Ministry working to turn Cappadocia into major wedding destination

The Culture and Tourism Ministry is planning to turn Cappadocia, known for hot balloon rides and fairy chimneys, into a big venue for weddings and honeymoons, hoping to lure visitors from all around the world for such special occasions.

GoTürkiye, the country's official travel guide, dedicated a special section on its website to Cappadocia, while hotels in the area are building wedding halls at their premises.

The ministry hopes to exploit Cappadocia's huge potential to make it a favored destination for newlyweds and those who want to tie the knot in a unique place.

Cappadocia is already one of Türkiye's major tourist attractions, yet the ministry believes the region has much to offer.

Last year, Cappadocia drew nearly 5 million tourists, according to data from the Tourism Ministry.

In the first seven months of 2024, some 600,000 people visited the Nevşehir-Göreme archeological site, while Paşabağlar, another archeological site, lured more than 530,000 visitors.

Göreme and Paşabağlar were the fourth and fifth most visited sites in Türkiye during this period.

Officials from the Tourism Ministry said that work is ongoing to promote Cappadocia as a major wedding destination.

Hotels are making necessary arrangements to offer their venues for countryside wedding ceremonies.

Officials are optimistic that a large number of people would want to have their weddings and spend honeymoons in Cappadocia.

The GoTürkiye website promotes Cappadocia, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, as one of Türkiye's primary countryside wedding venues, beside İstanbul, İzmir and Ayvalık.

"Cappadocia guarantees a fairy-tale, rustic wedding," it says, boasting about the region's unique offerings, such as cave...