There are so many great hotels in Cappadocia. It is so hard to narrow down which one (or two) to stay at. I did a lot of research before I went to determine where I wanted to stay. I am kind of sad I only got to experience two. The ones I did stay at though, are two of the best. I had dreamed of staying at these hotels. Both offer similar things, but also very different things. Let’s get into it.

Museum Hotel

Many people will say that this is the nicest hotel is Cappadocia. And it probably is. It is a luxury hotel with a pillow menu, jacuzzi tub and a stunning, heated pool.

Upon arrival they will offer you refreshments and show you around the property. The whole property is just stunning. I kept calling it (and Cappadocia in general) the Tuscany of Turkey. They have their own gardens there. They harvest their own fruits and veggies. There is a cute little turtle garden on the property as well.

We were supposed to have two beds, but when we arrived there wasn’t one available. That was kind of a let down, but the bed in our room was a King size, so it worked out. Most, if not all, hotels in Cappadocia are cave hotels. We stayed in the Escape Room - a 500 year old cave. It is called escape because of the chimney like opening above the bed where people would climb up and out to escape if there was ever an invasion.

The reason it is called Museum Hotel is because of the little historical artifacts sprinkled throughout the room. The “living museum” concept as they call it truly makes these rooms unique.

I think what drew me to wanting to stay at the Museum Hotel was the luxury and the crazy photos of the property. But the hotel has many other things to offer.

Wellness

We booked a massage on the Massage Terrace. The view was incredible. Tea and champagne was served before the massage. The massage therapist was a Balinese woman. If you read my Bali post then you know that the best massage I’ve ever had was in Bali. So, i was pretty excited about the massage. I booked the Spring Calmness one - it was amazing.

Wine Tasting

Museum Hotel makes their own wine in-house. We wanted to try that along with other local wines from Cappadocia. They brought cheese with the wine which was nice. What was even nicer was that they let us take our favorite bottles back to the room with us.

Food

The restaurant at the hotel - Lil’a - was very good. Not great - but pretty good. The views were, however, great.

The breakfast buffet was top notch. There were so many options and the food was high quality.

We decided to continue with the luxury that the hotel offered and book a Private Breakfast in the Valley. This was definitely a very luxurious experience. We had to be at the reception at 5AM. We were driven to a little secluded spot overlooking the valley. There was a tent, carpets, large pillows and a table low to the ground that was full of beautiful food. Everything looked incredible.

This would be the first morning we got to see the balloons fly as well. I was too excited. While I am happy that we did the private breakfast, I will say that I believe it was WAY too expensive. It was 350 EUR (or around $400). They tried to say 450 after quoting me at 350. I was able to get it booked for what they quoted, but I do think that was still way too much.

Photography in Valleys and Caves Tour

We booked a “photography” tour. I put photography in quotes because this tour was not what I had expected at all. It was supposed to be a tour from 10AM to 5PM that took us to the most beautiful, picturesque places. However, it was just a tour to the main places with a history lesson. Which would have been great, but 1) I booked a cultural tour at the next hotel and 2) this was supposed to be a photography tour. It was 260 EUR (around $300) for two people. This was ridiculous. The tour I had at the next hotel (Sultan Cave Suites) went to all the same places AND some, was 35 EUR and was way better. Skip tours with Museum Hotel and book a tour here. You won’t be disappointed.

All in all I really enjoyed the actual hotel and the room. The bathroom was amazing. The water and shower felt great. They also had washcloths which are hard to come by in Turkey. I would stay here again.

Sultan Cave Suites

If you’ve heard of Cappadocia you’ve heard of Sultan Cave Suites. And if you haven’t heard of Sultan Cave Suites, chances are you have seen a photo from there - you just didn’t know it.

My friend, Earthia, and I had our own rooms at Sultan Cave Suites. The rooms were only around $195 for TWO NIGHTS. This was crazy to me. The cave room I had was so beautiful. There was a large bed, large windows and a door to a terrace. The only thing I didn’t like about the room was the shower. The water didn’t drain all the way so the water kind of pooled at the bottom. There was a bit of a mildew smell also. But other than that - the room was awesome.

Sultan Cave Suites is know for their Insta-famous terrace. You know, the one with the carpets, pillows, fresh fruit and oh yeah, the countless balloons in the sky. When we checked in to Sultan they mentioned the terrace, and I was like, “Oh, I know. I’ll be out there early in the morning.” He said it wasn’t necessary to go out there early, but obviously I did. I’m glad I did too. I woke up at 4AM to get ready to shoot. I looked out my window at 5, and I could see balloons going up already. I grabbed the tripod and headed up to the terrace. The guy was still setting up the food. They set a table full of real food and drinks for people to shoot with. I was the first guest up there. It was a dream come true. It was one of those surreal moments. I was walking on the carpet that I had been seeing in photos for years with my bare feet. I could see more of the balloons heating up and getting ready to fly. I was so happy. The balloons were all starting to come down by around 6-6:15AM.

Every balloon sunrise is different. The balloons fly in different directions according to the wind. The second morning I woke up early to shoot at Sultan Cave Suites, the balloons looked completely different. They were moving in another direction, there were bigger gaps in between when they went up and when they came down - it was just a totally different sky. But it was equally magical each morning!

NOTE: To those people thinking of going to Sultan Cave Suites just to shoot, but not actually staying there as a guest - I advise you not to. They will ask your room number and if you are staying there. I saw many people get told they were not allowed to take photos if they were not a guest at the hotel. To be honest, I totally understand that. The hotel was awesome, so just book a room. I suggest booking in advance too as they fill up quick.

Another thing I enjoyed about this hotel was the fact that you could easily walk down to many restaurants and shops. We ate at the restaurant at the hotel twice, Seten, (once for dinner and once for lunch on our last day). The ravioli was the bomb. We tried the National Drink of Turkey there - Raki (aka Lion’s Milk). It is made of twice-distilled grapes and aniseed. It is 45% alcohol. You’re supposed to drink it with water. I chased it with Turkish tea (black tea). Read more about Raki here.