Guidance Please, for travel to areas of Cappadocia, Petra and Cairo

Posted by Linda (Rochester, Michigan, USA) on 06/13/25 04:16 AM

Hello! My husband has decided he wants to visit Cappadocia, Petra and Cairo (for the pyramids). I am skeptical right now due to trouble in the middle east. Is Cappadocia far enough from Syria, Iran and Iraq to be safe? Is Petra, Jordan determined to be safe despite the middle east tension? Same with Cairo? We are thinking of an October timeframe to avoid summer crowds.

We are seasoned travelers that have been to Turkey before (not Cappadocia though), and I would prefer to wait until the conflicts in the middle east are over (I guess I could be waiting forever). Most of the YouTube videos we have seen lately have been uploaded 1 to 3 years ago, not real recently. It makes me think people are not traveling there as much now. I'd like to visit the Holy Land someday too, but that is off the discussion table now.

Can anyone in the forum reassure me that I am not overly cautious? Thanks in advance.

Posted by Kenko

Citizen of the World

06/13/25 05:05 AM

3176 posts

In view of today’s military action on Iran, it’s difficult to say how this will shake out over the next few days and weeks. Since no one knows what is going to happen in the near term, it might be a good idea to just wait until the time comes when you personally have more confidence that taking a trip to Egypt, Jordan and Turkey is something you feel comfortable doing.
As a wise sage once said, “If you’re not sure what course of action to take— then do nothing. When the answer becomes clear to you—then act.

Posted by Marie

Atlanta, GA

06/13/25 12:35 PM

871 posts

What Kenko says. Things have changed dramatically in the past 24 hours, and I would wait to see how things shake out.

Before last night's events, I would have advised differently. Cappadocia is far enough from Syria and Iran to be safe. It's in central Turkey and far away from borders. Petra and Cairo would probably be okay, but the risk is higher than it was before the Gaza war began. Pay attention to the State Department guidelines. I know that they keep changing the guidance for Egypt.

(P.S. -- I am very glad that I went to Petra and Israel in the spring of 2023 and didn't postpone the trip.)

Posted by CL

Salem, Oregon, USA

06/13/25 02:47 PM

3282 posts

Pay attention to the State Department guidelines.

^This, along with your own personal tolerance for risk, which not one person in this forum can advise you on with any accuracy. Your "overly cautious" is on your scale. There is no official measurement for travel safety.

Speaking for myself, I went to Turkey (including Cappadocia) on a RS tour in 2023 while Syria was still an active (and known) conflict. The conflict in Israel started a couple days after I departed Turkey. There was a suicide bomber in Ankara during my visit. That said, I did not feel unsafe or unwelcome. Would I go to Turkey today? Probably, based on my prior experience and tolerance for potential unknown events. But I'd also have very good travel insurance that generously covers cancelation for any reason, including terrorism or military conflict.

Posted by Chani

Tel Aviv

06/16/25 03:30 PM

15826 posts

Cappadocia is great and no where near any problem places. You can fly from Istanbul which is a wonderful place to spend several days. I don't think there's any problem flying to Cairo for a couple days for the pyramids and maybe upper Egypt as well. Be aware that summer is very hot in Egypt. I would not plan on going to Petra, though. Yemen has been shooting missiles for about a month now and the flight path takes them over Jordan. Sometimes very large pieces of them have fallen in Jordan when they are shot down. One missile crashed on the way north, though not in Jordan. There are 2 ways to get to Petra from Cairo. One is to fly to Amman. Right now I'm not sure the airport is open due to the security situation. And if it's open today, it could close tomorrow if things don't get "better." The other is to fly to the south of the Sinai, Sharm-a-Sheikh, then bus several hours to Eilat,Israel and cross the land border to Aqaba. That is, enter Israel and take a bus or taxi for a few miles to the Jordanian border. Then after Petra, go to Amman to get a flight to Turkey.

No one knows what will be happening in the Middle East in 3 months. It's easy to combine Cappadocia and Istanbul with European destinations. Maybe wait a year for Egypt, Jordan . . . and maybe even Israel (fingers crossed.)