Up until this stay, I thought I'd stayed at THE best Turkey had to offer. I was wrong, Esbelli Evi is definitely THE BEST boutique hotel I stayed at in the 4 weeks my husband & I were in Turkey.

For starters, we were upgraded to a suite in which a family of 4 could comfortably have stayed a week & prepared their own meals. There was a private courtyard garden with freshly-planted, blossoming seedlings. It was a 5 star cave dwelling well suited for Cappadocia & certainly not indicative of Fred Flintsone's Bedrock. Staying at this hotel was an 'experience' & Disney would struggle to replicate the scene; its beautiful, fanciful & any other description you wish to apply. They provide a delicious buffet breakfast.

The owner is proud of his establishment & will happily show you around. The staff are first class & I can only say that they could teach a few other establishments how to run their business in my country.

If I've left out the basic information like beds, bathrooms, facilities - I can just say that its ALL there in first class order, style & cleanliness. Nothing is left out. There's a fridge which is stocked (pay extra for alcohol) with free bottled water, tea, coffee. Fresh fluffy white towels, robes, slippers, Dove soap, hair dryer - you name it - its provided.

As for washing, there are machines & dryers or a rack but you pay a small fee (I mistakenly paid in Lire but no one pulled me up on it, when I should have paid in Euro). They are so polite.

I could go & on & on but JUST GO THERE & enjoy the Esbelli Evi & Cappadocia. It is popular so be sure to book in advance.

I did forget one thing. While Cappadocia & the caves are a wonder of this world, please hang the expense go for a Hot Air Balloon ride. You get such a different perspective of that part of Cappadocia, especially at dawn on a sunny day. I was a reluctant flyer, but loved every minute - an experience I will treasure.

This is an excellent hotel, although possibly not for everyone. We had a "standard" room and while it was large, even by American standards with an over-sized bathroom it really is a cave and some people may feel it claustrophobic. Also, though I didn't explicitly check I don't know if it can accommodate guests with disabilities, I would suggest anyone with such a need check directly with the hotel.

I'm not sure what to say about the room, its unlike anything I have ever stayed in. As I noted earlier it is a cave and the fact isn't hidden. There are, however, concessions to modern living, free WiFi throughout the hotel including dining room and common sitting room; it looks as if they have installed a wireless access point in each of the bedrooms to offset the signal loss through the thick cave walls. The shower was excellent, full size (no tub in our room) and with plenty of hot water and pressure, also more than adequate surface space for toiletries. There is also air conditioning in each room (although we had no reason to use it).

There appear to be a number of breakfast rooms, and in good weather one can avail oneself of breakfast on a terrace with spectacular views. The breakfast itself was outstanding: a choice of various fresh omelette's, freshly squeezed orange juice (by far the best we have had during our recent travels in Italy and Spain, besides Turkey), cereals, cheese, fruit, fresh bread, and more. There is a common sitting room with a CD player and probably a hundred CDs to choose from, a PC laptop and a Macintosh laptop along with chairs and sofas. An excellent spot to enjoy an aperitif and chat with other guests. There is also a patio for lounging in hot weather.

The hotel is sprinkled with tasteful antiques which add a personal and gracious ambiance.

However, possibly the best aspect of the hotel is the people. They are unstintingly accommodating, pleasant and efficient. The owner (Suha Ersoz) is a gracious host who makes one feel one is a guest in his home rather than merely a customer. They helped us untangle ourselves from a difficult situation with a local vendor and arranged a car for a day effectively and patiently. Ramazan who runs their front desk (for want of a better description) is excellent, again accommodating, pleasant and with excellent English.

The hotel is about one to one and a half miles outside of town, though uphill. We walked both to and from town, it felt like a very safe area even late at night and I would imagine it is easy and cheap to take a Taxi home if necessary.

Although we stayed in a standard room we did get to explore one of the suites. It was awesome, a huge bathroom with a tub and double shower, sitting room, two bedrooms and a living-cum-kitchen area.

In summary, an outstanding hotel, for its unusual physical attributes, comfort and people.

I used turkeytravelplanner and this site to pick this hotel. I can't imagine a hotel better than this in this area. The rooms are beautifully simple. Ours was partly carved into rock and partly made of stone blocks. There are great views of the area since it's above the town and away from the center a bit, but not too far. Our host, Suha, was extremely helpful. His suggestion of renting a car saved us the crowds of a group tour and the shopping excursions that single guides take you on. Another couple staying there had opted for the latter according to Frommers and was taken to shops even though they asked not to go. He also had helpful suggestions on restaurants in the area and wrote directions for us so we could go a little further out into the country. Our favorite restaurant is by far Ziggy's which was a couple of minutes from Esbelli Evi. This was the only place I found fresh vegetables and the most creative Mezze I've had.
Other important amenities of Evi are the great breakfast on the terrace, 2 computers to check your email or plan your trip, video room, and washing machines. The latter are important when you are climbing around dusty rocks. The rooms don't have TV's but if this is important to you, then this isn't your place.
As a point of reference, I live in the DC area, and am formerly a New Yorker.

We stayed in the suite and were awestruck when we were first toured through it. It is huge! This is a very unique place. The cave walls always kept the place at a comfortable temperature. The bathroom is massive and has built-in speakers with satellite radio. It has a second bed recessed back in a smaller cave which would be fun for kids. It has a full kitchen, and they keep the fridge stocked with every drink you can imagine. The patio is also large and surrounded with flowers they tend to each day. It is the type of place you would love to live for an extended period of time. Other conveniences they had included a dvd player and collection of movies as well as free wireless Internet and a laptop. They also have new washing machines the guests can use.

The hospitality was second to none. They have great breakfasts each day, and one evening when my wife wasn't feeling well the family who owns it brought her part of their home cooked meal. We were incredibly grateful.

Cappadocia is a must visit region for travelers, and I can't imagine there is a better place to stay in the region than here. This is one of my all time favorite hotels.