Pamukkale & Hierapolis

Natural Wonder / Scenery

The dazzling white calcium travertines and thermal terraces of the UNESCO World Heritage "cotton castle", crowned by the ancient city of Hierapolis.

This extraordinary natural wonder in the Pamukkale district of Denizli takes its name from the brilliant white terraces of calcium carbonate that step down the hillside — from a distance they resemble a vast castle of cotton. The terraces were formed over millennia by mineral-rich thermal water rising to the surface and depositing layer upon layer of travertine; the water still flows at around 35 °C and visitors walk the terraces barefoot.

Directly above the travertines lies the ancient city of Hierapolis, founded in the 2nd century BC by the Kingdom of Pergamon. A centre of healing and faith thanks to its curative springs, the city preserves a great theatre, an extensive necropolis and the "Antique Pool" (Cleopatra's Pool), where you swim among submerged ancient columns. Pamukkale and Hierapolis were jointly inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1988.

About a three-hour journey from our hotel, Pamukkale unites nature and history in a single frame and is one of the most photographed landscapes in Turkey.