Göreme Historical National Park is the Turkish national park known for Cappadocia’s fairy chimneys and cave churches.
The park occupies a volcanic landscape in central Turkey’s Nevşehir Province. Eruptions from nearby volcanoes covered the region with soft volcanic tuff, while harder rock layers protected the tops of eroding pillars. Wind and water gradually sculpted these formations into the pinnacles and “fairy chimneys” associated with Cappadocia.
People carved homes, monasteries, chapels, and churches into the soft rock. From the fourth century onward, Christian monastic communities used the valleys, and later churches were decorated with Byzantine frescoes. The park became part of the UNESCO-listed Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia in 1985. A common mix-up is confusing the national park with the nearby town of Göreme; the town is a settlement within the wider cultural landscape.