As a modern country founded on the territory of Anatolia, Türkiye combines its modern culture with its rich cultural and historical heritage within its borders. In this aspect, Türkiye has a cultural mosaic that brings together different deciphers.

It is necessary to emphasize that Türkiye, which is a very important country in terms of its location acting a bridge between two continents, has great importance not only in the economic and political sense but also in the cultural context. Combining modern and traditional, Türkiye manages to be the center of attention of many people with its historical and cultural riches.

While Türkiye is a special country in almost every sense, it also manages to attract the attention of many people with its cuisine. The food culture is quite developed in Türkiye, where different cultures are blended. At this point, it is possible to state that Türkiye has integrated regional wealth at some point! Many flavors are among the most special foods in Türkiye. So it’s obvious that Türkiye manages to meet the taste expectations in the best way.

Where to visit in Türkiye

Türkiye offers plenty to its visitors. As the cradle to many civilizations, there are a lot of places from ancient civilizations. On the other side the unique location of the country gives its visitors fascinating wonders of nature.

A few of these interesting places…

İSTANBUL

Istanbul offers the unique experience mysticism and the modernity throughout a constant travel between the past and the future…Some of the most important attractions of the city which will set its visitors through an amazing journey are below. To have more detailed information about Istanbul, you can visit Tourism and Travel Guide to Istanbul of Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Tourism

Topkapı Palace

First built by Mehmet the Conqueror in the 15th century, this glorious palace beside the Bosphorus was where the sultans of the Ottoman Empire ruled over their dominions up until the 19th century. The vast complex is a dazzling display of Islamic art, with opulent courtyards lined with intricate hand-painted tile-work, linking a warren of sumptuously decorated rooms, all bounded by battlemented walls and towers. Of the many highlights here, the most popular are the Harem (where the sultan’s many concubines and children would spend their days); the Second Court, where you can walk through the vast Palace Kitchens and stand in awe at the dazzling interior of the Imperial Council Chamber; and the Third Court, which contained the sultan’s private rooms. The Third Court is home to the Imperial Treasury, where you’re greeted with a cache of glittering gold objects and precious gems that will make your eyes water.

Sultanahmet Mosque (Blue Mosque)

Sultanahmet Camii (Blue Mosque) is one of the most majestic Ottoman mosques in all of Turkey. With the mosque’s exterior, the architect, Sedefkâr Mehmet Ağa, managed to orchestrate a visual wham-bam effect similar to that of nearby star Aya Sofya’s interior. Its curves are voluptuous; it has six minarets (more than any other mosque at the time it was built); and its courtyard is the biggest of all of the Ottoman mosques. The interior has a similarly grand scale: the İznik tiles number in the tens of thousands; there are 260 windows; and the central prayer space is huge.Aside from its staggering size and exquisite beauty, one of the most distinctive elements of this Istanbul mosque is that it has six minarets, as opposed to the usual two or four of most of the city’s mosques.

The mosque is located in the center of Sultanahmet Square which also hosts Hippodrome Obelisk and German Fountain.

Hagia Sophia

It’s said that when the Byzantine Emperor Justinian entered his finished church for the first time in AD 536, he cried out “Glory to God that I have been judged worthy of such a work. Oh Solomon, I have outdone you!” The Aya Sofya (formerly the Hagia Sophia) was the emperor’s swaggering statement to the world of the wealth and technical ability of his empire. Tradition maintained that the area surrounding the emperor’s throne within the church was the official centre of the world. After 1453 the Aya Sofya remain in Ottoman borders and today is open to its visitors both as a museum and a mosque.

Grand Bazaar

For many visitors, sightseeing in Istanbul is as much about shopping as museums and monumental attractions, and the Grand Bazaar is where everyone comes. This massive covered market is basically the world’s first shopping mall, taking up a whole city quarter, surrounded by thick walls, between the Nure Osmaniye Mosque and Beyazit Mosque.

Entrance to the bazaar is through one of 11 gates from where a maze of vaulted-ceiling laneways, lined by shops and stalls selling every Turkish souvenir and handicraft you could imagine, cover the area. The various trades are still mostly segregated into particular sections, which makes browsing easier. The bazaar has several stores on Turkish carpet, antiques and jewelry.

ANKARA

Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and the second largest city in the country after Istanbul. It is located at the heart of both Turkey and Central Anatolia. Throughout history, Ankara has witnessed battles between powerful armies in quest of domination. The city was an important cultural, trading and arts centre in Roman times and a major trading centre on the caravan route to the east in Ottoman times. However, it had lost importance by the 19th century. When Mustafa Kemal Atatürk chose Ankara as the base from which to direct the War of Independence, it once again became an important centre. By consequence of its role in the war and its strategic position, it was declared the capital of the new Republic of Turkey on October 13, 1923 and became the geographic, political and administrative centre of Turkey, with all the government offices and foreign embassies transferred from İstanbul.

Ankara is the second biggest metropolitan in Turkey with its populatiolns of 6 million.

To have more detailed information about Ankara, you can visit Tourism and Travel Guide to Ankara of Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Tourism

Anıtkabir (Ataturk’s Mausoleum)

Anıtkabir is a complex which includes the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Atatürk was a great leader, who turned Türkiye into member of modern civilization, with all institutions. To build a mousoleum that would represent his eminence, and thoughts about principles, revolutions and modernization, emerged as a common idea of the Turkish nation, during the great sadness following the death of Atatürk. In addition to the mausoleum building, the complex consists of museums with personal belongings of Atatürk and recollection of several items from establishment of Turkish Republic.

The Anatolian Civilizations Museum

The Anatolian Civilizations Museum is a place founded founded in 1921 and located in two historical buildings in one of the regions with the most intense historical atmosphere of Ankara, is one of the most remarkable museums in the world with its collection reflecting the rich cultural heritage of Türkiye’s lands.The museum contains the remarkable traces left by the civilizations that lived in Anatolia in a chronology from the Paleolithic Age to the Ottoman Period. Foundings from Palaeolithic, Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Ages, Assyrian Trade Colonies, Hittite, Phrygian, Urartian and Lydian Periods are displayed in the museum. The Museum of Anatolian Civilizations was elected as the first “European Museum of the Year” in Switzerland on April 19, 1997.

Other Attractions in Türkiye

Çanakkale (Dardanelles) and Gallipoli Peninsula

Gallipoli Peninsula was established to honor the 500,000 soldiers who lost their lives on Gelibolu, also known as Gallipoli. 1915 Çanakkale and Gelibolu battles hindered the Allied forces from taking İstanbul and thus ending the First World War. Mustafa Kemal, commander of the Turkish army, led a successful campaign to drive out allied powers from the area and the victory of Turkish amy has taken its place as one of the most unforgettable battles in the history.

British, Australians, New Zealanders and Indian come to commemorate the Gallipoli battles and those who lost their lives in the battles. The events of 1915 are deeply engraved respectively in the national consciousness of the members specifically of these societies, without necessarily accompanied with feeling of enmity to the other side, but of respect and understanding.

The peninsula includes memorials, monuments, cemeteries, the natural beauty of the Ariburnu Cliffs and Salt Lake. The beauty of the green hills, sandy beaches and blue waters provides an honorable resting place for the soldiers who bravely fought and died in this historic battle. The peninsula itself has been officially registered as a historical site area, and has enormous cultural importance. Within the park, there are also many archaeological sites and monuments, some of which date back to 4000 BC.

Ancient City of Ephesus

The ancient city of Ephesus was valued for a long time as a harbour town, and many famous classical philosophers, who are still read today, such as Heraclitus, lived in the scientific, artistic and cultural city of Ephesus. The ancient city of Ephesus, and especially its Temple of Artemis, one of the first temples, is recognised as one of the seven wonders of the world and since 2015 it has been included in the ‘World Heritage List’.It is believed that Ephesus was founded as far back as 6000 BC and was built to pay homage to Artemis, the fertility goddess. The city was the capital of Hellenic Greece, one of the 12 cities of Ionia during the Classical Greek period, and the capital of the Roman Empire’s province of Asia. The ancient city of Ephesus was built in four separate main areas: the Ayasuluk Hill, Artemision, Ephesus and Selçuk. Within the boundaries of the city are extremely valuable buildings, monuments and artefacts including the Temple of Artemis, the Celcus Library, House of the Virgin Mary, the Cave of the Seven Sleepers, the İsa Bey Mosque, the Prytaneion (Municipal Palace), Domitianus Square, St. John’s Castle, the Temple of Hadrian, and the Basilica of St. John. The Catholic shrine the House of the Virgin Mary is a located in the vicinity of Ephesus.

Cappadocia

Cappadocia, one of the most amazing places on earth… With its valley, canyon, hills and unusual rock formation created as a result of the eroding rains and winds of thousands of years; whole area stands as natural open air museum. Pigeon Valley, Esentepe Open Air Museum, Paşabağlar, Avanos, Kaymaklı Underground, Sinasos Town and Three Graces in Urgup are some of the famous sites to be visited in Cappadocia.

Cappadocia is famous with its underground cities. It is believed they were initially built during the eighth and seventh centuries BCE by the Phrygians, who carved their living spaces into the region’s soft volcanic rock. There are around 200 underground cities in total in Cappadocia including the most popular ones Derinkuyu and Kaymakli.

Gobeklitepe

Archaeologically categorised as a site of the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A Period (c. 9600–7300 BC) Göbeklitepe is a series of mainly circular and oval-shaped structures set on the top of a hill. Excavations began in 1995 by Prof. Klaus Schmidt with the help of the German Archeological Institute. There is archelological proof that these installations were not used for domestic use, but predominantly for ritual or religous purposes. Subsequently it became apparent that Gobeklitepe consists of not only one, but many of such stone age temples. Furthermore, both excavations and geo magnetic results revealed that there are at least 20 installations, which can be called a temple.