Turkey doesn’t really need a hype team. The country’s greatest hits (Hagia Sophia at golden hour, hot air balloons over Cappadocia at sunrise, baklava that ruins every other dessert for you) practically sell themselves. But anyone who has actually travelled there will tell you that the most memorable experiences in Turkey aren’t the ones plastered across the brochure cover. They’re the mystical, mildly bewildering, occasionally cat-supervised moments that happen between two glasses of çay and a tram ride. So here are five remarkable things to do in Turkey that don’t appear in every Instagram reel and absolutely should.
1. Watching the Whirling Dervishes spin their way to the divine
The Sema ceremony is a 13th-century Sufi ritual performed by the Mevlevi order, founded in Konya in 1273 by the followers of the great Persian poet Jalaluddin Rumi. It’s been recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage, and once you’ve witnessed it in person, you understand why. Dervishes in flowing white robes rotate slowly on their left foot, right palm turned upward to receive the divine, left palm turned down to pass it on to the earth. It is a moving meditation, not a performance, and the difference is everything.
You can catch the ceremony in Istanbul at the Hodjapasha Culture Centre, set inside a beautifully restored 15th-century bathhouse, or, for the most authentic version, make the pilgrimage to Konya, where Rumi is buried.
2. Swimming among submerged Roman columns at Cleopatra's Pool
Most travellers know Pamukkale for its calcium travertine terraces, the gleaming white “cotton castle” that looks like the world’s tidiest avalanche. Far fewer know that within the UNESCO-listed ancient city of Hierapolis sits the Antique Pool, better known as Cleopatra’s Pool.
In the 7th century, an earthquake toppled the surrounding Temple of Apollo straight into the water, scattering enormous Doric marble columns across the pool floor.
You can now swim directly above them in thermal mineral water that holds a steady 36°C year-round. Locals call it “champagne water” thanks to the natural carbonation that fizzes against your skin. Two thousand years of Roman history, in swimwear. Not a bad way to spend an afternoon.
3. Going 85 metres underground in Cappadocia
Cappadocia is famous for what’s above the surface: fairy chimneys, hot air balloon rides at dawn, cave hotels that look like Pinterest’s wildest fantasy. The more astonishing story is buried beneath. The Derinkuyu Underground City, accidentally rediscovered in 1963 when a local resident knocked down a wall during home renovations (imagine the surprise), descends roughly 85 metres across eight levels of carved volcanic rock.
At its peak, this subterranean settlement could shelter up to 20,000 people, along with their livestock, food stores, wine presses, chapels, schools, and ventilation shafts. Early Christians used it as a refuge during periods of persecution, sealing off entire levels with half-tonne rolling stone doors operated from the inside. Walking through its narrow tunnels is humbling and slightly disorienting in the best way. Skip it if tight spaces aren’t your thing. Otherwise, prepare to be quietly stunned by the ancient engineering of people who clearly did not believe in half measures.
4. Adopting (and being judged by) the cats of Istanbul
Nothing prepares first-time visitors for the fact that Istanbul is essentially co-managed by its cats. An estimated 125,000 stray felines live across the city, fed and cared for by locals who set out food bowls, water dishes, and miniature cardboard shelters outside cafés, shops, and mosque entrances. They strut into restaurants. They nap on Ottoman ruins. They have opinions, and they will share them.
The 2016 documentary Kedi, by filmmaker Ceyda Torun, captured the phenomenon beautifully, profiling seven of the city’s strays and the humans who orbit around them. Hagia Sophia itself had a celebrity resident: a green-eyed grey tabby cat named Gli, born inside the monument in 2004, and famously petted by then-president Barack Obama during his 2009 visit. She lived there for sixteen years. Forget the rooftop chase across the Grand Bazaar in James Bond’s Skyfall. The real protagonists of Istanbul wear fur, answer to no one, and have a publicist.
5. More unexpected experiences in Turkey: a waterfall that pours straight into the sea
Most waterfalls do the courteous thing and tumble into a river. The Lower Düden Waterfall in Antalya does no such thing. Fed by the Düden River flowing down from the Taurus Mountains, it plunges 40 metres straight off a cliff into the Mediterranean Sea. You can watch it from the clifftop observation deck at Düden Park, which is free and open all day, or take a boat from the old harbour at Kaleiçi for a properly dramatic front-row view.
Bring sunglasses. On a sunny afternoon, there’s a very good chance you’ll catch a rainbow forming in the spray, and once you’ve seen the Düden Falls from the water, the standard postcard photo will feel a little flat by comparison.
Travel Turkey with Meraki Diaries
The truth about Turkey is that the more time you give it, the more it gives back. Mosques, markets and balloon rides are the headline. The Sufi ceremonies, underground cities, ancient pools, opinionated cats, and seaside waterfalls are the chapters you didn’t know existed.
If you’d like all of this packaged into one thoughtfully crafted itinerary, Meraki Diaries is running a women-only Turkey tour called
Quest to Turkey 2026, from 18th to 26th September. The route covers Istanbul, Kusadasi, Antalya and Cappadocia, with a hot air balloon ride over the fairy chimneys, a traditional luxury Turkish hammam, the calcium terraces of Pamukkale, a Bosphorus dinner cruise and a visit to a Cappadocian underground city all on the cards. It’s an intimate group of ten women, curated for travellers who’d rather sit down with a local carpet weaver than tick boxes off a bucket list.
Ready to swap the obvious for the unforgettable?
Contact us to plan your Turkey journey with Meraki Diaries, or drop a note to diva@merakidiaries.com to receive the full itinerary.
