Kayseri is a prosperous, conservative Anatolian city of over a million people, spread at the foot of the extinct volcano Mount Erciyes (3,917 metres). It is one of Turkey's oldest continuously inhabited cities — the ancient Caesarea of Cappadocia — and today serves as the main gateway to the Cappadocia region's famous fairy chimneys, cave churches, and underground cities.
The city itself rewards a stop. Kayseri Castle, a Seljuk fortress of black basalt, dominates the centre, and since 2019 it houses the excellent Kayseri Archaeology Museum. Around the castle lie covered bazaars, caravanserais, and some of the finest Seljuk-era architecture in Turkey, including the Döner Kümbet, an elegant tomb with intricate carved reliefs, and the Hunat Hatun Complex, the oldest surviving Seljuk religious compound in the city. The archaeology museum holds clay tablets from the nearby site of Kültepe-Kaniş, the oldest written documents ever found in Turkey.
Kayseri is famous across Turkey for two things: its business acumen (several of the country's largest conglomerates are headquartered here) and its pastırma — air-dried spiced beef that is arguably the ancestor of Italian pastrami. The mantı (Turkish dumplings) here are considered the best in the country. Mount Erciyes offers skiing in winter, and the Kayseri airport has direct flights from Istanbul and several European cities, making it the most convenient arrival point for Cappadocia.