Planning a Trip

Getting There

Most bus companies serving Göreme stop a few blocks from the center and provide the quick minibus transfer to the otogar, only 2 blocks away. If you planned on taking a taxi from the otogar to your hotel, you may as well grab one now. An area dolmus follows a circuit hourly from Ürgüp bus station to Zelve, Avanos, Göreme, Üçhisar, and back. If you're traveling by car out of Ürgüp, you can either take the road to Avanos, turn onto the road past Zelve, and take the northern approach into Göreme; or head out of town on the Nevsehir road and take the steep cobblestone road through the Göreme Open Air Museum on your way into Göreme. The difference in mileage between the two approaches is negligible. So if your purpose is to see the town and museum, then by all means, take one road in and the other out.

Visitor Information

The tourist information office is located at the otogar (Terminal Içi no. 1; tel. 0384/271-2124) and mainly caters to visitors looking for accommodations. Inside is a collection of signboards of many of the pensions in town. The office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30am to 7pm, but many of the pensions have signs posted outside as well. Be on the lookout for misunderstandings relating to the cost of extras; sometimes there's a big surprise when the bill arrives. Pop into one of the several travel agencies at the otogar for a map of the area.

Orientation

If you blink, you're bound to miss it. The road from the Open Air Museum leads right to the center of town over a dry creek bed; turn left onto Uzundere Caddesi until you get to the otogar. Everything you need is located here or just behind the station, including tour operators, car and scooter rentals, taxis, and the tourist information office. The bazaar is located behind the otogar around the mosque and Roman tower.

Adnan Menderes Caddesi forks off from Uzundere Caddesi closer to the turnoff from the museum; Kapadokya Balloons is on the right and the Orient Restaurant is on the left.

Getting Around

Göreme is eminently walkable, especially because much of the center of town is flat. To venture a little farther out, hook up with one of the bicycle or scooter-rental shops at or around the otogar.