Shocking tourism scam in Cappadocia

It has been revealed how some travel agencies in Cappadocia manage to sell tours below cost. Reports indicate that tourists are being taken to non-existent museums and historical sites.

According to local tour guides who spoke to *Turizm Güncel*, some agencies have been offering tours at prices lower than their costs by showing tourists fake “museums” and “historical sites.” By avoiding fees for legitimate sites, these agencies are able to reduce their expenses.

Distant Göreme views, lemon warehouses instead of underground cities

Some agencies reportedly take foreign visitors to locations near Ihlara instead of the actual Ihlara Valley and show them a distant view of Göreme, pretending it’s a proper tour. Tourists are also reportedly being taken to lemon storage warehouses under the guise of visiting an “Underground City” or shown village houses in Çardak instead.

Since most tourists are unfamiliar with the region, they usually do not question these tours. If they do, they’re told, “The site is under renovation,” and are redirected to other places.

Harming Turkey’s reputation

One guide expressed frustration, saying, “People travel thousands of kilometers to see the beauty of Cappadocia, only to return home without ever seeing the real thing. If agencies were upfront about the tourists’ budget and explained what they could realistically visit, that would be understandable. But this is outright fraud and deception of tourists. Those of us who try to do our jobs properly have been fighting against this for years but without success. This is doing great harm to Turkey’s image.”

Economic losses

Travel agencies and guides emphasize that this fraudulent behavior not only deceives tourists and damages Turkey’s reputation but also results in significant revenue losses for the country. They urge authorities to identify these agencies and enforce the necessary penalties.

A museum worker in Cappadocia added, “I work at a museum myself. At the entrance of Zelve, it says ‘open-air museum,’ and there are even those who claim this is Göreme. They manage Paşabağ and Zelve with a single ticket like that. Tourists show us photos, and we tell them, ‘The Dark Church is in Göreme,’ and they say, ‘We went but didn’t see any church.’