Urgup

Urgup is a town and a district of Nevsehir Province in Cappadocia, Turkey. It is renowned for its nightlife, and its better adjustment to tourism than nearby Goreme, making it a popular night stop for Cappadocia tourists.Urgup which was founded on the outskirts of the hill named as Hill of Wishes is located about 20 km north of the Nevsehir province in one of the first settlement areas of Cappadocia region. In the Byzantine period it was called Osiana, Hagios, Prokopios. During the Seljuks period it was referred to as Bashisar and in the period of Ottomans as Burgut Castle. Until the first years of the Turkish Republic it was called Urgup. Urgup was also the patriarchate center of the Cappadocia region during the Byzantine period. The Uzumlu Church, Cambazli Church and Sarica Church in Ortahisar are the oldest rock churches from the region. Furthermore the Tavsanli Church and Church of Saint Basileious are also spectacular places. Urgup known for it’s famous cave hotels, wines and hand made carpets is the most important tourism center of the Cappadocia Region. The old cave houses were restored as touristy cave hotels. They can be rented and used without damaging their historic structure. Among the cave hotels some of the caves have converted to nightclubs and bars.

Uchisar

Uchisar is situated at the highest point in the region, on the Nevsehir-Goreme road, just 7 km from Nevsehir. It is not known when Uchisar was first inhabited , however, in style, it resembles Ortahisar and the Selime Kalesi (castle) in the Ihlara Region.
The top of the citadel provides a magnificent panorama of the surrounding area. Many rooms hollowed out into the rock are connected to each other with stairs, tunnels and passages. At the entrances of the rooms, there are millstone doors, just like the ones in the underground settlements, used to control access to these places. Due to the erosion in places of this multi-leveled castle, it is unfortunately not possible to reach all the rooms.
The fairy chimneys to the west, east and north of Uchisar were hollowed out and used as graves during the Roman period. Inside these rock cut tombs, the entrances of which generally face west, are klines or stone slabs on which the bodies were laid. Many rock cut churches have been discovered not only on the skirts of the castle but also inside it. The reason for this may be the fact that Goreme, having numoreus churches and monasteries, is very close to Uchisar. The simple Byzantine graves on top of the castle are not very interesting due to the fact that they have been eroded and ransacked. It is said that in towns with citadels, e.g. Uchisar, Ortahisar and Urgup (Bashisar), long defense tunnels reached far into the surrounding areas. However, since the tunnels have collapsed in places, this theory cannot be confirmed, but is a popular myth as to the great distances they cover.

Ortahisar

Ortahisar citadel, built both as a defense and as a settlement, is situated 6km from Urgup, on the road to Nevsehir. Typical examples of the area’s civilian architecture can be found among the houses skirting the citadel. The sides of the valleys are littered with carved out storage areas used for preserving local products such as apples and potatoes, as well as oranges and lemons brought from the Mediterranean. Very interesting churches and monasteries can be found in the surrounding valleys. Among these are, Sarica church, Cambazli church, Tavsanli church, Balkan Deresi church and Hallac Dere monastery

Cappadocia Jeep Safari Tours

The full day Cappadocian Jeep Safari begins in the deeply set valley town of Urgup and will then drive through to the Uzengi River . The drive will take you through scenery that includes pigeon houses, the grape growing district and the near by wineries of Ortahisar.The jeep tour will then take passengers off the beaten track with a visit to the picturesque caves of the Red Valley . The jeep safari provides the perfect opportunity to take a rest and soak up the natural beauty of the Cappadocian scenery.