Cappadocia Underground Cities: Complete Guide to Derinkuyu and Kaymaklı 2026

Most visitors to Cappadocia add an underground city to their itinerary and assume it will be a minor footnote — a cave with some tunnels. They are consistently wrong. Derinkuyu is 85 metres deep, has 18 floors, contained everything needed to sustain 20,000 people for months at a time, and was not fully excavated until 1963. Walking through it is one of the most disorienting and genuinely extraordinary experiences in Turkey.

Here is exactly what you will find inside Derinkuyu and Kaymaklı — and how to make the most of both.

Why Were the Underground Cities Built?

The soft volcanic tufa rock of Cappadocia — formed from ancient ash deposits — is both extraordinarily easy to carve and surprisingly strong once it hardens on exposure to air. The Hittites began excavating underground shelters here as early as the 2nd millennium BC. Later inhabitants — Phrygians, early Christians fleeing Roman persecution, Byzantine communities hiding from Arab raids — expanded these shelters into something far more ambitious.

The underground cities were not temporary refuges. They were fully functioning communities, with:

• Ventilation shafts — some reaching the surface from 85 metres below, supplying fresh air throughout
• Water wells — dug through the rock to underground aquifers, independent of surface water sources
• Food storage — large chambers carved for grain, wine and oil
• Stables — for livestock brought underground during sieges
• Wineries — presses carved directly into the rock
• Churches — carved chapels with nave, apse and narthex
• Schools — rooms identified by their small carved desks
• Rolling stone doors — circular millstone-like slabs, up to half a tonne, that could be rolled across tunnel entrances from inside to seal them against attack

Cappadocia's underground cities are included in our Cappadocia & Central Anatolia Tour →

Derinkuyu — The Deepest Underground City

Derinkuyu — "deep well" in Turkish — is the largest and most impressive of Cappadocia's underground cities open to visitors. It is located in the town of Derinkuyu, approximately 30 kilometres south of Göreme.

The numbers:

• Depth: 85 metres (18 floors)
• Estimated capacity: 20,000 people plus livestock
• Open floors to visitors: 8 (the lower levels are not publicly accessible)
• Date of discovery: 1963, when a local resident broke through a wall during renovations

What you actually see inside:

Floor 1–2: The entrance section; stables and storage rooms; large circular rolling stone doors visible in their closed position

Floor 3–4: The winery level — large carved chambers where grapes were pressed and fermented; the press stones are still visible

Floor 5–6: The residential level — narrower tunnels, sleeping chambers carved into the walls, ventilation channels connecting to the surface

Floor 7: The church level — a cross-shaped basilica with a barrel-vaulted nave; one of the most complete early Christian spaces in Cappadocia; the acoustics are extraordinary

Floor 8: The deepest accessible level; the main ventilation shaft — 55 metres deep, 70 centimetres in diameter — is visible from here; also the water well that provided independent water supply during sieges

The tunnels connecting floors: Most passages are approximately 1.5 metres high — manageable for adults but requiring a bent posture for tall visitors. Some sections narrow to 80 centimetres. Claustrophobia can be an issue for some visitors; the narrowest sections are short.

Practical notes for Derinkuyu:

• Allow 60–90 minutes for a proper visit
• Arrive early — the site opens at 8am; the first hour is significantly less crowded
• Temperature inside: Approximately 13°C year-round — bring a light layer even in summer
• The site can become congested in peak season; single-file passages mean groups must wait for each other

Kaymaklı — The More Atmospheric Alternative

Kaymaklı is located approximately 9 kilometres north of Derinkuyu — the two cities are believed to have been connected by a tunnel approximately 9 kilometres long, though this has never been fully confirmed. Kaymaklı is smaller than Derinkuyu but arguably more atmospheric.

The numbers:

• Depth: Approximately 40 metres (8 floors; 4 open to visitors)
• Estimated capacity: 3,500–4,000 people
• Character: More labyrinthine than Derinkuyu; the layout is less linear and easier to lose your orientation in

What makes Kaymaklı different:

The passages at Kaymaklı are narrower and more irregular than at Derinkuyu — giving a stronger sense of what it would have felt like to actually live here rather than simply visit. The stables on the first level are larger and better-preserved, with stone rings for tying animals still visible in the walls. The storage jars — enormous ceramic vessels carved into the walls — are particularly well-preserved.

The site is better for photography than Derinkuyu — the irregular layout and lower visitor numbers create more interesting compositions.

Practical notes for Kaymaklı:

• Allow 45–60 minutes
• Less crowded than Derinkuyu — the better choice if you want to avoid tour groups
• The 4 open floors feel more compact; the experience is more intense and claustrophobic than Derinkuyu

Derinkuyu vs Kaymaklı — Which Should You Visit?

The honest answer: If you can only visit one, visit Derinkuyu — the scale and depth are more extraordinary. If you have time for both, visit Kaymaklı first (fewer crowds, more intimate) and Derinkuyu second (the scale will be all the more impressive after the comparison).

Most guided Cappadocia tours include one underground city; ask your operator which one is included and whether the other can be added.

Other Underground Cities Worth Knowing

Cappadocia has approximately 200 underground cities in total — most are not open to visitors, but two others are worth mentioning:

Özkonak: A smaller underground city 14 kilometres north of Avanos; rarely visited; has an unusual feature — holes drilled through the ceiling of passages, used to pour boiling water or oil on attackers who broke through the rolling stone doors

Mazı (Mazi): Near Ürgüp; partially accessible; notable for its well-preserved church level

Want to visit Cappadocia's underground cities on a guided tour?
Our Cappadocia & Central Anatolia Tour includes a visit to Derinkuyu alongside the Göreme valley walks, Ihlara Valley and Konya — with expert local guides who bring the history of these extraordinary spaces to life.

Reach us via the WhatsApp button on the right side of our website — we respond within 24 hours.

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