Kaymakli Underground City - Cappadocia's Subterranean Wonder

Is the underground city worth it? Absolutely! It's an ancient bunker with maze like tunnel systems and underground facilities for a long term shelter. People thousands of years ago took shelter in these caves during invasions or troubled times. Nowadays, it's one of the most fun things to see in Cappadocia, as long as you don't have claustrophobia.

Location & Accessibility of Kaymakli Underground City

The Kaymakli Underground City is located to the south of the Cappadocia region and it's about a 30 minute drive away from the center. Tour programs on their second day have one of the underground cities. Some tour programs, like the so called Green Tour usually includes the Derinkuyu Underground City which is somewhat similar. No need to visit more than one underground city. Check your programs.

You would definitely need a car to reach Kaymakli Underground City. One could take public transportation from the main city Nevşehir but to get there you'd probably need to take another bus which means the public transportation route would cost you a LOT of time.For this location, as there are no detailed explanations inside, a guide is highly recommended to experience the underground city at its best.

The admission ticket for Kaymakli Underground City is 13 Euros per person in 2025. Photography is allowed on the premises. The tunnels are particularly fun for videos.

WARNING: If you have walking difficulties, asthma or similar breathing issues or claustrophobia; you might want to skip the underground city. The reason: the tunnels are very small and narrow. To pass through, one needs to crouch. On busy days, many people inside these tunnels and caves might make people with claustrophobia feel restricted. People wandering about inside also could make the air harder to breathe for anyone with a serious case of pulmonary diseases.

ADDITION: As an overweight man of about 6 feet (183 cm) with no claustrophobia and respiratory issues, I have no problem at all with the underground cities. My experience is that if you don't have a serious issue, you'll have fun in the underground city. By the way, children love the underground city so definitely child friendly.

History of Kaymakli Underground City & The Here and Now

The ancient folk who lived in Cappadocia lacked the materials to build city walls or towers to defend their towns. Instead, they carved these caves underneath the towns so that the civilians may take shelter during invasions. The caves were also used as a storage area for the town.

The underground cities were recently discovered (in the 50's) and there are still many things we do not know. We can only visit a small section of the Underground City of Kaymakli. For instance, only four levels can be visited out of a total of eight.

Don't Miss In Kaymakli Underground City

If you manage to reach the third level, the big round shaped door that was used to block the tunnels reminds us of the Indiana Jones movies.

Between the third and the fourth levels, the deep ventilation shaft is quite interesting. The third level on the way out (the sign says “kitchen”) has a big basalt rock that sits on the ground. A rare opportunity for you to feel how strong that rock is (the basalt rock is usually found on top of fairy chimneys that are about 60 feet / 20 meters tall).