You’re standing in a field in central Turkey. It looks like a moonscape. There are these weird, conical rock formations called fairy chimneys poking out of the ground, and honestly, it feels a bit like a movie set. But the real story isn't what's above your boots. It’s what’s under them. For decades, the Cappadocia Turkey underground cities have been sold as simple hiding spots for Christians running away from Romans. That's a massive oversimplification.
It's actually much weirder than that.
The scale is hard to wrap your head around. Imagine a city that could hold 20,000 people. Now imagine that city is carved entirely out of volcanic tuff, descending eight stories into the earth. We’re talking about ventilation shafts that go down 55 meters and massive stone doors that weigh half a ton, designed to be closed only from the inside. This wasn't just a basement. This was a sophisticated, multi-generational engineering marvel that stayed hidden from the modern world until a guy in 1963 knocked down a wall in his basement and found a tunnel.
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The Derinkuyu Discovery and the "Accidental" History
Let’s talk about that guy in 1963. He was just a local in the town of Derinkuyu. He was renovating his house, probably just trying to fix a wall, when he found a room he didn't know existed. Then another. Then a tunnel. He’d stumbled upon the largest of the Cappadocia Turkey underground cities.
Archaeologists eventually realized this wasn't some small bunker. Derinkuyu is deep. It’s roughly 85 meters down. It had schools, stables, churches, and even wineries. Why wineries? Because if you’re hiding from an invading army for months, you’re still going to want a drink, right?
The crazy thing is the airflow. Even when you’re several levels down, the air feels fresh. The Hittites—or whoever started these—understood thermodynamics better than we give them credit for. They built vertical shafts that acted as natural air conditioners.
But here’s where the "expert" narrative gets messy. While the Byzantines (Christians) definitely used these during the Arab-Byzantine wars between the 7th and 11th centuries, they didn't build them from scratch. Most historians, including those who have studied the architectural tool marks, suspect the Phrygians or the Hittites started the digging as far back as 800 BCE.
It Wasn't Just One City
People often visit Derinkuyu and think they've seen it all. They haven't. There are over 200 of these things scattered across the region. Some are just small clusters of rooms, while others, like Kaymakli, are sprawling horizontal complexes.
Kaymakli is different from Derinkuyu. While Derinkuyu goes deep, Kaymakli goes wide. It has nearly 100 tunnels. Most are so narrow you have to hunch over, which was actually a defense mechanism. If an enemy soldier tried to charge through, they’d be bent double, making them an easy target for someone waiting around the corner with a spear.
Then there’s Ozkonak. It was discovered in 1972 by a local farmer who noticed the water he was using for his crops kept disappearing into the ground. Ozkonak has a unique feature: holes above the tunnel entrances. These were for pouring hot oil on invaders. It’s grim, but it worked.
The newest "big" discovery happened as recently as 2014 in Nevşehir. Construction workers were clearing an area for a housing project when they hit another massive underground complex. It might even be bigger than Derinkuyu. We're still finding these places. Think about that for a second. We live in an age of satellites and LiDAR, and we’re still losing entire cities under our feet.
Living Deep: The Reality of Being Underground
Imagine the smell. Seriously.
You’ve got 20,000 people, plus livestock—cows and goats were kept on the upper levels so their heat would rise and warm the living quarters. You’ve got oil lamps burning everywhere, which eats up oxygen and creates soot. It wasn't a luxury stay. It was a survival choice.
The doors are the most famous part. These massive, circular millstones—called tirhaz—could only be moved from the inside using a central hole as a lever point. Once that stone was rolled into place, the tunnel was sealed. Even if an army found the entrance, they couldn't get through. And because the tunnels were so narrow, you couldn't use a battering ram.
- Level 1-2: Mostly stables and storage. Easy access for animals.
- Level 3-4: Living quarters, kitchens, and communal meeting rooms.
- Lower Levels: Storage for grain, deep wells, and the "holy" spaces like cruciform churches.
The social structure must have been intense. You’re trapped with your entire village for months. You need a leader, a waste management plan, and a way to keep track of time. Without the sun, your internal clock goes haywire. They likely relied on the constant temperature—around 13 to 15 degrees Celsius year-round—to stay sane, even if it was chilly.
Why the Christian Narrative is Only Half the Story
If you read most travel brochures, they’ll tell you these were "Christian cities."
That’s not entirely true.
The Cappadocia Turkey underground cities were a response to a specific geography and a specific threat. The rock (tuff) is soft. It’s incredibly easy to carve but hardens when it hits the air. This made it the perfect material for anyone in the last 3,000 years who needed to hide.
Xenophon, a Greek historian, mentioned people in Anatolia living underground in his work Anabasis around 400 BCE. That’s hundreds of years before the Roman persecutions. The Christians were just the most recent "tenants." They expanded what was already there, adding chapels and frescos, but the bones of the cities are much older.
Actually, the locals continued to use these spaces as "cool storage" for lemons and potatoes right up until the 20th century. The Greek population of Cappadocia was still using the underground cities to escape periodic flashes of violence until the population exchange between Greece and Turkey in 1923.
How to Actually Visit (and Not Get Claustrophobic)
If you’re going, don't just book a random tour. Most "Green Tours" will take you to Derinkuyu because it’s the famous one. It’s also the most crowded.
If you hate tight spaces, Kaymakli is a bit better because the rooms are wider. But honestly, if you have severe claustrophobia, maybe stay topside. The tunnels are narrow, the ceilings are low, and when a tour group of 30 people is coming the other way, it gets tight.
What you need to bring:
- A light jacket. Even if it’s 40 degrees outside, it’s going to be 13 degrees down there.
- Good shoes. The floors are uneven and can be slippery from condensation.
- A headlamp. The cities are lit, but it’s dim. If you want to see the tool marks on the walls or the details in the corners, you’ll want your own light.
Go early. Like, right when they open at 8:00 AM. By 10:30 AM, the tour buses arrive from Göreme and it becomes a subterranean traffic jam.
The Mystery of the Waste
One thing experts still argue about is the waste. Where did the "bathroom" stuff go?
In some cities, archaeologists found clay pipes, but they seem to be for water, not sewage. The prevailing theory is that they used pots and carried the waste out at night, or there were dedicated "waste rooms" that were sealed off. It’s one of those practical details that reminds you how desperate these people must have been. You don't live in a hole in the ground for fun. You do it because the alternative—meeting an invading army on the open plains—is worse.
Actionable Steps for Your Visit
If you're planning to explore the Cappadocia Turkey underground cities, don't just show up and wander. You'll miss 90% of the engineering.
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First, visit the Nevşehir Museum. Most people skip it and go straight to the ruins. Don't. It holds the artifacts found in these cities—tools, cooking pots, and personal items—that give the empty stone rooms context. Without the artifacts, the cities just look like a bunch of caves.
Second, choose your city based on your physical ability. - Derinkuyu is for the fit; it involves a lot of vertical climbing up and down steep, narrow stairs.
- Kaymakli is better for those who prefer horizontal walking but can handle low ceilings.
- Mazı is the "off the beaten path" choice. It’s less excavated and has fewer lights, but you’ll often have the whole place to yourself.
Third, hire a local guide specifically for the underground portion. A general tour guide is fine for the valleys, but for the underground cities, you want someone who knows the ventilation system and can point out the soot marks on the ceiling where the kitchens used to be.
Finally, check the "Museum Pass Turkey" status. These sites are managed by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. A Museum Pass will save you a fortune and let you skip the ticket lines, which is crucial during the peak summer months.
The underground world of Cappadocia isn't just a tourist site. It’s a testament to human resilience. It’s what happens when a population refuses to be conquered. They didn't just hide; they built a parallel world beneath the dust. Once you’re down there, squinting in the dim light and feeling the cool, still air, the history of Turkey stops being a textbook and starts being something you can feel on the walls.