The eerie lunar landscapes of Cappadocia draw tourists from all over the world each year, but success has a price – one byproduct of the tourism in the area is the emergence of unsightly shops and service areas that have sprung up around the famed “fairy chimneys.”
In an effort to fight this trend and better promote the region, a series of landscape works are scheduled for Nevsehir’s Avanos district. Structures marring the beauty of the recreational areas of Zelve and Pasabağı will be removed and new pathways constructed, in a project budgeted at about around YTL 2 million.
Nevsehir Governor M. Asim Hacımustafaoglu explained that over a quarter of the funds needed had already been secured; YTL 200,000 from the Culture and Tourism Ministry and YTL 400,000 from the Support to Village Infrastructure project (KOYDES).
Noting that as a first step they would remove the sheds used by souvenir sellers, he said “We will build new shops along the road rather than these sheds.” He added that the new paths would allow tourists to better enjoy Cappadocia’s spectacular scenery and that “the site will be a pleasant recreational area when the project is completed.”
Cappadocia Guide 