Derinkuyu vs Kaymaklı: Which Cappadocia Underground City Should You Visit?
Cappadocia has dozens of underground cities, but two get almost all the visitors: Derinkuyu and Kaymaklı, about 10 km apart. If you only have time for one, which should it be? Here is the honest comparison — and when it is worth doing both. The guided Derinkuyu tours include options that cover one city or both.
The short answer
Choose Derinkuyu if you want the greater sense of depth and the taller shafts; it is the deeper city and the more dramatic descent. Choose Kaymaklı if you want something wider, shallower and a little easier underfoot. Many tours pair them, and doing both is the clearest way to feel how these cities differ.
Side by side
| Derinkuyu | Kaymaklı | |
|---|---|---|
| Depth | Deeper — about 85 m, 8 levels open | Shallower — fewer levels open |
| Feel | Tall shafts, steep descent | Wider, lower, more sprawling rooms |
| Underfoot | Steeper, narrower stairs | Gentler, but still low passages |
| Crowds | Popular; busiest midday | Popular; often paired with Derinkuyu |
| Time needed | About 1–1.5 hours | About 1 hour |
| Best for | Depth, engineering, the “whole town below ground” feeling | Anyone wanting an easier, less steep visit |
The case for Derinkuyu
Derinkuyu is the deepest excavated underground city in Cappadocia, and depth is the point. The 55 metre ventilation shaft, the long descent through eight levels and the rooms read as a church and a school on the lower levels give it a scale that Kaymaklı does not match. If you are going to be impressed by one, it is this one — and if you have read anything about Cappadocia’s underground cities, Derinkuyu is almost certainly the one you read about.
There is also the plain matter of reputation. When people write and talk about Cappadocia’s underground cities, Derinkuyu is the name that recurs — the deepest, the most complete, the one with the 55-metre shaft and the rooms read as a church and a school. Arriving with that anticipation and then walking down into it is part of the experience. Kaymaklı is genuinely impressive, but for a once-in-a-trip visit that weight of expectation counts for something.
Did you know: Derinkuyu and Kaymaklı are often said to be joined by a tunnel several kilometres long. It is frequently reported but not part of the visitable route in either city.
The case for Kaymaklı
Kaymaklı is the more horizontal city: wider rooms, a gentler descent, and passages that some visitors find less daunting than Derinkuyu’s steep staircases. If steep stairs or tight vertical spaces are a concern, or you are visiting with children or older relatives, Kaymaklı can be the more comfortable choice while still giving you the underground-city experience.
Kaymaklı also feels more like a warren of connected homes than a vertical plunge. Its levels spread outward rather than dropping away, so you move between low, broad rooms — kitchens with their hearths, storage spaces, stables — without the same relentless staircases. Families with younger children, and anyone who found the idea of Derinkuyu’s depth daunting, often come out of Kaymaklı saying it was exactly the right amount of underground.
Doing both
If you have the time, doing both back to back is genuinely rewarding — the contrast between Derinkuyu’s depth and Kaymaklı’s width teaches you more than either alone. The efficient way is a tour that covers both: the private Kaymaklı & Derinkuyu tour does exactly this at your own pace, though note that the entry tickets to each city are paid on site rather than included.
Useful tip: If you do both in a day, take Kaymaklı first and Derinkuyu second — the deeper city makes the stronger final impression.
What each city is like to walk
At Derinkuyu the abiding impression is downward: staircase after staircase, the walls close, the air cool, until you stand far below the surface beside a shaft that drops further still. It is the descent that stays with people. Kaymaklı reads differently — you move through it more than down it, ducking between broad, low rooms that open off one another, so the feeling is of a sprawling hidden village rather than a plunge. Neither is better; they are different sensations, and knowing which appeals to you is half the decision.
Are they too similar to do both?
A fair question, and the answer is no — not if you have the time. Because the two cities differ in exactly that way, seeing both is a genuine comparison rather than a repeat. What you should not do is race through both to tick them off; an hour at each, unhurried, teaches you more than a rushed tour of three underground sites. If your day is tight, do one properly rather than two in a hurry. Both, in any case, sit within a wider region of roughly three dozen underground cities — these two are simply the most accessible and the best presented for visitors. Because both cities are managed as ticketed sites with the same soft-tuff staircases and the same steady chill underground, the visiting advice is identical for either: wear flat shoes, bring a layer, go early to beat the coach groups, and give whichever city you choose an unhurried hour rather than a rushed twenty minutes.
Crowds and timing
Both cities get busy, and both are busiest in the late morning and early afternoon when the Green Tour coaches converge. Because so many tours pair the two, arriving at either one at peak time can mean queuing on the stairs. If you are self-driving, the first hour after opening is the prize at both sites. On a group tour you have less control over timing, which is one more argument for a private tour if crowds are your main worry.
Which tours cover which
Most standard Green Tours from Göreme include one underground city — usually Derinkuyu or Kaymaklı, depending on the operator and the day — alongside the Ihlara Valley and Selime Monastery. If seeing a specific one matters, check which city the tour visits before you book rather than assuming. To see both in one outing, a private tour is the reliable route: the private Kaymaklı & Derinkuyu tour is built around exactly that pairing.
How to do both in one day
Seeing both is comfortably possible in half a day. A sensible plan is Kaymaklı first, then the short hop south to Derinkuyu, finishing on the deeper, more dramatic city. Budget about an hour at each, plus the 10-kilometre drive between them and time for tickets, which at both cities are paid on site. If your day also takes in the Ihlara Valley, do the underground cities in the morning while you are fresh for the stairs, and save the valley walk for the afternoon.
Verdict by visitor type
- First-time visitor, one city only: Derinkuyu — it is the one you came to see.
- Worried about steep stairs or tight spaces: Kaymaklı.
- History and engineering enthusiast: Derinkuyu, ideally on a tour with more time underground.
- Have half a day and want the full picture: both, on a private tour.
Choosing a tour
For Derinkuyu alone within a full Cappadocia day, the Classic Green Tour or the longer Derinkuyu tour both work; for both cities, the private option is the natural pick. Compare them all on the Derinkuyu tours section, and see the FAQs if you still have questions. Whichever city you choose, going early and taking the stairs at your own pace will do more for the visit than the choice between them.