Selime Monastery

Selime Kalesi is the largest rock-cut religious complex in Cappadocia, and the scale is what distinguishes it from the small chapels elsewhere: a basilica cut into the cliff with two rows of piers and a barrel vault, a kitchen with a tall conical chimney carved up through the rock, stables with tethering holes, cisterns, living quarters and a tomb chamber, all connected by passages and stairs cut through the cone. It stands at the northern mouth of the Ihlara valley above Selime village, and the standard way to arrive is on foot, finishing the fourteen-kilometre valley walk from Ihlara here. Climbing through it means steep polished rock ramps with no railings, which are slippery and genuinely require care, especially in the wrong shoes. Around the monastery are fairy chimneys and a necropolis. Films have used the site, and Star Wars comparisons follow visitors around, though nothing was shot here.

What you actually see

• The rock basilica - the pier-and-vault church cut in the cliff.
• The kitchen chimney - the conical shaft carved through rock.
• The stables - tethering holes cut into the walls.
• The valley mouth - Ihlara opening below the monastery.

When to go

April to June and September to November. Mornings; the rock is exposed and hot by midday, and the ramps are safer dry.

Honest expectations

The climb involves steep, worn rock ramps with no handrails - slippery and hazardous in smooth-soled shoes. There is no lighting inside the chambers. Facilities are minimal.

Nearby

The Ihlara valley runs south from here; Güzelyurt is nearby and Aksaray about thirty kilometres north.