Trabzon.
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Overview

Trabzon is the largest city in the Eastern Karadeniz region of Turkey, with a population of 323,000 in 2023, and another 500,000 in the outlying towns. It was once known as Trebizond, ruling an independent "Empire" around the eastern Black Sea. It's now a lively place with good visitor facilities and attractions.

Understand

Trabzon was founded around 756 BC by Hellenistic settlers from Sinop further west. They found natural shelter for a port and a defensible tableland between two ravines, so they called it Trapezous meaning "table", and made it their citadel. The site’s other big advantage was a valley leading through the mountains to Anatolia, whereas other ports such as Sinop were pinned against the slopes. The city therefore grew into a cosmopolitan trading centre, predominantly Greek-speaking. The Romans conquered the area in 68 BC, building a new harbour and roads, and used it as a springboard for attacks on Persia.

The Romans’ eastern or Byzantine Empire was in decline after defeat at Manzikert in 1071, and its territories broke away to defend themselves, or make what peace they could. Trebizond became subject to the Mongols in 1243 but was able to continue trading east along the Silk Road from China and Persia, and west to Genoa and Venice – Marco Polo came this way. Its rulers gave themselves high-falutin’ titles as “Emperors of Trebizond” but fell to the Ottomans in 1461.

In the 18th and 19th centuries the new regional superpower was Russia, gobbling up Ottoman domains around the Black Sea, and from 1914 Turkey and Russia were adversaries in the First World War. Especially damaging to the city was the battle of Sarıkamış in the winter of 1914-15, when 80,000 young men were lost, more from the cold than Russian firepower. The city’s Armenians were wiped out in the genocide of 1915, and its Greeks were deported in the population exchange of 1923. The “Iron Curtain” of borders with the Soviet Union (which included Georgia, Armenia and Crimea) blighted trade links.

The city recovered slowly during the 1970s and more through the 1990s when the Soviet Union collapsed and those borders opened up. Its industries are based on agriculture, associated trades such as leather, plus metal, glass and IT.

The mountains draw clouds and rain. Summers are warm and humid, with frequent light showers: this is generally a good time to visit, but nights can feel sticky. Autumn is the wettest time of year. Winters are near-freezing, with occasional warm snaps when winds from the south boost temperatures towards a balmy 20 °C. Spring is dry and mild, with sunshine between the clouds.

Turkish in its standard Anatolian form is the official language. The eastern Black Sea region has its own distinctive dialect, which to an Istanbul city-slicker sounds archaic and comical. Trabzonlular in turn chuckle at the country-bumpkin diction of folk in the mountain villages, who in turn.... Strangest of all is kuş dili, “bird language”, a whistled language in villages such as Kuşköy in the mountains between Trabzon and Giresun. Even the birds don’t understand it.

English may be understood by the younger generation especially in the service sector, but not as frequently as in, say, Ankara or Georgia.

Anabasis by Xenophon (circa 370 BC) describes a military campaign in Persia, which fails and leaves the Greeks cut off. They try to fight their way home, and above Trebizond cry with joy: “The sea! The sea!” as they behold Greek-speaking territory.

Cervantes’ Don Quixote (1605) dreamed of being Emperor of Trebizond. In Rabelais' Gargantua and Pantagruel (1532-64) Picrochole is a wicked king with similar ambitions, launching a futile war.

L'immortelle de Trébizonde (1930) by Paule Henry Bordeaux describes the massacre of Armenians in 1915. Anyush (2014) by Martine Madden is also set in that period.

The Burnished Blade (1948) by Lawrence Schoonover depicts 15th century feudal France in conflict with the Empire of Trebizond.

Rose Macaulay's The Towers of Trebizond (1956) follows an oddball group of westerners across Turkey. Aunt Dot plans to emancipate the local women through Anglicanism and bathing hats.

The Spring of the Ram (1987) is the second in the series The House of Niccolò by Dorothy Dunnett, set in Trebizond in the last weeks before the Ottoman capture.

Nazan Bekiroglu is a writer living in Trabzon, best known for Nar Ağacı, Pomegranate Tree (2012).

This cosmopolitan city has an important place in the history of Turkish theatre, photography and cinema. And to western composers and directors Trebizond was an exotic name to rank alongside Baghdad, Samarkand or Babylon.

Offenbach's The Princess of Trebizond (1869) is a comic opera whose characters keep confusing a waxwork with the real princess.

Yeşim Ustaoğlu is a film-maker from Trabzon whose work includes Pandora's Box (2008) about a woman with Alzheimers, and Waiting for the Clouds (2003) about an elderly Pontic Greek woman rediscovering her past.

Autumn (2008) by Özcan Alper is about a former convict returning to his home soil.

Zephyr (2010) by Belma Baş is about a young girl left with her grandparents in the mountains, awaiting her mother’s return.

Honey (2010) by Semih Kaplanoğlu is the third of his Yusuf trilogy. It depicts a young boy in the mountains dealing with grief.

Cold of Kalandar (2015) by Mustafa Kara is about a farmer trying to strike gold during a harsh winter.

Tourist Information Center is on Belediye Cd, east flank of Meydan the main square. They have limited English but provide map and similar assistance. They're open M-F 08:00-17:00.

Get in

Not by train: Trabzon is the largest city in Turkey to entirely lack a railway, which it needs for its Black Sea freight. They've been talking about building one for over a century and look set to continue.

Not by boat either: Black Sea ferries no longer sail here. A ferry from Sochi was supposed to start in 2025 but didn't.

D010 is the six-lane coastal highway. From Sarp on the border with Georgia takes 2½ hours and from Samsun takes 4½ hours.

E97 is the inland highway, crossing the mountains to Gümüşhane and then east to Bayburt and Erzurum.

D915 looks like a short-cut on the map, going inland from Of to Bayburt to join E97. It's scenic but scary, take it slow, and don't attempt it in winter.

Buses from Istanbul run several times a day and take 18 hours via Gebze, Izmit, Samsun and multiple Black Sea coast towns. Several continue to Batumi in Georgia.

From Erzurum is 4 hours, ten per day; from Ankara they run hourly taking 12 hours. From Erzincan is 3 hr 30 min, from Adana 15 hr. Dolmuşes from Gümüşhane run hourly.

One bus a day is from Batumi, taking six hours via Sarp and Hopa. It has been known for the eastbound bus to give up at the border if the queue to cross is too long: walk across and pick up a dolmuş, see Batumi#Get in. Change there for Tbilisi and Baku.

Bus operators include Metro Turizm, Flixbus and Ulusoy.

the bus station is on Terminal Sk 3 km east of city centre. A free servis - shuttle bus - runs downtown. Otherwise walk north to the end of Terminal Sk to pick up a dolmuş on Devlet Karayolu Cd.

Get around

"Take my camel, dear", said my Aunt Dot, as she climbed down from this animal on her return from High Mass. - The Towers of Trebizond (1956) by Rose Macaulay follows a group of conflicted dingbats on a journey from Istanbul

Walking gets you between the main sights of Meydan to the east, the central bazaar quarter, and the historic walled city southwest. Distances are less than 1 km but there's a lot of up and down, as the old city was built on a ridge between the ravines of Zagnos west and Kuzgun east.

A swarm of dolmuşes ply through the city and out to the province's other towns.

is the place for out-of-town services. It's on Çömlekçi Cd by D010 coast highway, 200 m southeast of Meydan.

A dolmuş within the city is more likely to start from Meydan itself, southeast side beneath the viaduct of Yavus Selim Blv, and make multiple stops through town.

See

Pace yourself if you aim to tick off the city's scores of religious sites. People in classical times had deities for everything under the sun, plus the sun itself. When the Romans became Christian in the 4th century the pagan temples were replaced by churches, of which the oldest survivor is St Anne's. They were mostly converted to mosques after the Ottoman conquest of 1461, but the city retained Greek and Armenian congregations until the 20th century. There was also a spate of mosque-building from the 19th century as the population grew.

Meydan This includes the İskender Paşa district named for its main mosque, and stretching east to the harbour. West it stretches along Kahramanmaraş Cd, merging into Kemerkaya district. is the bosky central square, with cafes and bars. There's often a demo going on around the statue of Atatürk, visitors should stay clear of those. Dolmuşes and taxis are at the south end of the square.

İskender Paşa Mosque. Built by governor İskender Pasha in 1559, and extensively restored in 1882. Its medressah and graveyard have been lost.

Sarmaşık Mosque or Eski ("Old") Kemerkaya Mosque is tucked away on Öğretmen Mektep Sk. It's thought to be a 13th century chapel, converted to a mosque around 1530. It's on sloping ground with the ablutions area at street level and the prayer hall accessed by an exterior stairway. Yeni Kemerkaya Mosque is the new one, built as a church in 1838 but now closed. It's 200 m east of the old one, on Balık Pazarı Sk.

Santa Maria Church. This is the only church in Trabzon that still has regular Roman Catholic masses. It was founded by Italian Capuchin monks expelled from Tbilisi in 1845, as part of a long anti-Catholic campaign by the Russian Tsars.

Kalepark Fortress. This was rebuilt by the Genoese when they took over in 1306. They called it "beautiful castle", Leonkastron or in Turkish Güzelhisar, which you wouldn't guess from its shambles of a ruin.

is a relaxing leafy space 200 m southeast of Meydan. The elegant building on its east side usedto be the US Consulate then the local Bar Association.

City Museum. This exhibits city history from its Ancient Greek foundation to Ottoman times, plus local natural history and ethnography. Signage is only in Turkish.

Trabzorspor Museum. History and trophies of Trabzonspor football club.

Archaeology Museum. This fine mansion was built for the banker Kostaki Teophylaktos in 1889. It's been closed for renovation since 2018 with no news of re-opening.

Trabzon Art House. Art space and cultural centre in the former city governor's mansion.

Kudrettin Mosque. Built as St Philip Church in 1302 and extended into a cathedral in 1461. It was converted into a mosque circa 1665. In 1968 this was rebuilt, so what you see now is retro-Ottoman.

Hüsnü Köktuğ Mosque. Used as a mosque since 1953, and some believe it used to be St Elefterios Church, built by the Genoese in the 15th century. However it doesn't look it, and more likely that church was closer to the port and long ago demolished. However Hüsnü Köktuğ has a strong claim to be the city's ugliest mosque, with its jarring modern facade. In 2025 it's closed for reconstruction.

Çarşı Çarşı means market and so does Pazar - "bazaar" - the other name for this district. It's been extended north by landfill and that part is modern.

St Anne's Church. Dinky little Greek Orthodox basilica from 6th / 7th century AD, one of the oldest buildings in the city. It fell out of use when the Greeks were deported and many frescos were painted over, but in 2021 / 22 it was all restored.

Office of the Chamber of Mechanical Engineers (Makina Mühendisleri Odası) is the imposing building facing St Anne's Church. Müftü Mosque is north across Kahramanmaraş Cd from St Anne's. It was first built in 1753 but this is a modern reconstruction.

Bazaar Mosque. This late Baroque mosque was built in 1839 by governor Hazinedarzade Osman Paşa in the midst of the market quarter. It's the oldest surviving mosque in the city.

Bedesten is a 16th century covered market hall, now housing arts and crafts shop. It's just north of Bazaar Mosque, on Bedestan Cd. Taş Han is a former caravanserai just south of Bazaar Mosque, on Paşahamam Gç. Built in the 1530s, it has two stories around a courtyard and now houses shops. Haji Yahya Mosque is on Bedestan Cd, 100 m west of Bazaar Mosque. Hacı Salih Mosque was built in 1860. It's 100 m east of Bazaar Mosque at Alacahan Sk 14.

Alaca Han is an 18th century caravanserai 50 m south of Hacı Salih Mosque, now an arts and crafts centre.

Pazarkapı Mosque. First built in 1563, but entirely rebuilt in 1987.

Molla Siyah Mosque. Built in the 11th-century as the Orthodox church of St Andreas or Andrew, and converted to a mosque after 1461. It's still in use.

Hoca Halil Mosque is a small Ottoman mosque first built in 1553, and rebuilt in 1896 and 1963. It's 100 m north of Molla Siyah Mosque.

Silk Road Museum. Exhibits connected to the silk road trade.

Science Museum. Majoring on space and aerospace, with planetarium. M-F it may be booked out to school groups.

Hanife Hatun Mosque is a stonking great structure just south of the Science Museum, opened in July 2025. It's in retro Ottoman Baroque style. Not to be confused with Gülbahar Hatun Mosque inland.

St John Exoteichos Church. Former Greek Orthodox church founded in 1306 outside the city walls - exoteichos- but rebuilt in 1856 very much hemmed in by the city. It's now used as an annex to a primary school. The exterior is in good condition, no access to the interior, where the frescoes have been lost.

Hızırbey Mosque. Ottoman mosque built in 1789 around a pre-existing church.

Tabakhane Mosque. Built in 1987 in retro style on the site of an earlier mosque.

Hacı Kasım Muhittin Mosque. Sturdy Ottoman mosque built in 1822.

Ortahisar The name means "castle", the original walled city on a crag flanked by two deep valleys, but there was no separate fortress. Also described here are features on Boztepe to the east and on the slopes further west. "Ortahisar" nowadays also means the entire downtown, as distinct from Trabzon province.

City walls are best viewed from the valleys and bridges on either side, Zagnos to the west or Tabakhane east. Masonry was continually recycled so they're a hotch-potch of Roman, Byzantine, Trebizond and Ottoman work. Zagnos valley is the park west flank of old town, spanned by Zagnos Cd. Within it (described below) are a small open-air theater, a Byzantine aqueduct, and the aquarium. Tabakhane valley is the similar park on the east flank.

Fatih Mosque. The "Golden domed church of All Saints" was built in the 10th or 11th century on much earlier foundations - until the 4th century AD it was the scene of Mithras worship.In the Middle ages it was the city cathedral, and hosted coronations for the Emperors of Trebizond. It was converted to a mosque when the Ottomans took over in 1461. Restoration in 2017/18 uncovered more original features, and a raised glass platform enables you to see the fine late-Roman mosaic floor.

History Museum. Restored mansion with photographs, documents and artefacts describing the city in the Ottoman and Republican periods. Signage is only in Turkish.

Gulbahar Hatun Mosque. Founded in 1514 by Selim, then governor and later Sultan, in honour of his mother. Gulbahar Hatun (1453-1505) was originally a slave girl and became the concubine of Bayezid II; her tomb is here. The mosque was repaired in 1883.

Atapark is a small public park around Gulbahar Hatun Mosque. Hamza Paşa Mosque is on Yavuz Selim Blvd, 200 m west of Gulbahar Hatun. It was built in 1745.

Erdoğdu Bey Mosque. Built in its present form in 1577, this is no longer in use, replaced by a larger modern mosque adjacent.

İçkale Mosque. This was probably the first mosque built in the captured city, in 1470 on the acropolis. It was restored in the 19th century and the minaret added in the 1960s.

Trabzon Aquarium. Large walk-through aquarium.

Eugenius Aqueduct is a late Roman or early Byzantine aqueduct crossing the south of Zagnos Valley Park.

Yenicuma Mosque. Built in the 13th century as a church dedicated to Saint Eugenius, the patron saint of the city. Eugenius was a martyr under the persecutions of Diocletian around 305 AD. His holy intercession supposedly saved the city from Turkish assault in 1224, but did nothing to halt the conquest by Mehmet in 1461. The church was thereafter converted to a mosque, which remains in use and is only open for prayer times.

Tavanli Mosque. Ottoman mosque, built in 1874 to replace a 16th century masjid but no longer in use.

Girls Monastery. The only nunnery in the city was built in the 1360s around one of the holy cave springs at Boztepe. The rock church has frescoes depicting Alexios III, his wife Theodora and his mother Irene (the likely benefactor of the monastery). It closed in 1922 when the Orthodox population were deported. It was restored in 2021.

Boztepe is the hill above Girl's Monastery: its west is urbanised but the east half is a wooded park, traversed by Iran Cd. The tea gardens have pleasant views. Ahi Evren Dede Mosque is on Vuslat Sk near Boztepe Tea Garden, 500 m east of Radisson Blu, and the main attraction is the peaceful graveyard. Another mosque of the same name is a large baroque Ottoman structure on the busy coast highway 1 km east of the airport entrance.

Küçük Fatih Mosque. Built around the 12th / 13th century as St Akindynos Church, and converted into a mosque after the conquest of 1461. It's still in use.

Hagia Sophia. The city's top sight, a Byzantine church built in the 1250s, with beautiful frescoes, arches and friezes. It became a mosque in 2013 whereupon pre-Islamic features were covered up, but most of these were uncovered in 2020. The free-standing bell tower was added in 1427; nothing remains of the monastery.

Trabzon Botanical Garden. Peaceful colourful park above the city.

Atatürk Pavilion. The summer home of banker Konstantin Kabayanidis, built late 19th century. He left during the post-war population exchanges and from 1924 Atatürk stayed here on several occasions. It's been furnished to period with his memorabilia.

Kaymaklı Monastery. The Armenian Monastery of the All-Saviour is on a hill southeast of town. Its foundation date was maybe 1424 AD, over an earlier Greek church. Armenians who had survived the modern massacres left after 1923 and the place fell derelict - the walls and bell tower have gone. The church contains frescoes and has been re-roofed but you're unlikely to find it open.

is a town on the coast 18 km west of the city. Its Galinos district has many historical wooden mansions, and a couple of dilapidated former Greek churches. See that page also for Akçakale Fortress and Cal Caves.

Sümela Monastery. A spectacular monastery hewn into a cliff. It was founded in the fourth century, with its heyday in Byzantine and early Ottoman times. It's been ruined and rebuilt several times, but fell derelict after its Greeks were deported. Many frescoes and mosaics have been vandalised, but more have been found in hidden chambers. Try to dodge the tour groups: from the parking lot you take a minibus shuttle up to the site, paying for both.

Vazelon Monastery. Founded in 270 AD as one of the first-ever Christian monasteries, now ruined and unsafe. Take the road off D885 towards Köprüyanı, then the track branching uphill from the first hairpin bend - this is only suitable for high-clearance 4WD, it's safer to hike the last 2 km.

Kuştul Monastery. Founded in 752 AD, Saint George Peristereota Monastery is now just a few walls teetering on a crag, with cliffs and other pitfalls around: don't come in the fog and drizzle. From Esiroğlu on D885 follow the winding lane towards Şimşirli, but the final rough trail starts 2 km before the village.

Further east 40 km east of the city has a ruined medieval castle and a couple of historic mansions. The town might make a stopoff if you're heading into the mountains. means "long lake", formed when a landslide blocked the valley. It's also the name of the village alongside, 95 km from Trabzon city centre and at 1090 m elevation. It's touristy in summer, with a straggle of hotels. Reach it from the coast by D915 towards Çaykara.

Dursun Ali İnan Museum. Large personal collection of curios and artefacts of the Uzungöl area.

Yaylas are summer settlements in the mountains, bases for hiking. There's a dozen above Uzungöl, the closest are Karester and Lustra.

Do

Football Trabzonspor. They play soccer in Süper Lig, the top tier. They're Turkey's most successful team outside Istanbul and often qualify for European tournaments. As well as local support, they have big diaspora followings in Istanbul and Baku. The stadium (capacity 40,800) is named for Şenol Güneş (b 1952), former goalkeeper and manager of Trabzon and the Turkish national team. Trabzonspor women's team play at Mehmet Ali Yılmaz Stadium.

Yomra Climbing Gym. Sports complex with climbing and bouldering. For natural climbing try the Şahınkaya rockface in the western district of Düzköy.

Central Hamam. Traditional Turkish baths. The men-only hamam is next to Burger King. The women-only (bayanlar) hamam is in the alley round the corner.

Sekiz Direkli Hamam. Historic hamam to the west of the bazaar quarter. It has separate days for men and women.

Mehmet Akif Ersoy Indoor Swimming Pool. Olympic-size swimming pool. Not for small children.

Beaches: you have to go some way out, as the sea comes right up to the coastal highway built on reclaimed land. Kaşüstü Municipal Family Beach is the nearest public beach, next to the Novotel in Yomra 10 km east of city centre. Kalecik Beach is 25 km east. Akçakale Beach is 24 km west.

Royal Sinema. The city's main cinema. Some films are western with Turkish subtitles.

Lara Sinema behind the Royal shows mostly dubbed movies. Avşar Sinema is within Rubenis shopping mall (below) north of Atapark. It shows blockbusters with Turkish subtitles. CineGalaxy is just east of Rubenis at İnönü Cd 18. Cinemaximum is within Forum shopping mall (below) towards the airport. It mainly shows blockbusters with Turkish subtitles.

Trabzon State Theatre. Plays are almost all in Turkish.

Hamamizade İhsanbey Cultural Center. Cultural centre including a theatre in a modern building.

Activities in the Pontic mountains include wildlife-watching, mountain biking, rock-climbing, hiking / trekking, white-water kayaking / rafting and skiing / snowboarding. But you need specialist local knowledge on which places or trails are suitable when, for which skill level, and how to access. The problem in 2025 is that activity organisers in Trabzon folded during covid and have not yet restarted, likewise the ski resorts. You'd probably have to join a self-sufficient specialist tour starting from Istanbul.

Some activities are within a day trip if you make an early start from the city. More immersive and away-from-it-all is camping or self-catering in the yaylas, the seasonal mountain hamlets above the tree line - there are dozens. You can give something back to these communities by removing as much trash as the van will carry.

Black Sea Theatre Festival is held in May. Kadirga Festival is a folkloric event in the third week of June near the Gümüşhane province border. It's the largest of similar events on the other yaylas - summer pastures. International Folklore Festival is a week in July. At any time of year, look out for folk music performances in the city - the mountains have bred a unique style and instrumentation. Sultan Murat Festival is at the end of August on the Sultanmurat yayla, 25 km southwest of Çaykara village. Assumption Day is a Greek Orthodox liturgy at Sümela Monastery on Aug 23. It was bumped from 15 Aug as that is now considered the anniversary of the Ottoman conquest. Only a few hundred pilgrims can fit in the small church, so the service is relayed on wide screens in Maçka village. Kalandar is a custom equivalent to trick-or-treat in the mountain villages. It's on 13 / 14 Jan, New Year's Eve by the Julian calendar.

Buy

If you're heading further east, Trabzon could be your last chance for spares, repairs and equipment. Local crafts include handwoven gold and silver bracelets, copper, leather and traditional musical instruments. As with other high-ticket items such as fine art or antiques, you need enough knowledge to sift quality goods from overpriced mediocrity. Uzun Sk is the city's pedestrianised main shopping street, leading west off Meydan. (Çarşı or Pazar) is 500 m west of Meydan, follow pedestrianized Kunduracılar Cd.

Rubenis AVM. A shopping mall with cinema just west of the walled old town.

Forum Shopping Center. Large modern mall.

Cevahir Outlet is a large mall in Yomra 10 km east, next to the Novotel.

Eat

Local cuisine Black Sea cuisine is heavy on stews and soups of vegetables and beans. It also includes dairy dishes such as kuymak / muhlama, fresh milk with ayran, and various cheeses.

Trabzon pide is a kind of pizza with cheese and eggs. Local köfte (meatballs) have a distinctive taste.

Vakfikebir ekmegi is sourdough bread similar to Italian Pane Casareccio. It's baked in a stone oven and can weigh up to 7 kg. Cornbread is also common, as the climate suits maize but not wheat.

Hamsi are locally-fished anchovies, a staple, typically fried and eaten whole.

Hazelnuts: the Black Sea region grows 70% of the world's production. Local fruits include cherries, persimmon and kiwi fruit.

Budget West side of Meydan has many fast food outlets and kebab shops. This strip extends into Uzun Sk, which is also the place for desserts such as baklava, helva and dondurma. Çardak Pide has trad cheap eats at Uzun Sk 4, southwest off Meydan, open daily 08:00-22:00.

Midyeci Onur. Inexpensive seafood restaurant.

Sebnem Cafe. Burgers, meatballs and similar.

Cemilusta. Popular restaurant by Meydan square.

Sofia Garden. Good menu selection and quality.

Kalender Lokanta. Cozy cafe / restaurant.

Kulüp Bahçe Kafe. Small garden restaurant with diverse menu and live music.

Tarihi Kalkanoğlu Pilavı. Restaurant established in 1856 serving traditional pilav dishes.

Bahce Cafe. A relaxed garden cafe with a small menu.

Akçaabat 18 km west of the city has a distinctive style of meatballs, Akcaabat koftesi, made with ground meat, garlic and bread. Eat them with beans, lettuce and ayran (yogurt mixed with water). Kiymali is mincemeat, in a pide or with eggs. The many eating places include Nihat Usta, Körfez Metin and Cemil Usta.

Drink

Water from the tap is safe to drink but heavily chlorinated, you may prefer bottles.

Kahve Durağı is a chain. The most central is within Grand Zorlu Hotel. Time's Coffee Restaurant is on the 7th floor of the Silk Road Business Center on Kahramanmaraş Cd, opposite Grand Zorlu Hotel, open daily 08:00-23:00. SineK is a cinema-themed cafe on Yavuz Selim Blv next to Royal Sinema, open daily 09:00-23:00. Edward's Coffee is next to Sinek, open M-Sa 08:00-00:00, Su 10:00-00:00.

Ganita tea garden. Pleasant tea garden by the seafront and old fortress.

Boztepe tea garden has a scattering of cafes on the hillside east of the Radisson, along Iran Cd. Watch the sun set from the terraces.

Şehir Kulübü Restaurant at Nemlioğlu Cemal Sk 1 is open daily 14:00-01:00.

Barikat. Rooftop sports and rock bar.

Şişman. Central spot, one part is family-friendly, the other is men-only.

Sleep

Budget The cheapest hotels are down from Atatürk Square towards the port, but many are brothels. Business is conducted in an orderly manner and the area is safe.

Şanlı Otel. A cheap and convenient hotel very close to the Otogar.

Hotel Horon is central at Sıramağazalar Cd 125.

Ural Otel. Basic place near the ferry port.

Otel Efe is opposite Ural Otel at Güzelhisar Cd 6, similar quality.

Usta Park Hotel. Clean and central, small rooms.

Sumela Park Hotel is at Şehit İbrahim Karaoğlanoğlu Cd 14, next to Usta Park. Mixed reviews.

Cephanelik Hotel. This was the city's medieval arsenal or armoury, now restored as an upscale hotel and restaurant.

Ramada Plaza. Smart hotel 3 km east of the airport. Spacious, with restaurants and bars.

Movenpick is next to the Ramada at 22 Rize Cd.

Novotel. Good beachfront location and comfy rooms, but many adverse reports for reception and service.

Zorlu Grand Otel. Very central, good service and comfort, but the a/c can't cope with hot weather.

Radisson Blu. Smart modern hotel on Boztepe hill.

Learn

Karadeniz Technical University (Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi or KTÜ), founded in 1955, has 32,000 students and 2200 teaching staff. Most teaching is in Turkish but a few courses are English. The main campus is Kanuni near the airport, with a dozen others across the province. Avrasya University is a private university founded in 2010, with 3 city campuses.