Uçhisar Castle

Uçhisar is a single enormous outcrop of tuff standing above its village, riddled from top to bottom with rooms, passages, tombs and storage chambers cut over centuries and connected by tunnels - a natural fortress that gave the settlement its name, third castle, one of a line with Ortahisar and Başhisar. Much of the interior is unstable and closed, and the visit is essentially a climb: a stairway winds up through and around the rock to a platform on the summit, and from there the view is the best in Cappadocia, taking in Göreme, Pigeon Valley, the Rose and Red valleys, Ortahisar's rock and, on a clear day, Mount Erciyes fifty kilometres away. Balloons pass at eye level at dawn. The village below is now largely boutique cave hotels, and the walk down through Pigeon Valley to Göreme, an hour or so, is one of the best short hikes in the region.

What you actually see

• The honeycombed rock - chambers and tunnels through the outcrop.
• The summit platform - the widest view in Cappadocia.
• The dawn balloons - the fleet passing at eye level.
• Pigeon Valley - the walking route down toward Göreme.

When to go

April to June and September to November. Sunrise for the balloons, sunset for the light on the valleys - both are crowded on the small summit.

Honest expectations

The summit is small and gets packed at sunrise and sunset. Stairs are steep with drops and limited railing. Much of the rock's interior is closed as unsafe. Windy at the top.

Nearby

Göreme is four kilometres down Pigeon Valley; Ortahisar and the Red valleys are close.