Turkey Questions!

Average price for a balloon trip is around 150 Euros depending on basket size. Royal Balloons who are a firmly established company are advertising 175 euros to 240 euros.

For domestic airlines, I normally search Pegasus, or Turkish airlines. Although Sunexpress sometimes comes up with some bargains.

For Pamukkale, instead of flying from Cappadocia to Izmir and then traveling roughly 4 hours there and back, get the overnight bus from Cappadocia to Pamukkale, then from Pamukkale to Izmir. Saves you doubling back on yourself.

Izmir to Istanbul is roughly 12 hours by bus, but I normally do it by plane.

Is it your first time to Istanbul? If so, I am wondering if 3 days in Cappadocia at that time of year is too much. Especially if there is rain and snow and the attractions are inaccessible. Perhaps knock a day off there and spend more time in Istanbul

Hi NatalieSayin - thanks for the information. Yes this is my first time to Turkey and thanks for your comments about staying in Cappadocia.

For the overnight bus from Cappadocia to Pamukkale - do you need to book this beforehand or can you book like a day or so before?

For the balloon price of 150 euros - is that for the full basket? can you share with others?

I agree;at that time of the year 2 days in Cappadocia is enough.Many valleys will be closed due to snow limiting wh<t you can do and where you can walk.When you arrive in Göreme or whichever village go to the bus station and buy your tşcket to Denizli for Pamukkale,that is soon enough.
You'll arrive c.07.00 giving you the full day there until c.16.00 when there is a direct bus from Pamukkale village to Selçuk.
When you say Izmir,I'm assuming it is to visit Ephesus is it?So 1 full day there is enough.
From nearby Izmir airport you can then fly up to Istanbul.
As you'll be tired upon arrival stay 1 night in Istanbul and then move on to Cappadocia and save the other 3-4 days in Istanbul to the end of your stay.This is better than flying back just to leave.
At that time of year you should be able to find hot air balloon flights for around 120-130 Euro's per person.This price is for the ride-you are not hiring the whole basket :)You'll probably share with 12-16 others depending on how many folks are around at that time.
Bear in mind that night fall comes early at that time of year so to maximise daylight hours as much as possible try to travel during the evening(basically dead time!).
Both THY and Pegasus airlines fly to Nevşehir and Kayseri for Cappadocia and from both of Istanbuls airports too.Flights into Kayseri tend to be more frequent and cheaper .

Your time in Istanbul is very,very little. ..I would certainly allow more time there.Its a great city,with many things to see and do.

The balloon price is per person. You should be able to get it for less than 150 euros,though that might be with more people in the basket.....the more expensive companies limit it to 16,some of the cheapest ones take 20...

How long does the bus take from Cappadocia to pumakkale?

How long does the bus take from Cappadocia to pumakkale?

About 9 hours. Use Metro or Suha Turizm

Metro - http://www.metroturizm.com.tr/en-default.html

Suha - http://www.suhaturizm.com.tr/

For the overnight bus from Cappadocia to Pamukkale - do you need to book this beforehand or can you book like a day or so before?

For the balloon price of 150 euros - is that for the full basket? can you share with others?
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Book your ticket as soon as you arrive in Cappadocia. The overnight buses can get fill quite quickly.

All balloon trips are shared. The private balloon trips are a lot more costly than that.

That's a lot to do in a short time.

To save as much time as possible I highly recommend that you immediately fly to either Cappadocia or Izmir upon arrival in Turkey. That avoid splitting your time in Istanbul. I'm not sure where you're coming from or how much time difference but Istanbul (especially your first visit) is an awful place to recover from jet lag!

Given the short days and the very real possibility that weather will cause some delays I suggest somehow adding at least two full days to your time in Istanbul. Four FULL days minimum. Flights between Istanbul and Cappadocia and Istanbul and Izmir are frequent and cheap. There is a direct flight between Cappadocia and Izmir but it is not daily--if it doesn't work for your schedule this is a good place for an overnight bus. If you go by bus, regardless of which direction I suggest stopping at Pamukkale (Denizli) along the way to avoid backtracking.

Cappadocia will be freezing. Pamukkale will be cold to freezing. Ephesus will be cool to cold. Istanbul will be cold with a very good chance of clouds/rain/snow.

Thanks for all the information guys and the tips...

Where is the best place to base yourself for Cappadocia?

Kayseri? Gerome or Nevsihir?

How much would a taxi cost from Kayseri - gerome or the best place to base yourself in Cappadocia region.