Cappadocia is an extraordinary land, combining unique and beautiful natural features with a fascinating cultural and historical past. Hittites, Byzantines and early Christians established important landmarks here, as did Mother Nature with her stunning erosion of the soft volcanic deposits.

The ancient region of Cappadocia lies in central Anatolia, between the cities of Nevsehir, Kayseri and Nigde. Here, the traveller finds one of the most fantastic landscapes in the world. Wind and weather have eroded soft volcanic rock into hundreds of strangely shaped pillars, cones and "fairy chimneys", often very tall, and in every shade from pink through yellow to russet browns.

Millions of years ago lava and volcanic ash from the now extinct volcanoes Erciyes, Hasandagi and Golludag, covered the plateau with tuff, creating a malleable medium for Mother Nature's artistry. Her wind, rain and floodwaters have gently sculpted the area creating unforgettable valleys, magical cone-shaped monoliths, and a landscape that almost defies description.

Humans have added their touch to the landscape as well. Beginning in the 2nd century BC, Christians fleeing persecution carved small, defensible refuges, high up in the rocks of hard-to-find valleys and gorges. A very positive crowd of early hermits, they dug monasteries and churches and completed their work with heavenly frescoes of Jesus and stories from the Bible. Others who added their touch to the landscape included the Hittites, Phrygians, Medes, Persians, Romans, Seljuks and the Ottomans.