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Citadel
Harşena castle is perched precariously atop the cliffs of the Pontic Tombs and offers magnificent views. The remnants of the walls date from Pontic times, perhaps around the time of King Mithridates. The fortress was repaired by the Ottomans and again in the late 1980s. On a ledge just below the citadel is an old Russian cannon that is fired during Ramazan to mark the end of the daily fast.
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Mirror Cave
Another Pontic tomb, the Mirror Cave (Aynalı Mağara), is apart from the others on the road in from Samsun. It's worth visiting if you have time.
Although built during Pontic times, it's likely that this tomb was later used as a chapel by the Byzantines who painted the fast-fading frescoes inside. With a Greek inscription high on the façade, this is one of the few tombs to have any type of adornment.
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Palace of the Maidens
Just past the ticket office to the Tombs of the Pontic Kings, the path divides: turn left to find a couple of tombs reached via a rock-hewn tunnel, or right to find more tombs and the remnants of the Palace of the Maidens. Though there were indeed harems full of maidens here, the palace that stood on this rock terrace was that of the kings of Pontus, and later of the Ottoman governors.
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Taş Han
Head along Atatürk Caddesi and you'll see the partly ruined Taş Han (1758), an Ottoman caravanserai.
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Tombs of the Pontic Kings
Looming above the northern bank of the river is a sheer rock face with the conspicuous rock-cut Tombs of the Pontic Kings. The tombs, cut deep into the rock as early as the 4th century BC, were used for cult worship of the deified rulers. There are 18 tombs in these valleys, all of them empty. Climb the well-marked steps to the ticket office.
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