The Red tour is one of the extremely popular day tours in Cappadocia. It concentrates on the northern Cappadocia attractions, mostly around the Göreme-Avanos-Ürgüp triangle.
This tour is shorter, about 6-7 hours, and involves less walking than the Green tour – which is why it’s favored by many, including families and those with limited mobility. It’s also a bit cheaper than the Green tour.
Like the other Cappadocia tours, the Red tour also includes museum entries, a guide, lunch, and transportation.
Book the tickets early, especially in peak season, as the Red tour is extremely popular and is often fully booked a day or two in advance.
Key stops on the Red tour
Uçhisar Castle view (or Göreme panorama)
Many Red tours start with a photo stop either at Uçhisar (to see the castle and surrounding Pigeon Valley) or at the Göreme panoramic viewpoint. It’s a chance for the guide to give an introduction while you take pictures of the iconic landscape.
Göreme Open-Air Museum
This is the star stop of the Red tour. You’ll get a guided walkthrough of the Open-Air Museum’s cave churches – seeing famous ones like the Apple Church, Snake Church, and the brilliantly frescoed Dark Church.
Your guide will likely charge a small extra fee if your group agrees to enter the Dark Church, which requires a special ticket—it’s highly worth it.
Hearing the stories and symbolism of the frescoes from an expert adds a lot of value. The guide will also explain monastic life in Cappadocia.
Expect this stop to last about 1.5 hours. It can be crowded as it’s Cappadocia’s most visited site, but guides manage timing to avoid big bottlenecks inside the caves.
Çavuşin old village
Next, many Red tours visit Çavuşin, an old village known for its huge rock hill with abandoned cave houses.
You’ll see the Çavuşin Church (John the Baptist Church) from below – some tours allow time to climb up to it, while others just view from a distance and walk through the old village streets.
It’s quite scenic and gives a sense of local life and how people lived in caves until not too long ago.
Avanos pottery workshop
The Red tour usually includes a cultural stop in Avanos to witness traditional pottery-making. You’ll visit a pottery workshop – typically family-run and set in a cave showroom.
A master potter will demonstrate throwing a pot on the kick-wheel, skillfully turning a lump of red clay into a vase within minutes. Then they often invite a volunteer, or sometimes they choose one of the ladies or gents from the group to try their hands at the wheel – always entertaining!
After the demo, you browse the gallery; no pressure to buy, but the pottery is beautiful. This stop also serves as a rest before lunch. On some tours, the pottery stop might be after lunch.
Lunch stop
A set-menu lunch at a restaurant, often in Avanos or on the way to the next stop. Similar to the format of the Green Tour lunch – soup, salad, choice of main dish (often a simple Turkish dish like grilled meat or vegetarian casserole), and fruit or dessert. Some tours use eateries with a carpet demonstration or local handicrafts on display.
Paşabağ (Monks Valley)
After lunch, you visit Paşabağ Valley, which has the most photogenic fairy chimneys. Your guide will lead you along the paths among towering mushroom-capped rocks. They’ll likely point out the hermit monk story, where Saint Simeon is believed to have lived in one of these chimneys, and you can climb into a three-story chimney with monk’s quarters. You can take great photos here and feel dwarfed by the fairy chimneys. This valley is often the trip favorite.
Devrent (Imagination) Valley
Devrent Valley is yet another quick stop to have fun with rock shapes. The guide will show you the famous camel rock and challenge you to find other shapes, maybe a dolphin, a chicken, Napoleon’s hat – people get creative. It’s light-hearted and shows Cappadocia’s whimsical side. Usually, a 15-minute stop to take pictures.
Ürgüp “Three Beauties”
Many Red tours swing by the Three Beauties fairy chimneys near Ürgüp. These are the iconic trio of pinnacles with conical caps – the symbol of Ürgüp. There’s a legend of a princess, her lover, and their child turned to stone (hence three “fairy” figures). It’s a short photo stop, but the formation is lovely, with Mount Erciyes often visible behind on clear days. There are usually vendors selling dried fruits and souvenirs here as well.
Shopping stops
Some Red tours may include an extra stop at a local carpet weaving center or a Turkish sweets shop in Ürgüp, especially if time permits or if the group is interested. It’s not a main part of the tour, but it is sometimes offered to showcase Turkish rugs or local products like pekmez (grape molasses) or dried apricots, which the region is known for. These are usually brief, and you can just observe or sample.
By around 4–5 PM you’re dropped back to your hotel. The Red tour covers a lot of famous sites in one go, and it’s a comfortable loop – not much hiking, mostly short walks from the van to the sites.
It’s great for those who want a full introduction to Cappadocia’s highlights and prefer a guided experience for context, especially for Göreme Museum’s rich history.
If you’re an adventurous seeker who wants to explore more of Cappadocia, the Red and Green Combined Day Tour offers a comprehensive experience.
Why choose the Red tour?
If you have only a day in Cappadocia and you’re not doing anything else, the Red Tour will take you to the classic sites.
It’s also less physically demanding than the Green tour, so it’s popular with travelers of all ages. Families often like it because kids won’t get as tired, and they enjoy the pottery and imagination valley.
Göreme Museum entry and guide expertise are a big plus – you won’t miss the important details. You get a taste of local crafts (pottery, maybe carpets) along with nature.
The Cappadocia All-Inclusive Red tour includes visiting the Open-Air Museum, Uchisar, Monks Valley, Devrent, and Avanos with a guide.
Like other tours, book Red tour tickets in advance, especially during peak season. Many Red tour operators follow the same core itinerary.
You can expect a group of around 15-20. The experience can vary slightly depending on the guide’s personality and knowledge, but overall, it’s consistently well organized.
Early Booking: The Red tour isn’t usually as overbooked as the Green tour, but it still fills up. Aim to book it at least a day or two before. Also, some travelers opt to visit these on their own because Red tour sites are closer together (e.g. renting a scooter or ATV to visit Devrent, Pasabağ, etc.). That’s possible if you want to skip the tour, but the convenience and information of the tour are hard to beat.
