The Most Beautiful Tourist Destinations in Turkey During Winter

For travel enthusiasts seeking winter tourism adventures, here are the top tourist destinations in Turkey that will open your eyes to a magical world filled with snow-covered valleys.

Antalya, the City of Sun

Antalya can be considered one of the most beautiful cities in Turkey during winter. It welcomes nearly two million tourists annually, mostly from European and Russian nationalities, drawn to its captivating natural beauty and warm beaches.

Antalya is replete with tourist resorts and massive snow resorts, equipped with the highest levels of luxury. Not to mention the city's stunning beauty and lush hillsides.

Among the top winter tourist activities in Antalya is snow adventures on the slopes of the Taurus Mountains in the "Saklıkent" resort, which rises about 2500 meters above sea level. There's also the Antalya cable car ride to the summit of Mount Olympos, a 10-minute journey offering tourists aerial views of the sea and mountains until reaching the snow-covered summit of Tahtalı Mountain.

Visiting the famous Antalya Aquarium is another highlight, where you can walk through a glass tunnel in the marine life habitat, surrounded by real sharks, dolphins, turtles, and other marine creatures. Additionally, there's a snow city inside the aquarium, featuring adventure halls covered in real snow over an area of 15,000 square meters, allowing visitors to enjoy snow skiing, see snow cottages, take souvenir photos, and engage in various other activities.

Cappadocia

Located in the Taurus Mountains region of Anatolia, Cappadocia boasts stunning natural landscapes covered in ice, reminiscent of a desert interspersed with numerous caves dating back to the Roman era. Byzantine paintings on walls and rocks in these caves remain intact.

These caves have been refurbished for comfortable stays during your visit. The advantage of these caves is their design to remain cool in summer and warm in winter, providing comfort akin to what you would find in summer.

Bursa

Bursa is an excellent destination for millions of tourists during the winter season, located in the northwest part of Turkey. There is an extremely famous skiing resort located in Uludağ Mountain. You can reach there by boats or driving. There are also numerous hotels, restaurants, shops, and other facilities, making it easy for you to stay there for a few days.

Apart from ice skiing and the beautiful natural scenery around the city with snowfall, there's more to do in Bursa. You can experience thermal baths in the city, which contain mountain water rich in minerals and very warm. It's a great place to relax.

Troy Trojan City

Troy overlooks the plain along the Turkish Aegean coast, above Hisarlık Hill. It is 4000 years old and is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world.

The advantage of visiting Troy in winter is to explore the place and climb Troy Horse without the crowds that fill the place in summer and climbing inside the Trojan Horse for recreation.

Pamukkale

It is an area in the city of Hierapolis, Roman. It has been an active thermal spa since the 2nd century BC. In this hot and beautiful part of Turkey, there are many natural hot springs and calcite pools.

Train ride towards Kars

Imagine waking up in a comfortable sleeping car to watch the sunrise over the natural scenery of the Euphrates River. This is just one of the many enjoyable experiences on board a Turkish railway journey from Ankara to the far east of Turkey. Skiers can get off at Erzurum for the "Palandöken" resort, a high-altitude experience similar to European mountains, or in Sarıkamış for further relaxation in skiing.

Erzurum

This route has become very popular in recent years to the point that a special tourist train now operates daily in winter. Winter is the best time to walk this route - the frozen, snow-covered landscapes are enchanting. The train has special stops for outings off the train. Kars, at the end of the journey, is famous for its stone buildings dating back to the Russian era and nearby stunning ruins in Ani.

Trabzon City

The enchanting Turkish countryside winter atmosphere, where white snow mixes with the cold weather in traditional quiet life, you will find rural houses and wooden cabins nestled amidst nature.

In addition to staying in wooden cabins and enjoying the charming winter scenery, you can also, during your stay, enjoy a Turkish rural breakfast and get to know Turkish folklore through costumes, singing, and cuisine, practice snow skiing on the slopes of various Trabzon areas, spend the most beautiful times and take the best souvenir photos in the famous Uzungöl village, which embodies the typical image of the beautiful city of Trabzon.