Sobesos

Tickets and tours: which to book

Nothing for Sobesos alone is sold online, and there is no ticket system worth planning around. The site has a small entrance with a custodian, and entry has generally been free or very cheap. You simply drive up, walk in and follow the walkways laid over the excavated floors.

Most visitors arrive in one of three ways. The simplest is a hired car, which lets you combine Sobesos with Mustafapaşa, the Keşlik monastery and the Soğanlı valley in one loop south of Ürgüp. The second is a taxi or private driver from Ürgüp or Göreme, agreed by the half-day; hotels can arrange this and the price is fixed in advance. The third is a guided day tour of southern Cappadocia, sometimes sold locally as a south or green route, which may include Sobesos among other stops; ask at your hotel or a local agency whether it is on the list, because many routes skip it.

There is no audio guide, and the information panels are short. If you want the mosaics explained, a private guide hired for the day in Ürgüp will usually stop here on request. For most people, the sensible plan is a self-drive half-day to the south with Sobesos as the first or last stop.

A short history

Sobesos lay in the Roman province of Cappadocia, a farming and grazing region crossed by roads between central Anatolia and the Taurus mountains. The remains date mainly from the late Roman and early Byzantine centuries, roughly the 4th to the 6th century AD, when a modest town grew here with public buildings decorated in mosaic. A Christian church was later built on part of the site, and burials gathered around it. The town faded in later centuries and its stones disappeared under fields. It came to light by chance in 2002, and the Nevşehir Museum began excavations soon afterwards. The roofed mosaic building is the main excavated area; much of the town remains under the soil.

Getting there

Sobesos is in Şahinefendi, about 30 km south of Ürgüp. The road runs through Mustafapaşa and then south across open farmland; the drive takes around 35 minutes, and the site is signposted near the village with a small parking area by the entrance. From Göreme allow about 50 minutes. There is no useful public bus, so the realistic options are a hired car, a taxi or a private driver. The nearest airports are Nevşehir Kapadokya and Kayseri, both with flights from Istanbul; Kayseri is about an hour and a half away by car. If you are going on to the Soğanlı valley, continue south from Şahinefendi for about half an hour.

Rules and what to bring

Stay on the wooden walkways: the mosaics are fragile, and stepping on them or touching them is not allowed. Drones are not permitted without a permit, as at other Turkish archaeological sites. Bring water, a hat and sun cream, because there is no café on the site and very little shade outside the roofed area. Toilets may be limited to the custodian's building, so plan stops in Mustafapaşa or Ürgüp.

When to go

Sobesos is rarely busy. Most coach tours keep to Göreme, Uçhisar and the underground cities, so you may have the mosaics almost to yourself at any hour. Late morning works well if you are heading on to Soğanlı for lunch, while the afternoon brings warmer light into the shelter.

The best months are April to June and September to October, when the countryside is pleasant for driving and walking. July and August are hot and dry, though the visit is short and the roof shades the mosaics. Winter in Cappadocia is cold, with snow at times on the higher roads; hours can be shorter or irregular then, so check before you drive out. Because opening times are not well published, aim to arrive well before mid-afternoon. Allow 30 to 45 minutes on the site, or longer if you also visit the village church.