Have you ever seen An Idiot Abroad? Gosh, what a funny TV show — and I’ve only watched a handful of episodes. One is about Jordan and the series’ anti-hero, Karl, remarks that he’d rather sleep in a cave and look at a beautiful place than stay inside the beautiful place looking at the cave. Well if Karl ever comes to Cappadocia, he can do both, because there are a few upscale hotels built into historic hillside caves.

I’m thrilled to experience one of these for myself. I reach out to Taskonaklar Hotel after hearing about it through a friend, and fortunately they accept my offer to photograph their lovely accommodation and graciously host me for two nights.

And I have to give them major credit for welcoming me at the ungodly hour of 6am, shortly after my overnight bus drops me off — all alone on the side of the road in snow! — and letting me come inside to warm up and sleep horizontal for a few hours. Their beds are a zillion times better than that bus seat.

Cold, but very happy to be here! I thaw out in the toasty room — this is the Antique Middle Suite.

A sneak peek at the bathroom:

That’s all the energy I can muster for photos before I conk out.

I wake up a few hours later as the staff delivers a gorgeous spread for breakfast:

Here’s a shot of the foyer. I love the wood beams overhead and that regal stonework — it reminds me of Getty travertine.

I bundle up to brave the elements. It is FREEZING in Cappadocia at this time of year. I’ve been warned about this, but the extreme cold catches me off-guard nonetheless.

After a few hours of exploring (more on that over the next few days), I come back to snap more photos of my room and a few others. I’m in love with this space:

The manager shows me a few other rooms; they are all lovely:

FYI, that is a heated towel rack. An invention I never knew I needed until now.

This room is extra special because there’s remnants of a historic oven — from ancient times when people in this area actually lived in caves — built into the floor. This space was designed around it.

The Taskonaklar Hotel is a special place and I feel very fortunate to have witnessed it first-hand. Thank you for welcoming me so graciously!