Sightseeing in Göreme

Göreme stands in the middle of the valleys themselves: houses are cut into the rock cones, and some hotels occupy caves dug not for visitors but centuries earlier. A kilometre and a half from the village lies the open-air museum, the main collection of rock-cut churches of the tenth to twelfth centuries with their frescoes; in the Dark Church the colours hold best because there are almost no windows.

Valleys radiate out from the village on foot. Pigeon Valley leads to Uçhisar past cliffs riddled with dovecotes — the droppings were collected as fertiliser for centuries. Love Valley takes its name from the shape of its pillars, while the Rose and Red valleys look best an hour before sunset, when the tuff genuinely changes colour. The routes are marked but signposts are few, which is exactly why small groups walk with a guide.

Göreme is the main launch site for balloons: they rise from here before dawn, and in high season more than a hundred baskets can be in the sky at once. Those not flying can buy a separate watching tour — a drive to a viewpoint with tea while the balloons are inflated and lifted. Practical notes: flights are cancelled on wind, so allow a spare day; the valleys need closed shoes, and at dawn it is around ten degrees even in summer.