Must-see attractions in İzmir & the North Aegean

  • Top Choice
    Bergama Acropolis

    One of Turkey's most impressive archaeological sites, Bergama's acropolis is dramatically sited on a hill to the northeast of the town centre. There's…

  • Top Choice
    Muradiye Mosque

    The architectural genius of Mimar Sinan is well and truly on show at this exquisite mosque, which was commissioned by Sultan Murat III and constructed…

  • Top Choice
    İzmir Museum of History & Art

    This museum is overlooked by many visitors to the city, who do themselves a great disservice in the process. Spread over three pavilions, it is one of the…

  • Top Choice
    Kemeraltı Market

    A labyrinthine bazaar stretching from Konak Sq through to the ancient Agora, Kemeraltı dates back to the 17th century and is home to shops, eateries,…

  • Top Choice
    Kordon

    It’s difficult to imagine life in İzmir without its iconic seafront kordon (promenade), which stretches north from Cumhuriyet Meydanı to Alsancak and…

  • Top Choice
    Teos

    The evocative ruins of this ancient city, which was one of the 12 cities of the Ionian League, are spread over a low hilly isthmus now used as farmland. A…

  • Top Choice
    Old Town

    Ayvalık’s old town is a joy to explore. A maze of cobbled streets east of the liman, it is full of market squares, atmospheric cafes, Greek Orthodox…

  • Asklepion

    The Asklepion may not be as dramatic as the Acropolis, but in some ways it is even more extraordinary. One of the most important healing centres of the…

  • Ruins of Sardis

    Scattered around the village of Sartmustafa (or Sart), this archaeological site is a rewarding day trip from İzmir (80km away). It and Manisa can easily…

  • Bergama Archaeology Museum

    Boasting a small but impressive collection of artefacts, Bergama's museum is well worth a visit. On exhibit are reliefs from the Acropolis, including a…

  • Agora

    Dating from the end of the 4th century BC, Smyrna's ancient agora was ruined in an earthquake in AD 178 but soon rebuilt by order of the Roman emperor…

  • Hisar Mosque

    Surrounded by popular coffeehouses, this mosque in the Kemeraltı Market is the largest in the city and dates from 1597. The interior is quintessentially…

  • Çeşme Museum

    Çeşme's majestic Genoese-built fortress dates from 1508 and was later repaired by order of Sultan Beyazıt II, son of Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror, in order…

  • Church of St Polycarp

    Built in the early 17th century, this Catholic church is the oldest still-functioning Christian house of worship in the city. Its survival during the 1922…

  • Apollon Smintheion

    This impressive site in the village of Gülpınar includes a partially reconstructed 2nd-century-BC Temple to Apollo, two Roman baths complexes that were…

  • Antandros

    Located on the coastal slope of Mt Ida, the Greek city of Antandros was established in the 7th century BC and was famous for its dockyards and harbours…

  • Alexandria Troas

    Scattered around the village of Dalyan on the coastal road between Geyikli and Gülpinar, these ruins are all that is left of an ancient city founded in…

  • Temple of Athena

    Built in 540 BC on top of a 238m-high hill overlooking the Gulf of Edremit, this temple with its squat Doric columns has undergone a reconstruction that…

  • Medical History Museum

    Tracing the history of medicine across the globe, this ambitious museum in the grounds of the Sultan Mosque occupies a handsome bimarhane (mental hospital…

  • Taksiyarhis Memorial Museum

    This erstwhile Greek Orthodox cathedral, built in 1844 but never used as a place of worship, was completely renovated in 2013 and positively shimmers in…