Pamukkale

Pamukkale: Thermal Terraces and a Ruined Roman City

Pamukkale — “cotton castle” in Turkish — is a hillside in southwestern Turkey covered in white travertine terraces formed by calcium carbonate precipitation from thermal spring water. The hot water emerges at 35°C from about 17 springs, runs down the hillside, and deposits calcium carbonate as it cools, building up the characteristic tiered pools over thousands of years. The terraces are genuinely white and the effect from a distance, or from photographs, is of a frozen waterfall or a snowfield, which is why the Turkish name stuck.

At the top of the terraces sit the ruins of Hierapolis, a Greco-Roman and Byzantine city founded around 190 BCE and occupied until an earthquake largely destroyed it in 1354 CE. The combination of geological spectacle and archaeological ruins on a single site is what separates Pamukkale from similar travertine formations elsewhere.

The Terraces

Visitors enter the travertine area from the bottom of the hill and walk barefoot — shoes are prohibited to protect the formations. The active terraces with water in the pools are in the central section; the water flow is managed to direct it to different areas on a rotation system, so not all pools are full at any given time. In the 1980s and 1990s, hotels were built on the hillside and tourists drove across the terraces, which damaged significant areas. The hotels were demolished and access is now controlled.

The Antique Pool (Cleopatra’s Pool), at the top of the terraces within the Hierapolis ruins, is a thermal pool open for swimming that contains submerged Roman columns — columns that fell into the already-existing pool during the 7th century earthquake. Entry costs around 130 TL; the water is 35°C and sits at natural atmospheric carbon dioxide saturation, which makes it feel slightly fizzy.

Hierapolis

The ruins extend over considerable area above the terraces. The theatre is the most intact structure: a Roman theatre from the 2nd century CE seating about 12,000, with the stage building still partially standing and carved reliefs in reasonable condition. The necropolis, one of the largest in Anatolia, stretches for over 2km along the old road north of the city; the variety of tomb types across several centuries of burial practice makes it interesting for archaeology.

The Hierapolis Archaeological Museum, in a converted Roman bath building, has finds from the site including carved sarcophagi, statuary, and Roman-era coins. Entry is included in the Hierapolis ticket.

Getting There

Pamukkale is about 19km from Denizli, which is the rail hub — regular trains connect Denizli to Izmir (3.5 hours) and Istanbul. Local minibuses run between Denizli and Pamukkale town. The site is open daily from around 06:30; early morning arrivals avoid the peak coach tour crowds that arrive around 09:00-10:00. Accommodation in Pamukkale village ranges from basic pensions to mid-range hotels; several have their own thermal pools using the same spring water.