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Eastern Mediterranean

This is Turkey's non-airbrushed slice of Mediterranean coastline. A handful of distinctly local-style beach resorts lie between the industrial port cities. Crumbling ruins sit among acres of intensely farmed countryside with nary a tourist in sight. In the ancient towns of Tarsus and Antakya, atmospheric old-town fragments cling on amid the modern hubbub.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Hatay, Turkey - March 09, 2022 : Necmi Asfuroglu Archaeology Museum of Antakya City interior view in Turkey; Shutterstock ID 2135458105; purchase_order: 65050; job: ; client: ; other: 2135458105

    Hatay Archaeology Museum

    Eastern Mediterranean

    This incomparable museum contains one of the world's finest collections of Roman and Byzantine mosaics, covering a period from the 1st century AD to the…

  • Cave of Heaven and Hell in Mersin, Turkey. Cennet and Cehennem or heaven and hell are two large sinkholes in Taurus Mountains. ; Shutterstock ID 1554068366; purchase_order: 65050; job: ; client: ; other: 1554068366

    Caves of Heaven and Hell

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Near Narlıkuyu, a road winds north for 2km to several caves – sinkholes carved out by a subterranean river and places of great mythological significance…

  • Maiden's Castle (Kizkalesi), Mersin, Turkey; Shutterstock ID 2080110652; purchase_order: 65050; job: ; client: ; other: 2080110652

    Kızkalesi Castle

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Rising from an island 250m offshore, impossibly romantic Kızkalesi Castle (also called the Sea Castle) is like a suspended dream. Check out the mosaics of…

  • Karatepe-Aslantaş Open-Air Museum

    Karatepe-Aslantaş Open-Air Museum

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Archaeology buffs should make a beeline for the Karatepe-Aslantaş Open-Air Museum, within the national park of the same name. The ruins date from the 8th…

  • Anemurium Ancient City

    Anemurium Ancient City

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Anemurium's sprawling and eerily quiet ruins stretch for 500m down to a pebble beach, with mammoth city walls scaling the mountainside above. From the…

  • Alahan Monastery

    Alahan Monastery

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Tentatively listed for World Heritage status, this remarkable monastery perches on a terraced slope high above the Göksu Valley, northwest of Silifke…

  • Titus & Vespasian Tunnel

    Titus & Vespasian Tunnel

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Amid the scant ruins of Seleuceia in Pieria at Çevlik, 5km northwest of Samandağ, is this this astonishing feat of Roman engineering. From the ticket…

  • Yılankale

    Yılankale

    Eastern Mediterranean

    Yılankale, an impressive castle rising boldly from a rocky ridge in the middle of modern-day corn fields, is a fantastic example of medieval Armenian…

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