Over the last few years, Turkey has emerged as one of the hottest and most popular tourist destinations in the world. In today’s world, it is one of the finest tourist destinations that have diverse things to offer starting from the breathtaking scenic beauty with crystal clear waters, pine covered mountain and sunny beaches to famous archaeological and historical sites.
Turkey has a very uneven and diverse terrain consisting of mountains, valleys, rivers, lakes and waterfalls. Surrounded by the seas on three sides, mainly the Black Sea, the Aegean Sea and Mediterranean Sea, this country features numerous shores that are laced with beaches, cove, ports, islands and peninsulas. The country is known for its Mediterranean climate, which makes it more ideal destination to enjoy a pleasant stay. The 365 days of sunshine along with vibrant spring season make this place as one of the ideal choices for holiday.
Turkey is one of the few travel destinations that can offer you ample of options to enjoy various outdoor and various adventure activities. As a vacationer, you can enjoy different outdoor activities such as mountain climbing, mountain biking and different water sports like swimming, boating, surfing and much more. Adding to this, you can also enjoy the trill of adventure sport like hot air balloon flight. However, if we look at the current scenario, hiking is one of the key outdoor activities and adventure sports of Turkey that has pulled the attention of numerous vacationers from all across the world. In fact, these days many local tour operators in Turkey are offering various hiking tour programs for local and international vacationers.
Today while spending your holiday in Turkey you can enjoy hiking at the number of marked hiking trails. If you are one of those hiking lovers, here is a list of different spots in Turkey where you can enjoy one of its own kinds of hiking experience:
- The Lycian way is Kate Clow's 500-km marked trail starting from Fethive/Oludeniz to Antalya through the Teke Peninsula.
- St Paul Trail- This trail follows the Lycian way marked from the St Paul Trail north from Perge and Aspendos to Yalvac on the Anatolian plateau, Cappadocia.
One of the great pleasures that you can enjoy while hiking through these trails are visiting different classical sites that feature stunning views. Every trail offers a unique hiking experience. In fact, the best part of hiking through these trails is you get the chance to discover some of the most amazing views that are worth being captured in your camera.
As you hike in the foothills and ridges of the Kakar and Gngrmez ranges, you can view tiny alpine flowers that have emerged from the melting snow- snow cock and black grouse. Adding to this, hiking through the Cappadocia valley, you can also enjoy the unique formations shaped by the eruptions of three volcanoes- Mount Erciyes (3,917m), Mount Hasan (3,263m) and Mount Melendiz (2,963m). The most striking part of this valley is earlier it was used to hide the first churches of Cappadocia carved into fairy chimneys and caves.
The Rose Valley located between Goreme and Cavusin villages is another option if you love hiking. This valley is divided into many smaller valleys namely - Gulludere, Kizilcukur, Meskendir and Zindanonu valleys and famous for its rose-colored rock that varies in intensity depending on time of day, season and weather conditions. During the hike, you can visit several cave churches, cave tunnels and cave houses. Apart from this, the stunning & lush Ihlara Valley boasts the deepest gorge in Asia Minor and can be considered as the perfect hiking option. The key feature that makes hiking through the Ihlara valleys unique is the Melendiz River which runs from the bottom of the valley in the village of Ihlara and paints the gorge in beautiful shades of blue and green.
Today no doubt, Turkey is an exciting country filled with many different options where you can easily enjoy hiking. All you require is making the right selection of hiking spot that can meet your requirements and budget-limit.
