10 Must-see historical and natural sites of Turkey

Turkey Travel: 10 Must-see historical and nature sites

Bernice Ng

20 Oct 2015

1/10
Gito Yaylasi
Gito Yaylasi is a mountain village and is possibly one of the coolest places ever. On most days, the village is enveloped in clouds, because it is so high up - at 2100. The place is untouched by modern technology and by now, this will be one of the few places in the world that remain a virgin community unaffected by most of the world.
2/10
Mardin
Mardin is a city in Southeast Turkey. It is considered an open-air museum due to its historical architecture. The whole city has been listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site under the "Mardin Cultural Landscape", because of its immense historical value.
3/10
Side
Side is an ancient Greek city on the southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey, a resort town and one of the best-known classical sites in the country. It has many ruins, dating back thousands of years, and is a popular site to visit.
4/10
Urla
Urla is a town in the center of the district of the same name in İzmir Province, in Turkey. It's a fishing village, but it also has a basic modern city structure. It's small, and quaint with a perfect mix of rustic and modern elements.
5/10
Cappadocia
Cappadocia, a semi-arid region in central Turkey, is full of otherworldly natural sites, most notably the “fairy chimneys,” tall, cone-shaped rock formations clustered in Monks Valley and elsewhere. Tours are regularly given, and there is a site nearby where hundreds of hot air ballons take off everyday, starting as early as 6AM. While on them, you can see the valleys below in all of its beauty.
6/10
Pamukkale
These sights are commonly mistaken for snow and ice, but the Cotton Castles are actually terraces of carbonate minerals left by the flowing water. Pamukkale, meaning "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a natural site in Denizli Province in southwestern Turkey. The city contains hot springs and travertines. It's a sight you must see, there is nothing in the world like it.
7/10
Polonezköy
Founded by Polish settlers in 1842, Polonezköy is a small village at the Asian side of Istanbul, about 30 km away from the city center. They have many historical sites, like churches. Our Lady of Częstochowa Church, was a religious center for the Polish residents.
8/10
Blue Mosque
As one of the most beautiful mosques in the entire world, The Blue Mosque is situated in Instanbul. It was built from 1609 to 1616, during the rule of Ahmed I, and it is most well-knwon for its blue interior that under a certain light, looks ethereal and otherworldy in beauty.
9/10
Kayaköy
More commonly known as The Ghost Town, this ancient site used to be village filled with life. But due to a massive war in the 1920s, the city was evacuated and has been empty ever since. Under the protection of the Turkish government, this is now a musuem and historical site.
10/10
Ephesus
Ephesus is an ancient city in Turkey’s Central Aegean region. Its excavated remains reflect centuries of history, from classical Greece to the Roman Empire. People believe this area is near to where the Virgin Mary lived.

Visit The Blue Mosque in Istanbul, the Cotton Castles of Pamukkale, and fly high above the mountains in hot air balloons in Cappadocia. You won’t be short of sites to visit in Turkey; it’s the new must-go holiday destination.

You rarely ever hear people say “let’s go to Turkey for our next holiday”, and it usually isn’t the first country that slips off your tongue when you’re brainstorming for places to visit.

But you should start taking notice. Turkey is a beautiful melting pot of everything, with an amazingly rich and illustrious history. It’s commonly visited for religious reasons because many of its ruins have ties to Christianity and ancient Greece and Rome. They are racially and culturally diverse, with people of many different religions and ethnicities coexisting in one country.

Its most noteworthy aspect are the historical and nature sites, that give you a glimpse into the past, and puts you on the exact ground of where great civilizations stood. It really puts things in perspective and awakens you to a lot of questions about the world.

Turkey is a place for the more unconventional traveller, and it’s a spiritual journey, even if you don’t go there for religion.

Bernice Ng

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