has 8 floors and 6.000 people live at the same time. The entire city is not yet open to visitors.

As in all underground cities, the top floor is designed as a barn. However, the stables in this city are larger than the stables in other underground cities. There are also troughs for animals in the middle of the barn, different from those in other underground cities. It is estimated that this is due to the fact that this underground city hosts a developed society in animal husbandry.

Another feature of the city, which is not common in other underground cities, is that it has spaces used as bathrooms. Next stop is Soğanlı Village and  Valleys. This is one of the most strikingly beautiful places in Cappadocia. It’s name means with onion in modern Turkish. Two valleys meet at the village, which has been in existence since Roman times and which was once an important monastic retreat. The monks of Soğanlı were famous for their wine. They relied heavily on pigeons for fertiliser for their grapes and you can see many pigeon houses among the fairychimneys. You will walk the valleys and discover the churches, and the even older Roman graves, usually in solitude since Soğanlı is so out of the way and rarely visited. In the Soğanlı Village centre you will find dolls, gloves and socks made by village women for sale. Then stop for a lunch in a beautiful garden restaurant at Soğanlı village. After lunch, we will visit Taşkınpaşa village. See the mosque, Turbe and Mederese  at Taşkınpaşa.  Next stop of the tour is Sobesos. Near the village of Şahinefendi is a very new archaeological site. So new. It includes a Roman bath, tombs and what appears to be Byzantine Chapel built on top of a Roman Temple. The mosaic floors are largely intact and very beautiful.

The tour continues with Keşlik Monastery where the two sides seem to have lived side by side. The monastery is partly decorated in the traditional style and partly with geometric patterns, the only decoration allowed by the iconoclasts.

The tour last stop is Mustafapaşa ( an old Greek town ). Mustafapaşa has been called ‘the undiscovered gem of Cappadocia ‘. Mustafapaşa was Greek town until the exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey took place following the First World war. Greeks left some fine and diverse architecture, a grand church and “The Medrese” ( Islamic College ). The Medrese has swivelling columns by the main door.

The tour finishes around 5.30pm with a transfer back to your hotel.