According to Bilge Umar, as linguistics, Cappadocia originally refers to “KhepatUkh”–Khepat’s country. Khepat who is known as a goddess that rise to the surface with a goddess belief after end of Neolithic era in Anatolia.

Elika Cave Suites Hotel Cappadocia is the right choice for you to experience Cappadocia with its all beauty throughout 4 seasons.

So, before asking the question: “who is Khepat” it requires an introduction:

Khepat who was a goddess in Anatolia and was accepted as the common goddess of Hatti and later on Hittite civilizations that established civilization after Hatti’s. In the temples of these Anatolia communities whose center is Anatolia, Khepat is known as a cult of goddess and additionally she is the wife of god Tesup.

Tesup and Khepat, that took place in polytheistic beliefs and tolerance territory of Hittite civilization, will later lay the foundation of Zeus and Hera culture.

Subsequently, Persians who conquered the territory changed and transcribed the name as “Katpatuka” which is suitable to their language and as the rumor says, it refers to “Land of Beautiful Horses”. In 2 B.C., after becoming a state of Roman Empire, the region has been started to be called as “Cappadocia”.

KhepatUkh – Katpatuka – Cappadocia are words that don’t have any meanings in today’s Turkish language. It is perceived that the names were originally Anatolian name and afterwards, possibly adopted in Hatti and afterwards in Hittite language.

We can see in the Bartoleome’s great Persian dictionary regarding the fact that Cappadocia name has been adopted due to information pollution in the Persian language.

Neverthless, another word that is known to have been adopted from Persian language – “Elika” inspired us to pick it as our hotel’s name. “Elika” has been used in Persian language as “Mother Earth”. Elika is a cultural and historical value that is awaiting to be discovered with for its meaning, logo and architecture details.

“Years ago, I have bumped into a travelling page of a magazine and have seen the name of Cappadocia and Fairy Chimneys that make it interesting. It was a different tone that sounds unusual. Alongside the fact that I was impressed by its name, I thought of how it would touch the spirit of a traveler who wrote the experience that made him say “I assume a fairy got into me”. Reading this enthusiastic and perfectionist review made me impressed suddenly.

Really what did the traveler want to say? In the land of tales and bourn of fairies which fairy has accomplished that? Who were those fairies and what were these fairy chimneys?

What got into me, changed my mood, increased my happiness, and made me peaceful or whatever this feeling is, what fairy girl has made this? One of the inspiration fairies Thalia, the mother of dance Mouses’ sirens Terpsikhore, fairy of elegance Grazia, mother of elegance fairies Eunomia, mountain fairy Oread, fairy of valleys Lyke, fairy of meadows Napae, fairy of luck Klotho or other beautiful fairy girl? I don’t know which fairy made me fall in love with Cappadocia yet but however she did it and why she did I am so happy and pleased that I can’t explain.”

As much as Yavuz Demir tried to express his love regarding Cappadocia with these scrumptious words, the words will remain scarce to express the view, landscape, magic and how it feels of Cappadocia.

Elika Cave Suites Hotel Cappadocia is the right choice for you to experience Cappadocia with its all beauty throughout 4 seasons.

In the Cappadocia region, mostly Erciyes Mountain, followed by Hasandagi and Golludag formed the fairy chimneys. These mountains were active volcanic mountains in the geological ages millions years ago. The journey that started with the explosion of these mountains still continues today with struggle of wind and rain waters’ erosion. Flood waters coming all the way down from the valley hillsides and winds corroded the artifacts so called “fairy chimneys” that has been formed by tuffs. After this natural event, fairy chimneys have been formed up. Flood waters creating their own ways caused cracking of hard rocks and breaking off.

With the corrosion of the faster eroding materials that stays at the bottom of the fairy chimneys, the slope has enlarged, thus, the parts at top that looks like hat and conical shaped body that is immune against erosion have formed. The fairy chimneys with hat are in shape of conical, has a block of rock at the top of them. Body has been formed from rocks that comprise tuff and volcanic ashes; the hat has been formed from hard rocks.

Interesting curves along the valley that have been formed by rain waters contributes to the beauty of the region one step more. Some of the color differences that can be noticed at some slopes are due to temperature difference of lava layers. These formations can be seen in Ortahisar- Kizilcukur, Meskendir and Pancarli Valleys, Cavusin - Gulludere and Goreme Valleys. The human kind that benefits from the generosity of the nature, built houses, watch towers, churches, monasteries, colossal underground bunkers and hospitals by carving this thick rock masses that are convenient for carving. Especially, after the spread of Christianity in Anatolia, with the advantage that Cappadocia provides through its geological structure, monasteries and churches in the region have reached to numbers that are stated in thousands. This enabled Cappadocia to be a central place for Christian monks.

In the book that was written in the Roman Empire era – Strabon Geographika describes Cappadocia region as until Malatya in the east, Aksaray in the west, Taurus Mountains in the south and Eastern Black Sea region in the north. Now Cappadocia region consists of the rectangular area drawn by the centers of Kayseri, Niğde, Aksaray and Kırşehir where Nevşehir is in the middle. Nowadays, when you say Cappadocia first things that come in mind are Fairy Chimneys, Churches made of rocks, and Ürgüp (Başhisar), Ortahisar, Uçhisar, Göreme, Çavuşin, Avanos, Gülşehir, Derinkuyu, Kayseri - Soğanlı and Aksaray - Ihlara Valley where underground cities are in abundance.

Starting from B.C. 2000, Hittites came to the region and founded the Great Hittite Empire after socializing with Hattis. In these times, Kültepe (Kanesh - Karum) which is near Kayseri is an important Assyrian trading colonies. After Hittite Empire has fallen down which ruled by B.C. 1200 a late Hittite State has been founded. After late Hittite State was conquered by Phrygians, the region was ruled by Kimmerians, Meds and as of B.C. 547 by Persians. Persians ruled Anatolia by dividing regions that are called “Satraplık”. One of the regions which is called today Cappadocia and called KhepatUkh in Hittites’ era, is called as Katpatuka in Persian Language.

Alexander the Great who conquered Persian Empire confronts a strong opposition. Upon this, he assigns one of his commanders, Sabistas to organize the region. In opposition to this, the community declares Ariarathes the first (B.C. 332-352) who is a Persian nobleman, as king. Ariarathes the first who establishes a good relationship with Alexander the Great expands the borders of Cappadocia Kingdom. The Cappadocia Kingdom that lives in a peace until the time that Alexander the Great’s decease comes, then it enters again in a war period and fights off against Pontus, Galatians, Macedonians and Romans. In A.C. 17 Tiberius includes Cappadocia into the soils of Roman Empire and it becomes the state of the Empire. Construction of new roads increased the importance of Kayseri which is in the position of center of the state and brought the aliveness of the Assyrian trading colonies back. In the later years, the city was surrounded by walls in order to protect it from the Sassanid raids that come from Iran. During the spread of Christianity, Cappadocia region has increased its significance and when the Christianity was accepted as the main religion by the Roman Empire, Kayseri became the Archbishopric center. In the IV. Century, with major struggles of Saint Basil the first, Christianity has settled the region and a mystical monastery life in the rocks has begun.

When the Roman Empire splits into two parts in A.C 395, Cappadocia stays naturaly in the borders of Eastern Roman Empire. In the early VII. Centruries, there has been intense wars between Sassanids and Byzantines and Sassanids kept the region for 6-7 years. In A.C. 651, after Caliphate Osman conquered the Sassanid State, the region is exposed to raids of Arab - Umayyad. Christian sectarian conflicts that continued during this jungle reaches its peak especially after the Emperor Leon the 3rd forbids the icons and iconoclasm era (726-843) begins. In the iconoclastic era, Cappadocia received major migrations and icon fanatics Christians migrated to the region. These people hid in the monasteries that are carved into the rocks and continued to their worships and activities.  

Cappadocian folk got in a peacefully era after Kayseri was conquered by Seljuks. Under the rule of Seljuks Christians pray freely and build their churches. However, in 1308, Mongolian originated Ilkhanate captured Kayseri and the city was vandalized by them. This situation did not continue too much and during the Ottoman era, the territory gets its comfort and peace in the end.

Believing that it would be more enjoyable to describe Ortahisar, a historic settlement, out of stereotypes...

Ortahisar is the name of a unique settlement with a rich cultural and historical background of the known 4500 years. Ortahisar, which is located in the middle of three fortresses consisting of Başhisar (Ürgüp), Ortahisar and Uçhisar and is located in the middle of Cappadocia.

The most important and striking feature of Ortahisar is the Ortahisar Castle, which is the "Greatest Fairy Chimneys" of Cappadocia, which has stood in glory for thousands of years. Do not mind the Castle is called as Kale by the public because it is a completely natural structure carved from thousands of years ago and many civilizations are hosting and used as places of worship, shelter, warehouse, watch tower and defense purposes. The other place used as another watch tower is Ishak Fortress. Although it is not discovered today that there is a secret connection between Ortahisar Castle and Ishak Fortress and between the two fortresses, it is a belief that has been said for centuries as a widespread belief.

Ortahisar Castle is also known with a completely different title with the fact that Cappadocia is the "Greatest Fairy Chimneys", "The World's Highest Natural Skyscraper". Ortahisar Castle, a natural skyscraper, is full of hundreds of civilian architectural examples bearing the traces of Cappadocia's rich cultural heritage. The churches, dovecotes and the treasures on the valley slopes formed around Ortahisar Castle are different elements of Ortahisar with their separate features.

Abdioğlu Mosque located just beside the entrance to Ortahisar Castle, Alaeddin Mosque which is slightly ahead, stands out as a cultural assets worth seeing but more important and a hidden value is the old Seljuks  mosque and madrasah which is located on Cami Sokak street right on Elika Cave Suites Hotel.

The Elika Cave Suites Hotel Cappadocia street, which houses the Ortahisar square, Ortahisar Castle, the old municipal building at the entrance of the castle, the building that used to be a Military School and later used as a library and which is abandoned in time and which resists time, is definitely worth seeing. A detail hidden in the square is the presence of the first 'Atatürk Bust' in Anatolia, located in the shade of willow trees. Göreme Hotel, which is the first hotel of Cappadocia, has served here and besides this bust, the famous writers of the time and the guests of the statesmen are a special feature. The hotel, which once belonged to Ortahisar and is named after Göreme and Göreme churches (Göreme Open Air Museum), today serves as the Ethnographic Museum.

The Balkan Creek Churches are the places where Hallaç Monastery (St. Paul - Hospital Monastery), Pancarlik Church, Rabbit Church, Sarıca Church, Cambazlı Church and the place that has not yet appeared on the surface and hosts dozens of small churches hidden under some old houses.

This monastery is called as Hallaç Monastery or Hospital Monastery with the belief that the priests who are in their most glorious years treat the people of the region with their own medicines. There is no other example in Cappadocia for both its structure and its function. The figurines inside and the figures on the rock reliefs are waiting for your discovery.

The Balkan Valley, Hallaç Valley, Üzengi Valley, Pancarlik Valley, Devrent Valley and more are the owners of Ortahisar. The pigeon hills of the valley hundreds of years ago and the special paintings and ornaments around welcome you first. The pigeons that accompanied the marvelous nature of your walk, the dancing of the trees, the wind whisper you take you from this world to the imaginary world. You will discover this unique vantage with many other animal figurines that take place with the natural formation found in the Valley of Devrent, another name of Daydream Valley, which lies within the boundaries of the imaginary world.

Perhaps you have discovered this unique treasure of 9 floors, the first building of the world built without using cement concrete, carved into the rock surface in Üzengi Valley, which is thought to have been built 800-900 years ago. With this discovery, you will enjoy natural soda by enjoying the natural spring waters in Üzengi. The elderly who tell about the periods when no girl is given to the man who does not have a pigeon in the Üzengi Valley tells the pigeons decorating the sky that they cannot see the sun in this unique place. Moreover, they mention that the motherland of the apricot has been migrated to other lands from here.

In Ortahisar, which is the owner of these special and beautiful valleys, the first construction of numerous pigeon houses in the valley was made with the Roman period and the carving of the rocks and with the pigeon stalks yielding great income and high yields from the grapes.

Do not leave Ortahisar or Cappadocia without seeing the spectacular scenery of Cappadocia, seeing the sunset at Red Valley, which offers a panoramic visual feast with its most beautiful location, with Horse Tours and ATV Tours. Another crucial point is the location of the Courthouse and dungeon remains on the entrance to Goreme. In order to get lost in time in the unique landscape of Ortahisar Castle, firstly the Cruising Hill in ‘Karşı Neighborhood’ can be preferred. In order to encounter a different face, Balkan Creek can be a different experience. You can watch Ortahisar Castle, 80 meters away from Elika Cave Suites Hotel, free from our terraces, accompanied by local wines for a coffee break for hours. Ortahisar Castle will be waiting for you at the summit point for those who want to experience a different experience and look over the valleys, those who want to immortalize the scenery with the magnificent grandeur of Erciyes.

Another characteristic of Ortahisar is that is the place where the lemon exchange is governed in Turkey. How is the stock market managed in a place where lemon never grows? The citrus grown in the Mediterranean is stored, especially lemon, at carved rocks in Ortahisar. The cold weather depot initially started in Ortahisar is still an important source of livelihood. Ortahisar is the name of the rock stone that constitutes a separate sector with the continuous protection of the temperature of the rocks during the year (the name given to the carving of the volcanic tuff rock) without losing any of the natural heat values. 100 kg lemon entering the storage reaches to weight of 115-120 kg in a year time and is watered with natural humidity, gaining weight and distributed to all country and world with the title of 'bed lemon'.

You are invited to discover this cultural treasure of Cappadocia and Ortahisar in the middle of it and to experience this unique geography for us to experience and live more than what is described.