Turkey Two-Week Itinerary For First-Timers

Turkey is a beautiful, vast and diverse country. You’ll find interesting cultural experiences, ancient cities and archaeological sites, beautiful mountains, incredible beaches, and delicious food. In this travel guide we’ll share our two-week Turkey itinerary that covers the most popular places in Istanbul, Izmir, Pamukkale, the Turkish Riviera, and Cappadocia.

This itinerary is perfect for first-time visitors and provides a great overview of some of Turkey’s most popular regions. Later, you might want to return to certain places to explore the surrounding areas more thoroughly.

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What’s Included in this Guide? Table Of Contents

Besides the two-week Turkey itinerary, we’ll also share essential information. Check the complete table of contents below.

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Turkey Two-Week Itinerary Overview

We’ll share the exact itinerary that we followed. We started in Istanbul and ended in Cappadocia. Depending on your flights, you may need to slightly adjust this itinerary. This itinerary was mainly a road trip (with the exception of Istanbul). Most driving days were relaxed and not exhausting, with the exception of driving from Antalya to Cappadocia that took us almost all day.

Must-Visit Places for a Two-Week Trip to Turkey?

With our two-week itinerary we include the main highlights of Istanbul, Izmir (Ephesus), Pamukkale, Ölüdeniz, Antalya, and Cappadocia. The following short video shows the highlights of our trip.

We felt that our time exploring the southern coast (Turkish Riviera) was a bit rushed. So, if you want to spend some days at the beach and explore the area at a more relaxed pace, I recommend adding some more days, or adjust your itinerary. Alternatively, you can always come back later to this region for some beach vacations if you like the vibe of the area.

How Many Days for a Turkey Road Trip?

For this itinerary, you need at least 12 days. Less than that will be too rushed. If you have fewer days, it’s better to stick to Istanbul and Cappadocia, or fly between the regions that interest you the most.

Transportation Options for Two Weeks in Turkey

You can fly between bigger cities and then rent a car to explore the areas that interest you the most. There are also buses that connect major cities like Istanbul, Ankara, Cappadocia, etc.

Here’s an overview of how we managed this itinerary in terms of transportation options:

1. Fly to Istanbul (Turkish Airlines)
2. Flight from Istanbul to Izmir (Pegasus Airlines)
3. Rent a car in Izmir (Sixt)
4. Deliver the car in Cappadocia
5. Flight back home from Cappadocia (or fly back to Istanbul) (Pegasus Airlines)

Alternatively, you can rent and deliver the car in Istanbul, but you’ll need to cover a lot of road in a short amount of time. If you want to do that, you definitely need more than two weeks for a comfortable journey.

Two Weeks in Turkey – Map

The following map shows an overview of the itinerary we followed. You can click on the map to open it in Google Maps.

• Day 1: Arriving at Istanbul.
• Day 2- 4: Explore Istanbul.
• Day 5: Fly to Izmir; explore Ephesus; stay in Selçuk.
• Day 6: Drive to Pamukkale and explore Pamukkale and Hierapólis; stay in Pamukkale.
• Day 7: Drive to Lake Salda, Kayakoy, Ölüdeniz; stay in Ölüdeniz.
• Day 8: Explore Ölüdeniz, drive to Saklikent Gorge, Kaputas Beach, and Kas; stay in Kas.
• Day 9: From Kas drive to Antalya; stop at the Eternal Flame and Olympos beach; stay in Antalya.
• Day 10: Drive from Antalya to Cappadocia.
• Day 11 – 13: Explore Cappadocia.
• Day 14: Fly back home directly from Cappadocia or with a layover in Istanbul.

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Day 1: Arriving at Istanbul

On our first day we arrived at Istanbul in the middle of the afternoon. It was already late when we arrived at our accommodation.

We only had time to have dinner and go to bed. If you’re arriving early in the day, you can still probably explore a bit of Istanbul, at least the surrounding of your accommodation.

Where to Stay in Istanbul?

In Istanbul, we stayed at the Sultanahmet Nu Hotel in the Sultanahmet neighborhood. It’s one of the best areas to stay for first timers.

Other suggestions:

• Four Seasons Hotel Istanbul (luxury)
• Kate Hotel Special Class & SPA (mid-range)
• Sultan Hamit Hotel (budget)

More advice for where to stay in Istanbul: Where to Stay for Three Days in Istanbul?

Day 2- 4: Istanbul

Spend three complete days exploring Istanbul (two and a half days will do if you stick to the most popular highlights). For a complete three-day itinerary, make sure to read our Istanbul travel guide:

• Istanbul 3-Day Itinerary with Map (Best Things to Do)

When in Istanbul, make sure to visit some of its beautiful mosques. Some of the most popular and that we recommend are the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia (we didn’t visit), and the Suleymaniye mosque. If you have time, make sure to visit the Çamlıca Mosque on the Asian side, the biggest mosque in Istanbul (and most beautiful, in my opinion).

Also, don’t miss the Grand Bazaar and Egyptian Bazaar to buy some souvenirs and taste some Turkish delight. The Galata Tower and the area surrounding it is also worth exploring. The Taksim Square is also an interesting place and great if you’re looking for some kebab sandwich.

There are also several palaces worth exploring like the Topkapi Palace and the Dolmabahçe Palace. If you have time, explore the Balat neighborhood and its colorful houses.

Finally, make sure to also include a cruise along the Bosphorus river.

Day 5: Izmir, Ephesus, Şirince, Selçuk

Fly to Izmir and Rent Your Car

On our fifth day in Turkey, we got on a flight from Istanbul to Izmir. We flew with Pegasus Airlines from SAW airport to Izmir (ADB) airport early in the morning so that we could enjoy the day. There are multiple flights on this route per day covered either by Pegasus or Turkish Airlines.

The flight takes just around one hour. We preferred to fly to Izmir and start our road trip from there, instead of renting a car in Istanbul. We rented our car in advance with Sixt. We have rented with them several times in different countries and we always had the smoothest experiences. You can check prices here.

Alternatively, you can check car rental aggregators like DiscoversCars or RentalCars. You’ll usually find companies with lower prices, but make sure you carefully read all the small letters.

We went with the cheapest available car option. It was a Renault Clio and it served us well.

Turkish Breakfast

After the flight, we were starving. We stopped in a place close to the airport called Serpme Kahvaltı ve Tarçın Unlu Mamüller where we had one of the best Turkish Breakfasts.

Just look at how delicious the food looks and the amount of food we were served. We even had french fries for breakfast. With such a breakfast, we didn’t even need to have lunch.

Ephesus

Our main aim with flying to Izmir was to explore the Ephesus archaeological site. We were not interested in exploring the city of Izmir, so we decided to skip it.

Ephesus is one of Turkey’s most famous ancient cities and it is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was a major center of commerce in ancient times of the Roman Empire. Some of its ruins are well preserved, while others are just stones and broken columns.

There are several ticket options for Ephesus. We went with the most expensive one that included entrance to the city, the terraced houses and a 3D immersive movie in the Ephesus Experience Museum explaining the history of the city.

At first, we were a bit skeptical of buying the entire ticket due to its high price, but in the end we didn’t regret it. Our ticket also included an audio guide—you must download the Museums of Türkiye app, and listen to the audio from your phone.

Some of the highlights you cannot miss in Ephesus include the Great Theatre, the Library of Celsus, the Temple of Artemis (only a few ruins, but this was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World), the Curetes Street, the Terraced Houses, and many other impressive sites.

The Terraced Houses are not included in some of the ticket options. It was included in ours, and in my opinion, it is one of the most impressive sites of Ephesus. It basically consists of a group of ancient luxury houses belonging to the rich. Some of the painting and mosaics are impressively well preserved. You can also see the importance they gave to the roman baths as there are multiple pools and an extensive network to distribute the water.

Another interesting sight is the public bathroom, where you can see the public toiles and technology for the running water.

We spent approximately four hours in this place, taking it slowly and listening to the explanations of the audio guide.

Şirince

After Ephesus, we still had time to go take a look at Şirince. This is a small cute village in the mountain with peculiar houses (with lots of windows).

There is also a cute small market (mainly targeted to tourists, I think), but it was already closed when we got there.

There are also cute restaurants with great views if you want to have dinner there. We decided to return to Selçuk (next to Ephesus) where our accommodation was located, to avoid driving at night.

Stay in Selçuk

We stayed in Selçuk, just a few minutes by car from Ephesus. We stayed in an old-fashioned hotel that was in need of some maintenance, but it offered a good price, and everything was clean, and the breakfast was reasonable, so we recommend it if you’re looking for a budget option. The name of the place is Ephesus Centrum.

Where to Stay in Selçuk?

Here are some suggestions:

• Ephesus Centrum (budget)
• Kallinos Boutique Hotel (medium range)
• Akanthus Hotel Ephesus (high range)

Day 6: Selçuck to Pamukkale

Pamukkale and Hierapolis Archaeological Site

Drive to Pamukkale; it takes two to three hours, depending on the route. The roads are easy to drive on and generally in good condition.

The ticket to Pamukkale includes the Travertines, the Hierapolis Archaelogical Site and Cleopatra’s pool. The main reason why people go there (we included) is to see the the white travertine pools with blue water.

For all the details about visiting Pamukkale, read the following article:

Pamukkale Travel Guide: Visiting Pamukkale: Is it Worth it? (What to Expect)

Pamukkale Travertines

Forget what you’ve seen on social media about this place; otherwise, you might feel disappointed. The travertines are a natural place formed by the deposition of calcium carbonate from hot spring water. Over thousands of years, these deposits have created the white terraces. While they’re definitely worth seeing and are a unique geological formation, they don’t look exactly like the photos online.

This is because many of the pools are intentionally kept dry. Why? I’ve read that it’s to protect the site because constant flow can damage the natural formations over time. But, I’ve also read it’s because they had to reroute the water flow to supply population’s demands. This does take away a bit of the beauty of the place, but it is what it is.

Nonetheless, if you focus on the pools with water, it’s quite a stunning sight. The pools are shallow, so they’re not ideal for swimming, but it’s nice to soak your feet in them. To help preserve the few structures with water, you must walk barefoot through the pools. If you have sensitive feet, you might find it uncomfortable because the surface is uneven. Some areas provide good grip, but others can be extremely slippery, so be cautious.

Visiting the travertines is still worth it, even though they don’t look exactly like the photos you might see online. If we hadn’t seen those overly edited pictures beforehand, we would have appreciated them more and not felt disappointed. They’re still an incredible sight and definitely worth going there.

Cleopatra’s Pool – Antique Pool

Cleopatra’s Pool is located above the travertines of Pamukkale. It is a thermal pool fed by the same mineral-rich water that creates the travertines, and legend has it that Cleopatra once swam here. Historically, the pool was located within a temple, though no definitive evidence links it directly to Cleopatra herself.

Today, the pool contains ruins of ancient roman columns and other remnants submerged in its waters. You can swim in the pool for an extra fee, but entry to the area is free if you just want to sit by the pool.

They’ve built a lot of facilities around the pool like changing rooms and a big cafe/restaurant, which in my opinion takes away the natural beauty of the place and and make it feel overly commercialized. At the time of our visit, the pools were quite crowded and with a weird vibe, so we decided to skip swimming there, even though we’re huge fans of thermal waters.

Hierapolis

Hierapolis is another ancient city located near the travertines (the same entrance ticket) and it is now a UNESCO World Heritage site. The place is quite big and there are many interesting and well-preserved ruins, I was quite impressed. You can see a well-preserved theater, ancient baths, temples and a necropolis with several buildings belonging to different periods of time in history.

One of the places I found more interesting was the Plutonium, a sanctuary dedicated to Pluto, the god of the underworld. This sacred area featured a cave from which toxic carbon dioxide fumes emerged, likely produced by geothermal activity beneath the ground. This cave was believed to be the entrance to the underworld. Strange rites were performed here, including the sacrifice of bulls, which were exposed to the fumes until they suffocated.

Another impressive place for how well preserved it is, it’s the Theatre—don’t miss it out. The stage is decorated with statues, two of them are missing, and the other two are headless, but that doesn’t take away the impressiveness of the place.

Make sure to ask for a map at the information desk near the entrance to help you identify and locate the places that interest you most. The map is free, but you’ll need to request one at the information desk. You can also use the Museums of Türkiye app on your smartphone to listen to an audio guide. However, data coverage was poor, and loading the audio sometimes took quite long.

Stay in Pamukkale

We took almost all day exploring Hierapolis and the travertines, so we decided to stay in Pamukkale. If you’re not interested in the Hierapolis ancient city, you’ll probably need less time to explore this place. So, you may choose to drive a bit more on this day and stay closer to your next destination. Otherwise, staying in Pamukkale will be a good decision.

We stayed at the Paradise House Pamukkale, a budget family hotel. Everything was clean, the bed was comfortable, and the breakfast was reasonable taking into account the price of the place. It’s a great option for budget travelers and families.

Where to Stay in Pamukkale?

Here are some suggestions:

• Paradise House (budget)
• Venus Suite Hotel (budget)
• Pamukkale Sahin Hotel (medium range)
• Pamukkale Whiteheaven Suite Hotel (high range)

Other Activities in Pamukkale

Pamukkale is also a popular place for a hot air balloon ride (but not as popular as Cappadocia), and for paragliding. If you’re interested in a hot air balloon ride, you can do it in the next morning. If you want to go for a paragliding adventure, you may need to adjust your itinerary accordingly.

Day 7: Pamukkale, Lake Salda, Kayakoy, Ölüdeniz

Lake Salda

From Pamukkale, drive about one hour and half to Lake Salda, often called “The Maldives of Turkey.” In my opinion, it doesn’t look much like the Maldives (though I haven’t been there yet), but it’s still worth visiting. I just think the marketing overstates the resemblance.

Lake Salda is a deep tectonic lake formed by shifts in the earth’s crust within a closed basin. At 184 meters, it’s the third deepest lake in Turkey, known for its blue waters and white sands.

The lake’s unique colors come from stromatolites—rocks formed by bacteria at the bottom. Its magnesium-rich white rocks are similar to the surface of Mars—there are only two places on earth like this. Although the lake’s colors are stunning and inviting, bathing is not recommended to protect this unique environment.

After Lake Salda, it’s a long drive to your next destination. We had lunch at a small restaurant at the side of the road. The name of the place is Açelya Gözleme Evi and we loved the food and the setting of the place (even though I’m pretty sure we were overcharged because we were tourists).

Amyntas Rock Tombs

The Amyntas Rock Tombs are tombs carved on the cliffs (similar to some found in Petra). The place is quite small and you need to pay a small fee if you want to enter and climb the steps to get close to the Tombs.

We only saw them from afar. It’s an interesting sight if you haven’t been to Petra before, otherwise, if you don’t have much time, you can skip them.

Kayaköy

Next, drive to Kayaköy, a village once inhabited by Greek Orthodox residents. It became a ghost town after the Greco-Turkish War and the population exchange, which relocated Greek Orthodox people from Turkey to Greece and Turkish Muslims from Greece to Turkey. After the exchange, the village was abandoned, and today it is one of the most famous ghost towns.

Kayaköy has over 500 stone houses, churches, chapels, and schools, all in various states of decay. I didn’t have high expectations for this place, but it surprised me. I really enjoyed wandering through the town and exploring its hidden corners. It’s much interesting to explore than it looks at first glance.

To explore Kayaköy, you need to pay a small entrance fee. However, not all entrances are monitored.

For better directions for the entrance of Kayaköy ghost town on Google Maps, search for Poyraz Cafe and park your car nearby.

Stay in Ölüdeniz

On this day, stay in Ölüdeniz or Fethiye. We stayed in Ölüdeniz in a place called Tunacan Hotel. It was relatively good and with a good breakfast and extremely affordable (probably because it was low-season?). I recommend it for a budget place to stay. It also had a pool with loungers, but we didn’t use them.

Where to Stay in Ölüdeniz?

Here are some suggestions:

• Tunacan Hotel (budget)
• Symbola Oludeniz Beach Hotel (medium range)
• Salonika Suites (medium range)
• Morina Deluxe Hotel (luxury)

Day 8: Ölüdeniz, Saklikent, Kaputas Beach, Kas

Ölüdeniz Beach

In the morning, we went to see the beach at Ölüdeniz. The sand is white, and the water is an incredible blue. It seems like a nice place to spend some time at the beach or for a beach vacation. However, the place felt way too overcommercialized, like any other beach vacation spot in Europe.

Other popular activities in this area include a boat tour in the Blue Lagoon area (a calm and turquoise bay sheltered by lush green hills) to explore hidden coves and caves, and paragliding.

This seems to be a very popular place for paragliding and also for a reasonable price compared with other places I’ve checked before.

Ölüdeniz Viewpoint

We recommend hiking to the Ölüdeniz Bay Viewpoint for the best views of this place. For that, you’ll have to walk about 20 minutes on the Lycian Way. Park the car next to the Lycian Way Trail starting point and walk from there until a point called “Montana Seyir Tepesi” on Google Maps.

Unfortunately, when we got there, it was a bit foggy and we couldn’t see the view clearly.

Saklikent Gorge

Saklikent is a beautiful gorge that you can explore. You can walk along the waters of the gorge, and it’s a lot of fun, even though the water is freezing. We only walked for about 500 meters into the gorge because the water became too high for us to continue safely.

To walk in the gorge, you need water shoes. You can rent or buy them at the entrance for a small fee. This place was one of the highlights of our Turkey road trip.

Kaputaş Beach

Kaputaş Beach is a stunning beach nestled between cliffs. It’s a pebble beach with some of the bluest waters I’ve ever seen. Probably one of the most beautiful beaches of Turkey.

The weather was not good to go to the beach, but in high season this is a great place to spend some time. The only downside is that there is very limited parking to access the beach and you need to park at the side of the road.

Stay in Kaş

On this day, we stayed in Kaş. This seems a nice place to spend some days enjoying the beach and the city center has a good feel. If you have more days, I think it’s worth to spend some more time in this area.

We stayed at the Kaş Evderhan Hotel—the hotel felt super luxury for the price we paid. The breakfast was served at the rooftop with views of the ocean, and there was so much variety and everything was delicious. I super recommend this place. After the hotel we stayed in Cappadocia, this was definitely the best one where we stayed in Turkey.

Where to Stay in Kaş?

Here are some suggestions of places to stay in Kaş:

• Kaş Evderhan Hotel (budget)
• Hotel Kayahan (budget)
• Carruba Boutique Hotel (high range)
• Kale Suites (high range)

Day 9: Kaş, Eternal Flame, Olimpos Beach, Antalya

Kaş Viewpoint

Start your day by making a quick stop at the Kaş Viewpoint that offers great panoramic views of Kaş and the small nearby islets.

Eternal Flame – Mount Chimaera

Next in our itinerary was a place I was very curious about: the Eternal Flame at Mount Chimaera. Basically, there are eternal flames coming out of some holes in the rock as a result of gases released from the earth.

Olimpos Beach

Not far from the Eternal Flame is Olimpos Beach. It’s a great spot for a quick dip in the ocean, especially if it’s hot. Near the beach, you can also visit the ancient city of Olimpos—it might be worth checking out if you have time.

Düden Waterfalls

The Düden Waterfalls in Antalya are unique because they’re located right in the city. There are two sections of the Düden Waterfalls. One is set in a small park in the city center, where you need to pay a small entrance fee.

The other waterfall is quite interesting as it flows directly into the Mediterranean Sea. Known as the Lower Düden Waterfall, it’s visible from the cliffs and also from a boat tour. There’s a long promenade nearby, great for a stroll, with several vendors selling snacks and the famous Turkish ice cream.

Stay in Antalya

Antalya is quite a big city. We stayed in an hotel called Wolf of the City. This was a reasonable hotel with pool (we didn’t use it) and a big variety of things for breakfast. It was a great budget option. The city is a bit chaotic, but we found a place for parking next to the hotel relatively easy. The place was just a 15-minute walk to the Hadrian’s Gate.

Since we were not exploring the city, we were not much concerned about the location of the hotel. Our main aim was to visit the Duden Waterfalls. However, we also had time to explore a bit of the busy area with restaurants and bars located next to the Hadrian’s Gate at night. Antalya has a lot to explore, so if you have more days, and depending on your interests, it may make sense to spend more time here, or return just to explore the Southern area.

Where to Stay in Antalya?

Here are some suggestions of places to stay in Antalya:

• Wolf of the City (budget)
• LELİKO SUITES (budget)
• Mai İnci Otel (budget)
• Perge Hotels (medium range)

Day 10: Antalya to Cappadocia

This is a long day of driving from Antalya to Cappadocia, it takes between six to seven hours, without stops.

Konya

We made a short stop in Konya to have lunch. Right before arriving at Konya, make sure to make a quick stop at the city viewpoint.

Selime Cathedral

At around 5PM, we arrived at Selime Cathedral, not far from Cappadocia. We wanted to visit and also hike the Ilhara valley, but we realized it was already too late to do that. So, we decided to skip it, even though we were already there.

Note: when we got there we were approached by a “guide” that wanted to sell his services to visit this place. I was shocked when he said he want 80€ per person for the guided tour. Even after negotiating, he wanted more than 50€ per person, an absolute rip-off. Of course, we declined his services, but he was quite persistent.

Stay in Cappadocia

In Cappadocia there are several small villages where to base yourself. Göreme is the most famous and more centrally located if you want to go on several organized tours. Other great options are Uçhisar (where we stayed), Ortahisar, Ürgüp, and Nevşehir.

We stayed at the Duven Hotel in Uçhisar, and it was the best place we stayed in Turkey (and one of the most unique hotels we stayed at). The place, especially the breakfast room, had a great view of Uçhisar Castle. The hotel was designed in a style that resembles old castles. The rooms were beautifully decorated, really capturing the feel of castles from ancient times. I think this is better than a cave hotel since many of those don’t have windows in the rooms. Here, every room had a window.

The breakfast was superb. We never had such fulfilling and good quality breakfast as we had in this place, and the staff was absolutely impeccable. They even offered us fruit one day when we returned to our room after a tough day. We absolutely recommend.

Where to Stay in Cappadocia?

Here are suggestions of places to stay in Cappadocia—all this options are highly-rated:

• Duven Hotel Cappadocia (the one we stayed at, super recommended)
• Sacred Mansion
• Kayata Cave Suites Special Class
• Woox Cappadocia
• Doda Artisanal Cave Hotel

Day 11 – 13: Cappadocia

Reserve three days to fully explore Cappadocia and increase your chances of seeing the hot air balloons or even going on one if you can.

We have an in-depth Cappadocia travel guide that we recommend reading:

Cappadocia Travel Guide: 3-Day Itinerary and 15 Best Things to Do

Balloon rides don’t take off every day and can get canceled. Ours was canceled twice, and when they finally flew, everything was sold out. Even with four mornings in Cappadocia, we were unlucky and missed the chance. One of our friends spent three days and didn’t even saw the balloons in the air.

We were in Cappadocia at the end of April and our flight was cancelled two times. We couldn’t get a ride because everything was full for the next days. But, don’t get disappointed, even if you don’t see the balloons, Cappadocia is worth itself just for the unique landscapes.

Next, we’ll describe the itinerary we had planned for our time in Cappadocia. We didn’t follow exactly this route because we got bad weather in some of the days. But if you’re lucky, you should be able to complete this itinerary successfully and even have some free time to relax at the hotel.

Day 1 in Cappadocia

Book your hot air balloon ride for your first morning in Cappadocia. If you’re not going, make sure to wake-up early to see the balloons (around sunrise time).

It’s better to book your hot air balloon ride in advance. In some days, everything gets full and you’ll just have the super expensive options (if available). There are many options on GetYourGuide. If you look carefully and book in advance for specific days, you may find a good deal.

If you can’t go on a hot air balloon ride, watching them from the ground is also magical. We have a quick video showing what a sunrise in Cappadocia looks like.

After your breakfast, hike and explore the Love Valley, the White Valley, and the Pigeon Valley. We did a 12-km hike that included all those places, including Göreme and the Uchisar Castle. The directions for the hike are available on AllTrails. Alternatively, you can drive to the viewpoints and appreciate the views from there without the need to hike.

Finally, explore the Uchisar Castle for great views of the Valley and the Fairy Chimneys. Our hotel had a great view to the Uchisar Castle.

Day 2 in Cappadocia

Start your day watching the balloons or going on a balloon ride. Explore the Pasabag valley, the Imagination Valley, and don’t miss the Three Beauties (three fairy chimneys that resemble a family).

Explore the caves and churches next to the Goreme Open Air Museum. There are several of them that you can explore for free. We decided to skip the Goreme Open Air Museum because it was super crowded and we had already seen multiple rock formations and interesting buildings carved on the rocks. However, it’s a good option for people with mobility issues.

In the afternoon, explore the Red and Rose valleys. This route is super beautiful and there are very few people there. Along the way, you’ll see several “houses”, buildings and caves carved on the rock and fairy chimneys. Unfortunately, we were caught on a storm in the middle of the hike, so we couldn’t complete it. But, we super recommend it. It is even better than the one we did on the previous day.

Day 3 in Cappadocia

In your third day, explore some of the other places you didn’t have the time to in the previous days or revisit some of the ones you liked the most.

Explore the Çavusin village and an underground city. There are several of them in this region. We explored the Derinkuyu underground city. We liked to visit this place, but there isn’t any information along the visit, so we recommend going with a guide for a little bit more of context. Additionally, this is not suitable for claustrophobic people as you’ll be walking several meters under the ground in some straight passages.

If you still have time, pay a visit to the Selime Cathedral, if you haven’t already, and hike the Ilhara Valley.

Alternatively, other popular activities to do in this area that I regret not doing them is a pottery class (in which you create your own piece and take it home), a horse ride in the valleys or an ATV adventure tour.

Day 14: Flight Back Home

On your last day, get your flight back home. There are two airports in these area, the Kayseri Erkilet Airport (ASR) and the Nevsehir Kapadokya Airport (NAV).

If you’re returning the car in Kayseri Airport (and you rented with Sixt), there aren’t any directions for car rental return. You need to go to the highest floor in the airport parking, and then, you’ll find where to return the car.

We got a super cheap direct flight from the Kayseri Airport to Brussels with Pegasus Airlines. Depending on your final destination, you may need to go back to Istanbul to get your flight back home.

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Two Weeks in Turkey – Total Cost Breakdown

Turkey used to be a cheap destination, but that’s not the case anymore, specially for international tourists. While you can find pretty good deals for accommodation, that’s not usually the case for restaurants, and entrances to attractions (prices skyrocketed recently). Here’s an overview of how much we spend during two weeks in Turkey (excluding international flights).

How to Get Internet In Turkey

When travelling to foreign countries, we always opt for an eSIM to get internet data. We had good experiences with airalo (offers from 4.50€), Maya (offers from $6), and Holafly. Check several providers to see which one offers the best package.

If you decide to go with airalo, you can use the referral code below on your first purchase to get a a 3$ credit:

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Wrapping Up

We hope you found our two-week itinerary road trip for Turkey useful and that it helps you plan your time in this country.

If you’re planning a trip to Turkey, check out our other travel guides:

• Istanbul 3-Day Itinerary with Map (Best Things to Do)
• Where to Stay in Istanbul For First-Timers (Neighborhoods and Hotel Suggestions)
• Visiting Pamukkale: Is it Worth it? (What to Expect)
• Cappadocia Travel Guide: 3-Day Itinerary and 15 Best Things to Do
• >>All our Turkey Travel Guides<<

Finally, you can use our links to book your accommodation, and activities and find cheap flights. You won’t pay more for it and you’ll be supporting our work.