In Turkey, I learned about Intrepid Travel not really through the company, but through the words of a local motel owner that had been recruited as their Göreme contact.
Walking behind Salim and Pat.
His name is Salim. Salim now runs the Gultekin Motel, and although young, he has been working in the tourism industry since the age of 12 — quite the norm for Turkish people.
Over an impressive spread of traditional Turkish breakfast at the Gultekin Motel, Pat and I made small talk with Salim about our upcoming tour, asking him if he knew the details of the daily events since he was making the call to our day 1 tour guide when we were finished eating. At this time, we didn’t know he was working with Intrepid on such a close level.
To our question, Salim busted out a pamphlet from his top desk drawer that had the next 3 days lightly mapped out.
“Intrepid Travel… it is a very good company,” he said as he placed the pamphlet on the table in front of us in the rooftop communal room.
Good to hear, I thought, since I was to review this tour on my site when it was all said and done.
“Today, you will go on this tour to the Underground City and to the Ihlara Valley. Tonight, you will have dinner with a local family. Tomorrow you will go on a hike of the Rose Valley and the Red Valley. I will take you on that.”
After having built a small rapport with Salim, we were excited to find out that HE would be our tour guide for the hike on the following day. This is the moment we learned about his connection with Intrepid and how happy he was to be working with them as a local contact for the past two years.
Cappadocia sightseeing on day 1.
When we returned from exploring the low-hanging tunnels that composed the miles of the Yeralti Sehri Underground city, stopping off at onyx jewelry workshops, walking a few kilometers in the Ihlara Valley next to flowing streams, having a spectacular stew-filled lunch, and getting inside looks at pigeon and cave houses high up in Cappadocia’s volcanic rock landscape, we had a little bit of time to kill before our 7:30 pm dinner call.
Since Salim’s young family lived at the motel, his Japanese wife and his half Japanese-Turkish toddler, Maku, were always seen in the kitchen or wandering around the rooftop playing. Maku quickly became a center of attention for us during the stay, and especially for Pat who I feel is sort of like the Pied Piper when it comes to small kids. Leave him in the vicinity of them for a short while and sure enough he will come back with a small flock of children trying to get his attention.
Maku and Pat
Lo and behold, Salim was there and he was hard at work with the task of escorting us to our dinner with the local family.
“Today, we are going to a very special place. Normally, we do not do the dinners with this family,” he told us as we walked through the cold, dark streets that evening.
Meanwhile, we learned the story of Salim and how he got into the tourism industry. His uncle owns two other hotel properties in Cappadocia, which is where he started working at the age of 12. We learned that Turkish people work extremely hard, with 2 (or more) jobs. He told us that they work a first job in the morning and a second in the evening.
“When do you find time to sleep?” I couldn’t help but asking. I’m always at a lack of sleep.
His reply shocked me. “Turkish people sleep maybe 4 hours a night. We are very hard-working people.”
The topic seemed to come up repeatedly throughout our 3 days of tours. During our hikes with Salim in the Red and Rose valleys the next day, we had to duck and dive through small cave houses. I had to duck and dive, which is surprising.
“Are Turkish people like really, really short?!”
To this, Salim repeated again that they are a hard-working people that sleep little, so they are usually short.
Inside a cave church.
Our walk to the local family’s home in Göreme took us just a few minutes. Salim led us through the giant, metal back doors and up the stairs to the entrance of the home. We de-shoed as is customary before entering a stark living room with two couches and a dinner table next to one of them. A side table in the corner set some small cake-like desserts and a few photo frames, one with a familiar looking baby.
Pat and I got comfortable on the couch as a woman came in with a headscarf and typical Turkish dress.
Salim turned to us and said, “This is my mama.”
We wailed with excitement! Salim had brought us to his family home – the home he grew up in – to eat the food that his mother had cooked for him for years. We felt honored.
“I thought that baby in that photo looked familiar,” I exclaimed in the midst of the news. “It’s Maku!”
Dinner with the local family.
We dined for about an hour on soup made from fresh tomatoes grown in the back garden, Turkish rice, bean stew, and the cake-like desserts with a glass of Turkish tea. Salim explained more about what he said earlier – about this not being a normal family dinner location. There used to be another family that prepared the meals for the Intrepid groups, but they are currently in the middle of finding a new one.
“It is very good for the women of these families to work with us.”
“Is it good money for them?” I ask.
“Yes, it is very good money. These women can stay home and cook, be near their families, instead of working long hours in a hotel.”
He paused from time to time to enjoy the home cooking he repeatedly told us he had missed.
“I really like the way they work. Intrepid Travel is one of the best travel companies out there.”
I could tell that he meant it.
Cultural show and feast on our final night.
Over the next few days, between feasting at cultural shows, being mesmerized by whirling dervishes, hiking and biking in the Cappadocian hills, hanging out at the Gultekin, and indulging in budget-friendly meals at as many local restaurants as possible, we grew to love our tour with local cultural insights as well as all the traditional tourist activities one would expect to participate in while in Göreme.
Normally I’ve always been an independent travel type of girl, but this tour did a really good job at changing my mind.
* * * * *
*My Cappadocia tour was sponsored by Intrepid Travel, but all words and thoughts expressed above are my own.
American girl left to travel the world in 2007. Studied languages, slept in a yurt, taught English, met Aussie guy and fell in love. Moved to Australia. Calls Sydney home. Wants a puppy. Still loves to travel. Read more 
Intrepid are awesome of course! They are Aussies. I’ve known about them for years, but they seem to be all over Turkey too (I met locals who worked for them in Morocco, in Tinerhir… probably spelt that wrong).
So you loved Cappadocia then? The fairy chimneys are awesome right? I spent a week there (not Goreme though). And the underground cities are a pretty cool experience too, but maybe not for the claustrophobic.
Loved Cappadocia — absolutely awesome place, minus all the dust. And Intrepid provided a great tour
Overall awesome experience.
I haven’t ever done a tour, but when my friend L’Ell went on her 8-month trip, she used Intrepid several times and was really happy with them. Obviously it is often cheaper to travel independently, but I think in certain situations the convenience that a tour can provide (especially getting to certain more remote locations) is a real boon. Plus, it sounds like Intrepid places a high premium on the cultural experience of travel as well, which might be harder to achieve on one’s own.
I think that it helped us to do more with our time in Cappadocia. When I travel and book all the little things on my own, I often shy away from too much at once… probably because I’m naturally frugal. Doing it all in one blow and then not thinking about it later could be great.
Sometimes tours take you places you would never be able to see or experience without them! Very glad you had a good experience.
Ever since I started working full time again, I am more of a fan of tours as they can jam a lot more into the limited time I have. It’s all about the company and asking the right questions so you can get on the tour that is right for you.
Very good for limited time — and it was such a load off because we didn’t have to worry about booking things ourselves!
Great post! And great pictures as well. What camera are you using these days?
Thanks! I’m using the Panasonic Lumix dmc-lx5, a sort of high-end point-and-shoot.
Sounds like you had a fab time. We just booked our flights and are heading there on Monday for 1 week. Really looking forward to hiking, exploring and photographing the region. It has been on our *must-see* list for a long time.
You’ll have a great time! Beautiful area and it should be blooming now
Great post and wonderful pictures. The guy is amazing, I can’t survive a 4-hour sleep. I need at least 7-8 hours daily plus vitamins and exercise or else I would be sick.
What a great story! I love learning about the people. One of my friends is a tour guide in Europe and works for Rick Steves. I think tours can get a bad rap because not all of them are the same. I detest the ones that are nothing but party tours but you have to find the right type of tour for you. I like tours that are low key with people that are interested in travel (and not partying) and also give you plenty of free time on your own. That’s the best of both worlds. Seems like you had that as well as a great connection with your guide.
Great story! Sounds like you had a really unique time. I’m busying myself with reading up about Cappadocia, it’s slowly rising to the top of my ‘must see’ list…
I am so glad to hear you enjoyed Intrepid Travel. I am actually in the middle of the application process and trying to work in their Latin American branch. I have heard wonderful things about the tours they provide, giving a more authentic experience. Did you find you deviated from the ‘traditional routes’? Glad to see you had a great time!
Ryan
Hi Ryan — it was a great trip. Ours was really only a 3 day tour, so we couldn’t deviate that much from traditional routes, but we got a great insight into Turkish culture because of it for sure!
I’ve never done an Intrepid tour, but they sound like a great company. I think it goes to show that while you might not want a tour all the time, there probably is a tour out there for everyone.
Awesome to hear, Brooke! I’m doing a tour through Eastern Europe with Intrepid in June/July, and I’m really looking forward to this “different” approach to guided travel. Can’t wait!