On the Central Anatolian plateau, Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia lie within a volcanic landscape shaped by erosion. Rock-cut cells, churches, cave villages and underground cities form a significant complex of cave dwellings. Together, the landscape and its structures tell the story of how people used the rock as a place to live and for religious sites.
Hiking trails on different scales
The Hittite Way extends for 385 kilometres and comprises 17 hiking trails and six alternative routes, including mountain biking routes. The Phrygian Way is a long-distance hiking route of approximately 506 kilometres through Central Anatolia. Comparing the route lengths offers a concrete starting point: the Phrygian route is longer, while the Hittite Way brings together several hiking trails and alternatives. If you would like to include a route in your travel plans, check the current lengths and route alignments in advance; both may be revised.
Temples, reliefs and fortifications
Hattusha is located in the mountainous region of north-central Anatolia. It is home to the best-preserved ruins of a Hittite temple from the 13th century BC, known as the Great Temple. Yazılıkaya, an open-air temple with two natural chambers cut into the rock, is also near Hattusha. Hittite reliefs on the walls depict gods, goddesses and the Great King Tuthaliya IV. The Great Temple and the rock chambers offer different points of focus: the temple ruins take centre stage in one, while rock-cut relief art features in the other.
At Gordion, the entrance to the citadel includes one of the best-preserved Iron Age fortification gate complexes discovered to date. The stone masonry stands up to ten metres high; the complex dates from the 10th to the 8th century BC. The Midas Mound, also called Tumulus MM, reveals another side of Gordion: its burial chamber contains the oldest known standing wooden building in the world, dating to around 740 BC. The fortification and the burial chamber thus offer two different ways to explore the history of the site.
Neolithic settlements and early centres
Anatolia’s Neolithic evidence also offers different points of focus. Göbeklitepe is around 11,500 years old and is among the most significant known centres of the Neolithic period. At Çatalhöyük, 18 Neolithic settlement layers dating from 7400 to 6200 BC have been excavated. People entered the houses through their roofs. The dating and this distinctive architectural feature offer two concrete starting points if you are interested in early settlement history.
Crafts and regional culture
In Ankara, the castle, with restorations from the Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman periods, has survived to this day. In small workshops in Hamamönü, you can watch Ebru marbling, Tezhip illumination and woodcarving; workshop visits may not always be available. These crafts complement the view of historic buildings with practical art forms. Cappadocian cuisine is also part of the picture: it is an example of Anatolia’s rich culinary heritage, without being associated with any particular dish or specific place to sample it.
When choosing accommodation, it can be helpful to first decide what you are most interested in: hiking, archaeological history or Ankara’s craftsmanship lead to different travel interests. This allows you to explore Anatolia’s diversity through specific themes, rather than trying to fit every place and period into a single perspective.
Discover more destinations: Adiyaman, Ağri, Ankara, Bingöl, Bitlis, Çankiri, Diyarbakir, Elazığ, Erzincan, Eskişehir, Hakkari, Kars, Kırşehir, Malatya, Mardin, Muş, Nevşehir, Niğde, Siirt, Tunceli, Şanliurfa, Van, Yozgat, Aksaray, Kirikkale, Batman, Şırnak, Iğdır and Kilis.
For the broader travel overview: Turkey.
