Public Transport In Cappadocia

For the budget traveller, a guided tour or a rental car might be financially out of reach. Here is a guide on how to use public transport in Cappadocia.

Disclaimer (updated for 2024):

All timetables are to and from the main city in the Cappadocia region, Nevşehir. These buses DO NOT leave from the bus station. The bus stop for the city buses is the city centre Meteris Stop. For more information, check my video at https://youtu.be/S0PrKCCNw-k

Winter departure times are usually less frequent, usually every hour or every thirty minutes. During the winter, first bus is later and the final bus is earlier in the day.

An Easy Guide (or is it?)

This guide will be useful if you're staying in Göreme, Ürgüp, Avanos or Nevşehir.

Nevşehir is the main city of Cappadocia. If you'd like to reach the famous underground city of Kaymakli, you'd first need to make your way to the Nevşehir centre bus stop called "Meteris". You can take the bus from your town to Nevşehir and then to Kaymakli.

The Ürgüp - Avanos bus is very useful to reach the main attractions in Cappadocia. If you're staying in Göreme, you can also use it as it goes through the town. The bus does not go to the bus station though; it drives down from the Open Air Museum road and makes a right turn. You can wait for it in the corner in front of Kebabs & Mezes Restaurant (as of 2024). Here is the route it follows:

• Ürgüp - Göreme Open Air Museum - Göreme - Çavuşin - Paşabağ (Monk's Valley) - Zelve Open Air Museum - Avanos (Red River)

Ürgüp to Avanos Departures

Important: Only the buses that leave on the hour drive by the valleys and usually only until 18:00. These are departure times from Ürgüp so it should take at least 15 mins to reach Göreme.

• 07:00 - 07:30 - 08:00 - 09:00 - 10:00 - 11:00 - 12:00
• 13:00 - 14:00 - 15:00 - 16:00 - 17:00 - 18:00
• 19:00 - 20:00 - 21:00

Avanos to Ürgüp Departures

Important: Only the buses that leave on the hour drive by the valleys and usually only until 18:00. These are departure times from Avanos so it should take at least 20 mins to reach Göreme. The bus that left Avanos already passed through the valleys so DO NOT take this one if you want to visit Çavuşin, Paşabağ or Zelve. Instead, take the Ürgüp to Avanos bus.

• 07:00 - 07:30 - 08:00 - 09:00 - 10:00 - 11:00 - 12:00
• 13:00 - 14:00 - 15:00 - 16:00 - 17:00 - 18:00
• 19:00 - 20:00 - 21:00

Göreme to Nevşehir Departures

• 07:30 - 08:00 - 08:30 - 09:00 - 09:30 - 10:00 - 10:30 - 11:00 - 11:30 - 12:00
• 12:30 - 13:00 - 13:30 - 14:00 - 14:30 - 15:00 - 15:30 - 16:00 - 16:30 - 17:00
• 17:30 - 18:00 - 18:30 - 19:00 - 19:30 - 20:00 -22:00

Nevşehir to Göreme Departures

• 07:30 - 08:00 - 08:30 - 09:00 - 09:30 - 10:00 - 10:30 - 11:00 - 11:30 - 12:00
• 12:30 - 13:00 - 13:30 - 14:00 - 14:30 - 15:00 - 15:30 - 16:00 - 16:30 - 17:00
• 17:30 - 18:00 - 18:30 - 19:00 - 19:30 - 22:30

Ürgüp to Nevşehir Departures

Important: Buses that leave on the hour also go to the bus station in Nevşehir. On Sundays, the buses leave every thirty minutes.

• 06:40 - 06:50 - 07:00 - 07:20 - 07:40 - 08:00 - 08:20 - 08:40 - 09:00
• 09:20 - 09:40 - 10:00 - 10:20 - 10:40 - 11:00 - 11:20 - 11:40 - 12:00
• 12:20 - 12:40 - 13:00 - 13:20 - 13:40 - 14:00 - 14:20 - 14:40 - 15:00
• 15:20 - 15:40 - 16:00 - 16:20 - 16:40 - 17:00 - 17:20 - 17:40 - 18:00
• 18:30 - 19:00 - 20:00 - 21:00 - 22:00

Nevşehir to Ürgüp Departures

Important: On Sundays, the buses leave every thirty minutes.

• 07:20 - 07:40 - 08:00 - 08:20 - 08:40 - 09:00
• 09:20 - 09:40 - 10:00 - 10:20 - 10:40 - 11:00 - 11:20 - 11:40 - 12:00
• 12:20 - 12:40 - 13:00 - 13:20 - 13:40 - 14:00 - 14:20 - 14:40 - 15:00
• 15:20 - 15:40 - 16:00 - 16:20 - 16:40 - 17:00 - 17:20 - 17:40 - 18:00
• 18:20 - 18:40 - 19:00 - 19:30 - 20:00 - 21:00 - 22:15 - 23:00

Nevşehir to Underground City (Kaymakli) Departures

Important: Different schedule for weekdays and weekends.

Weekdays

• 07:30 - 08:00 - 08:15 - 09:00 - 09:30 - 10:00 - 10:30 - 11:00 - 11:30 - 12:00
• 12:30 - 13:00 - 13:30 - 14:00 - 14:30 - 15:00 - 15:30 - 15:45 - 16:00
• 16:15 - 16:30 - 16:45 - 17:00 - 17:30 - 18:00 - 18:30 - 19:10 - 20:10

Weekends

• 07:30 - 08:00 - 08:15 - 09:00 - 09:30 - 10:00 - 10:30 - 11:00 - 11:30 - 12:00
• 12:30 - 13:00 - 13:30 - 14:00 - 14:30 - 15:00 - 15:30 - 16:00
• 16:30 - 17:00 - 17:30 - 18:00 - 18:30 - 19:10 - 20:10

Very Important Reminder

If you have limited time in Cappadocia, DO NOT use public transport here. It will be very time consuming and you'll be missing out on a lot.

Remember, the easiest way to visit Cappadocia is with a guided tour. I highly discourage the use of public transportation in Cappadocia as these schedules are very susceptible to unforeseen changes because this is a small region. They make seasonal changes as well as temporary cancellations of some scheduled departures on national and religious holidays.

Definitely ask the return departure time when you get on the bus to make sure you're not stranded. A taxi ride from one town to the next can easily cost between 20-40 USD.