White travertine terraces above a Roman spa town
Pamukkale, 'cotton castle' in Turkish, is a hillside of white travertine terraces formed by calcium-rich hot springs, with shallow blue pools that you can wade through barefoot. At the top lie the ruins of Hierapolis, a Greco-Roman spa city with a large theatre and one of the biggest ancient necropolises in Türkiye. The Antique Pool lets you swim among fallen columns. Come early or late in the day, when the light is softer and the terraces are quieter.