Hot Air Balloons & More | Cappadocia, Turkey Guide 🎈

If your Instagram algorithm is even somewhat tailored to show you travel content, chances are that you’ve encountered photos of women in extravagant gowns taking photos amidst a backdrop of hot air balloons filling the sky over an ancient looking city. While somewhat eye-roll inducing, it’s undeniable that the region boasts a stunning beauty and the feature of a sky full of hot air balloons creates a magical feeling that one can’t help but want to experience for themselves, which is why after our stop in Antalya, we hopped on a Pegasus Air flight to Cappadocia.

Cappadocia is region in central Turkey that has become incredibly famous and a sought-after destination for visitors looking to experience a hot air balloon ride over the stunning valleys of unique rock formations. I visited in early May, the shoulder season, which was ideal for fewer crowds and more reasonable prices, and while the weather wasn’t perfect, we did luck out.

Here’s my guide if you’re heading to Cappadocia for 2-3 days during a vacation.

Where to Stay in Cappadocia on a (modest) Budget

Shoestring Cave Hotel

First things first, you’ll want to sort out accommodation in Göreme, the main town in the Cappadocia region that has easy access to a lot of the attractions. Prices in Cappadocia reflect the area’s demand and popularity due to Instagram, so be prepared for a bit of sticker shock in comparison to other cities in Turkey. We stayed at Shoestring Cave Hotel, a former hostel that was renovated to be more of a budget hotel. It was nice – absolutely a cool experience to stay in a cave room, but I would not tout it as luxury. The breakfast was good, the room was fine, and the staff were helpful. It was also well located in the old city — you can walk to almost anything from here easily.

Hot Air Balloon in Cappadocia

After striking out with bad weather on our first day, we were lucky and able to embark on the hot air balloon ride early in the morning on day two. Our balloon operator was E-Z Air Balloons Cappadocia, and they were good. It took awhile for our pilot and the ground crew to get the balloon inflated and ready to go, but after a few attempts we safely launched over the valleys of Göreme. Even though the initial launch took a long time, we were able to watch the sun rise as balloons all over the town launched from various points, which was quite incredible to see.

I was anxious during the first part of the launch, but once we were in the air, I felt quite calm. It was amazingly quiet; no loud engine propelling us over the city, just quiet puffs of hot air as we gently floated along. There were some really stunning views and thanks to the skill of our pilot and the lack of any sort of scary winds, it felt safe and relaxing the entire journey.

More Things To Do in Cappadocia

Even if you were to get very unlucky with all bad weather days during a trip to Cappadocia, there is still plenty to do to enjoy this beautiful city. Here are some other highlights of our trip for a multi-day itinerary in the town.

Cooking Class at Kilim Restaurant

This was a great option for a less-than-stellar weather day. Kilim Restaurant was right next to our hotel, and it’s owned by a Turkish and Australian couple who have transformed this amazing cave space into a lovely dining establishment. We made several dishes, including a stewed lamb, a bean dish, a soup, and a Turkish dessert called Helva. It was all so incredible and very fun to experience making the dishes ourselves and leaving them to slow cook in a tandoor oven. The owner and the instructor were super nice and it was overall a great way to have a delicious meal while learning more about Turkish culture.

Hiking Pigeon Valley & Love Valley

These two hikes are a must when in Cappadocia. We explored Pigeon Valley our first full day since the balloons were canceled due to a morning storm. It was incredible; fun to explore the various trails and hike around for hours, getting exercise while seeing some incredible fairy chimneys and rock formations.

Kaymakli Underground City

This is one I would say is not a must-do, unless you’re really into caves or underground societies. Don’t get me wrong – it is interesting, but it’s a longer drive from Goreme and turns into an expensive day with taxi drivers trying to run up a high fare while you check out the caves. There is also no information posted, essentially requiring you to hire an onsite guide, priced at 80 euros, in order to learn about the parts of the cave you’re touring. I kind of found this to be a tourist trap that felt like a rip off, it’s 13 euros just to enter and walk around by yourself, but since there is no posted information you don’t get as much out of it. If you really love caves and subterranean-type attractions, go, but otherwise I would skip the Kaymakli Underground City.

Visit Uchisar Castle

One city over from Göreme, Uchisar is a tiny town centered around a Byzantine-era fortress, the “castle” that is a massive rock formation in the center. It’s a short taxi drive (or you can walk, however the roads are not the most pedestrian friendly) and well worth a little visit and a wander while in Cappadocia. From the top of the fortress you can see a great view of the various fairy chimneys of the valley and get a different perspective on Göreme. It’s not a particularly difficult climb, and there are stairs and railings the whole way.

Restaurants in Cappadocia

Rocks Terrace

A very family-run place, this terrace restaurant in the main center of Cappadocia was also a nice meal. Here I tried “manti” – Turkish ravioli, which was delicious albeit this dish was served more room-temperature and not hot, which I am not sure if that was just an error on the restaurants part or is how it is typically consumed. It was still delicious, I just would have preferred it a bit hotter. The salad was also nice, and this place does not serve alcohol but they were serving fresh squeezed lemonade, which was delicious.

Wood Fire Barbecue

Another top-rated restaurant in town, Wood Fire Barbecue is known for the flaming clay pot kebab and other meat-heavy dishes. It’s not traditional Turkish, more of a fusion-restaurant that caters to tourists, but it has delicious food and great service. I had a chicken dish with eggplant and other vegetables that was delicious.

Masters Kebab Place

This was the best meal we had in Cappadocia apart from our cooking class experience. The locally made wine was great, the kebab spread was phenomenal, and the outdoor terrace at this restaurant was the perfect ambiance for ending a long day of exploring. The feta cheese in the salad we shared was to die for, everything was so good and the service at Masters Kebab Place was also top-notch. If you’re only in Cappadocia for a day or two and need to eat at one great place, go here.

Things To Know Before Your Trip to Cappadocia

• It’s expensive – be prepared in your budgeting.

The prices in Cappadocia I think are very close to U.S. prices, which is fine but just something to be aware of. It was a stark contrast to Antalya which is more of a normal, functioning city and not a tourist destination. Our hot air balloon ride was about $280, dinners cost $30+ per person (more with alcohol – alcohol is expensive in Turkey due to “sin tax”) and our cooking class cost about $80 per person, which is steep but worth it. It’s absolutely a once-in-a-lifetime place, so just don’t be shocked when you’re not getting a kebab for $3 like you can in other Turkish cities.

• Plan your balloon ride for your first full day

If you have a few days in Cappadocia, I would recommend booking your balloon flight for the first full day you’re there, to give yourself the best chance of actually getting to experience a ride. If the weather is bad, it will be rebooked until the next day. Waiting to book it until the last day of your trip and you might get very unlucky, and end up having to miss out. The balloon flights are regulated by the Turkish Aviation Authority, so they make the call based on the weather if it’s a go or no-go day.

• Get cash out in advance or make sure you have a good ATM card

Anyone who knows me knows I never shut up about the Charles Schwab Investor Checking account as a fantastic option for a travel ATM card. They reimburse ALL ATM fees, make it stress free to take out cash from any ATM. This might not sound like a huge deal, but some of the ATMs in Cappadocia literally charged over $25 just to take money out. It’s insane, highway robbery, but I didn’t need to care because I knew I would automatically be reimbursed. It’s a great way to have a “travel savings” account so you don’t have to worry about getting access to cash. If you don’t have a good ATM card, I would recommend getting some Turkish lira in advance, or many places also accepted euros.

• Be wary of all the experiences on offer

You don’t have to do everything suggested to you by taxi drivers. Just be aware that many people here completely rely on tourism, and a lot of the experiences they will push to “up-sell” to you might not be what you want to do. While it was good that all taxis are metered – so no haggling over the price, you could find yourself in an unintended day trip that ends up being quite expensive.

Overall I really enjoyed Cappadocia, but I would not go back. I feel like 3 full days was plenty of time to really see the sights, enjoy the hikes, and eat at some of the best restaurants in the city. After a few days in a very touristy town, one craves a more normal setting where not everything is a package deal being sold to you or a souvenir to be lugged home in a suitcase. It was a fantastic place to visit in Turkey, I would highly recommend anyone with the slightest desire to experience a hot air balloon go at least once.