Trabzon formerly Trebizond is in the Eastern Karadeniz region of Turkey. A major trade centre since times immemorial, and visited by Marco Polo among many others, Trabzon is today one of the major cities of Turkey's northeastern coast.
In medieval times, city served as the capital of Empire of Trebizond, which was ruled by Komnenos family which also provided several emperors to the Byzantine throne in Constantinople. The longest surviving rump Byzantine state, Trabzon was captured by Ottoman Turks in 1461, almost a decade after the fall of Constantinople.
Trabzon, historically known as Trebizond, is a city on the Black Sea coast of northeastern Turkey and the capital of Trabzon Province. Trabzon, located on the historical Silk Road, became a melting pot of religions, languages and culture for centuries and a trade gateway to Persia in the southeast and the Caucasus to the northeast.
The Venetian and Genoese merchants paid visits to Trebizond during the medieval period and sold silk, linen and woolen fabric; the Republic of Genoa had an important merchant colony within the city called Leonkastron that played a role to Trebizond similar to the one Galata played to Constantinople the modern Istanbul.
Trabzon formed the basis of several states in its long history and was the capital city of the Empire of Trebizond between 1204 and 1461. During the early modern period, Trabzon, because of the importance of its port, again became a focal point of trade to Persia and the Caucasus.
The current ethnic background of the people of Trabzon is mostly Turkish. There are also descendants of Circassian muhajiris in the city, as well as smaller number of Laz people, Muslim Greeks the Romeyka-speakers and Armenians or Hemshin.
Local Turks are mostly of Chepni Turkmen origin. The main language of these ethnic groups is Turkish. Modern migration since the dissolution of the Soviet Union has brought a significant number of Russians, Ukrainians and people from the Caucasus mostly Georgia into the city.
Russian language shops and facilities can be found in the town.
Pontic Greek has been spoken in the region since early antiquity. The local dialect developed along its own lines and is today partly intelligible to speakers of Standard Greek. It was spoken mainly by a Greek Orthodox multi-ethnic population up to the population exchange.
Nearly all speakers of this local variant of Pontic Greek are now Muslims. A very similar dialect is spoken by a community of about 400 speakers, descendants of Christians from the Of valley now living in Greece in the village of Nea Trapezounta or New Trebizond, today part of Katerini, Central Macedonia.
Laz people, who are aboriginal to this area, also live in Trabzon. Numerous villages inside and out of Trabzon of the Laz date back as early as the period of Queen Tamar's rule in the newly unified Kingdom of Georgia.
During the Queen's rule, sizeable groups of immigrating Georgians moved to Trabzon where they continue to preserve their native tongue. There was an Armenian community in Trebizond as early as the 7th century.
Folk dancing is still very much in evidence in the Black Sea region. The Horon is a famous dance which is indigenous to the city and its surrounding area. It is performed by men, women, the young and elderly alike; in festivities, local weddings and harvest times.
While similar to Russian Cossack dances in terms of vividness, the Trabzon folk dance is probably indigenous to the eastern Black Sea region, which has an impressive variety of folk music .
The people of Trabzon have a reputation for being religiously conservative and nationalist. Many Trabzonites generally show a strong sense of loyalty to their family, friends, religion and country.
Ataturk selected his presidential guards from Trabzon and the neighbouring city of Giresun because of their fierce fighting ability and their loyalty.
Outside of the relatively urban space of Trabzon proper, and within parts of it as well, rural traditions from the Black Sea village life are still thriving.
These include traditional gender roles, social conservatism, hospitality and a willingness to help strangers; and all aspects, both positive and negative, of an agrarian lifestyle, such as hard work, poverty, strong family ties, and a closeness to nature.
The people of the eastern Black Sea region are also known for their wit and sense of humour; many jokes in Turkey are told about the natives of the Black Sea region Karadeniz fıkraları - Black Sea jokes.
The character Temel, a universal buffoon figure found in many cultures, forms an important part of the Turkish oral tradition.
The city's profile was raised somewhat in the English-speaking world by Dame Rose Macaulay's last novel, The Towers of Trebizond (1956), which is still in print.
Trabzon's regional cuisine is traditionally reliant on fish, especially hamsi the fresh European Anchovy similar to the British Sprat or American Smelt. Trabzon meets 20% of the total fish production in Turkey.
Akçaabat köfte
Regional dishes include the Akçaabat köfte a spicy lamb meatball from the Akçaabat district, Karadeniz pidesi a canoe shaped pita bread, often filled with ground beef, cheese and eggs, kuymak a Turkish fondue made with cornmeal, fresh butter and cheese, Vakfıkebir ekmegi a large country-style bread.
Also Tonya tereyagı or tonya butter, tava mısır ekmegi a deep-dish corn bread and kara lahana çorbası a bean and cabbage soup.
Taflan kavurması is a cherry laurel dish served with onions and olive oil. Trabzon is also famous for its hazelnuts. The Black Sea region of Turkey is the world's largest producer of cherry and hazelnut; and a large production area of tea; all of which play an important role in the local cuisine.
By daily planes from Ankara, Istanbul and Izmir. There are also planes from Adana by Pegasus Airlines and Bursa by Borajet, as well as scheduled international flights from certain European and regional cities.
By bus from all major cities in Turkey. From Istanbul 65 TL, 18 hrs they depart several times per day. From Kayseri it's 12hrs. There are also buses from Tbilisi, Georgia which is about 12 hours which serve as a useful point of entry to the country from Caucasus.
There is a servis or free shuttle bus from the bus station to the city centre. Also you can rent a car at Trabzon Airport.
Turkish Maritime Lines used to operate two weekly ferryboats between Istanbul and various Black Sea ports. However, as of 2007, this service was been cancelled.
There are also ferries twice a week from Sochi on Russian Black Sea coast. They cost US$ 50/passenger.
Frequent Dolmuş connections inside the city: 1.75 Lira. If you want to go from Trabzon's otogar to Ataturk Alanı, cross the main street and flag down any dolmus with the direction Meydan.
The city dolmus station is under a bridge on the south side of Atatürk Alanı. Dolmus leave from here also to Boztepe viewpoint and to Aya Sofia.
For general tourist information, the tourist office is located right on Ataturk Alani square, on the southern side. The clerk speaks English very well and provides you with a wealth of information about Trabzon and its surroundings. Before doing anything in Trabzon, go to the tourist office.
Hidirnebi Plateau or Hıdırnebi Yaylası. Beatiful place in Trabzon, Akçaabat. Altitude of 1200m. There is natural beauty. xxkm form Akçabaat, 40km from Trabzon. Transportation is provided by private car or tour. Grocery store, bakery, butcher, there are picnic area in Hıdırnebi .
There are guided vehicles for transportation. The ride take 35-40 minutes.
Aya Sofya Museum. A beautiful and picturesque church converted into a mosque and later into a museum that still has stunning frescoes within—just like its namesake in Istanbul.
There is a peaceful open-air tea garden on the grounds. You can reach here by any Dolmuş marked 'Aya Sofya', which depart from the north side of Atatürk Alani square.
The ride takes 5-10 minutes, and costs about 1,5 TL. This should be one of your sights while in Trabzon.
Uzungol, a lake up in the mountains 99 km from Trabzon, 19 km from Caykara and at an altitude of 1090 m. A great number of broken rocks from the slopes filled up Haldizen stream and Uzungol was formed in this way.
The lake is 1000 m long, 500 m in width and 15 m in depth. It is surrounded by forests. Uzungol has an interesting view with the village houses around it. And there are some other small lakes on the mountains which are 15-20 km. from Uzungol.
The lake is also surrounded by convenient tracks for hiking. There are some facilities such as bungalows and some establishments which rear trout. Tourism agencies organise tours for the day in the summer.
You can use local transport to go to this place: From Trabzon's regional dolmus station 5 min walking downhill east from Atatürk Alanı there are busses (Çaykara Tur) to Uzungol via Of and Çaykara about every 75 min.
Tickets can be bought from Çaykara Tur's small office (Sanayi, Yalı Cad. / ayışık Sok. D:7, its a side street from Martı Hotel). In Uzungol the bus stops at a teahouse, which also serves as Çaykara Tur's office in Uzungol.
At the tea house check for the return schedule to Trabzon and Of 14 TL, about 2h, usually at 1.30pm, 3.45pm, 4pm, 5.15pm, 6.30pm. In high season it might be wise to buy your return ticket when arriving in Uzungol or already in Trabzon, if you intend to go back to Trabzon the same day.
The seats for the afternoon buses might sell out quickly and you might have to wait for the last evening bus. If you ask the driver he will also drop you at Trabzon's otogar.
Sumela Monastery: The monastery is closed due to some several restoration and field works should be open again in 2019. It is possible to go there and to have a look from outside, but you cannot enter the monastery. A few tours start with minibuses from Trabzon in the morning.
If you want to go on your own by public transportation though might be more expensive than joining a tour, you can go to the regional dolmus station 5 min walking downhill east from Ataturk Alanı.
There are frequent dolmus to Maçka around 10am, which may continue all the way up to Sumela monastery from Trabzon 60 TL return for 1-2 pax, less when you find more people going to Sumela and you use your bargaining skills; waiting time max 1h, what is more than sufficient, since the monastery is closed. A taxi from Maçka would cost 70-80 TL return.
Sumela Monastery which in turkish is Sümela Manastırı and Panagia Soumela, "Virgin Mary of Soumela" in Greek is a spectacular rock-hewn monastery perched dramatically on the narrow ledge of a steep cliff in the forests south of Trabzon.
It was built in the fourth century, just before the Roman Empire split into east and west, by two Athenian priests, Barnabas and Sophronius, who, according to legend, found a miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary in a cave.
The monastery's location in this geopolitically tumultuous corner of the globe naturally saw times of trouble and fell into ruin numerous times throughout its history, with its most thriving times falling under Byzantine and Ottoman rule.
The twentieth century, however, was not kind to the monastery. It was abandoned following the chaos and inter-ethnic violence at the end of World War I, and the population transfer of Trabzon's formerly Trebizond Greek population to Greece.
Its remote location gave it some sanctuary, but its frescoes still attracted the occasional casually hurled rock by a bored shepherd.
The beautiful frescoes today suffer from decades of heart-wrenchingly pointless vandalism by travelers—judging from the various alphabets and names scrawled across these impressive religious works of art, it appears that just about every culture in the world has taken part in the desecration.
The buildings themselves have been fairly heavily restored in recent decades, as the Turkish government has stepped in to protect the monastery and to turn it into a museum.
Admission is 15 TL. The simplest way to get to the monastery is by tour, and you can find a tour in town by just asking any other traveler there no tourist visits Trabzon without seeing Sümela.
The monastery lies close to Maçka, about 30 km south of Trabzon, and those preferring to get to the monastery on their own means instead of taking a tour can get to Maçka by taking minibuses heading for Gümüşhane, Erzurum or other destinations south from Trabzon.
The rest of the way, approximately 17 km to the actual site of monastery, can be done by dolmuşes from downtown Maçka although only in high-season and not during off-season, which will take you to the entrance of Altındere National Park or Milli Park.
Then, the monastery is about half an hour walk away, which can be done through a forest trail, which was recently widened in order to cope with the ever increasing numbers of visitors, or along the tarmac road leading to the monastery.
Those approaching with their own vehicles can get as near as 300 meters to Sumela itself, where there is a car-park in front of Hagia Barbara Chapel. There is an additional fee of 20 TL for cars, paid at the entrance of the national park.
Gunes Sanat Galerisi the art gallery, Zigana koy (Kalkanlı Approxmately 1 hour with bus from Trabzon eastward over the mountains towards Torul and Gumushane. This art gallery is made by mr Azmi Aytekin, a 73 year old painter and thinker from Zigana.
He has traveled around the world, and has settled in the small village Zigana also called Kalkanli near the magnificent Zigana mountains. Visit his homepage for pictures.
Trabzonspor why not watch a match of the local football team, Trabzonspor, the most successful team in Turkey outside of Istanbul. If you are in the city on a weekend, you can watch the team at the Huseyin Avni Stadium. It's about a 20-30 minute walk west of the main square.
If in doubt, ask a local Trabzonspor Stadyumu and they will point you in the correct direction.
If you're brave, try traditional Turkish bath Hamam. The men-only Hamam is right next to Efes Pub; the women-only Hamam is just around the corner. A really great authentic Turkish experience, and the people are very nice and will walk you through everything. 25 TL for a bath including a scrubbing and massage at the women's Hamam, and you should also tip your masseuse.
There is a shopping mall near Novotel called Cevahir Outlet, in Yomra town which lies 5 minutes away from Trabzon. There is a shopping mall near Ataturk Airport called Forum.
There are nice local meals really worth a try. Especially, pide and kofte are really famous with their taste in Turkey. Pide is kind of pizza which is made with a special bread and cheese. You can also try kiymali which is made with meat and served with butter.
You can find a cheap but good place near city center called Çardak Pide Salonu.
Kuzen is also a good option: no standard kebabs but for example delicious wrap-like rolls filled with hot Merkez sausage. It's in Cevdet Akcay sokak next to the modernish shopping mall on the north side of Kahraman Marash Cad.
Another special taste of Trabzon is Akcaabat koftesi which is meatballs. Made with meat, garlic and bread it's very delicious with ayran which is yogurt mixed with water and piyaz which is beans and lettuce.
There are clean and nice places in Akcaabat town such as Nihat Usta, Keyvan, Cemil Usta, Korfez Restaurant. You can have a walk and drink tea after dinner in Akcaabat Fisher Port.
Another nice place is Harran Kebap, on Kahramanmaraş Caddesi, not far from the main square.
Trabzon has the best bread in the country called Vakfikebir ekmegi. Give it a try, you won't regret it.
Lahmacun is a great thing to try, it's like a very thin pizza with mince meat on the top. They are cheap, healthy and taste very nice the only problem is a sophisticated oven is required to cook them so not all restaurants have them, but if they are possible they are well worth getting.
You usually order an Ayran with it which is a salt youghurt drink that aids digestion.
All food in Trabzon is cooked to a high hygienic standard, and additionally most restaurants give you free hand wipes to clean your hands before and after eating food.
Hamsi Balik - Anchovies or sprat is also a good option.
Time's Coffee Restaurant, K. Maraş Cad. İpekyolu İş Merkezi Kat. This restaurant is a really hip and popular place among Trabzon locals. It has a pretty standard menu of a Turkish/Mexican/Italian fusion with lots of sweets.
Their profiterol is good and so are the herbal teas, but the best is their breakfast with kuymak. The place is frequented by local professionals and students because of its hidden place on the seventh floor of an office building.
On the wall are many clocks with various times, decorated under the concept that this place is a place to forget the actual time and enjoy the present. The owner, Mehmet, really make you feel at home.
There are only a few restaurants in the center serving alcohol. Among them Bordo Mavi in the garden of clubhouse of Trabzonspor. Thankfully, the popular Efes Pub is right off Ataturk Square, just down the street from the Burger King.
They only serve snacks like fries and peanuts, but are open until midnight. Ladies, note that the far half of the bar is for men only.
For those longing for real European-style coffee, Keyif Coffee & Tea Store has a huge selection of Tea listing them by area and even Tea Estate and first rate Cappachino. They are hidden within the shopping complex Canbakkal İş Merkezi, a few blocks to the west of Ataturk Alani square.
You can ask at the tourist information on Attaturk square Atatürk Alanı where they know about different accomodations. At small, but a little bit more expensive hotels, you can also try to bargain a cheaper price than the first one offered to you.
The area around Iskenderpaşa Cami and Atatürk Alanı Meydan Parkı is full of hotels of various quality and price range. The cheapest hotels are down from Ataturk Square towards the port, but they usually function as unofficial brothels.
By European standards the area is safe, however, and the prostitutes quite discreet. Between those hotels, Hotel Erzurum was acceptable and frequented by backpackers.
Hotel Nur, Iskenderpasa Mah. Cami Sokak Next to the tourist office. They speak some English.
Hotel Benli, I. Paşa Mah. Iskenderpaşa Camii Yanı Noç: 5, 61100 Trabzon near the square Ataturk Alanı, directly at Iskenderpaşa mosque Iskenderpaşa Cami. Cheapest hotel in town by June 2014 (tourist information), clean, shared showers and toilets.
Hotel Erzurum, Iskenderpaşa Mh. Guzelhisar Cd. 19 100 mt below the square Ataturk Alanı, between Yuvan and Anil Hotels, and next to Nazar Hotel. Nice quiet hotel. Rooms come with own bathroom and TV. Wireless Lan. Friendly staff. No safety problems for solo lady travelers.
However, noise from outside was an issue on some nights. Still a good option if you are traveling on a budget though. 40 TL pp, no single rooms.
Some of the upmarket hotels in Trabzon are Zorlu Grand Otel and Novotel. Zorlu Grand Otel is in downtown Trabzon, at Maraş Street. Novotel is some distance out of Trabzon, in Yomra a town close to Trabzon but it takes only ten minutes from city centre with a car or dolmuş (bus) to get there.
Otel Benli, Iskenderpaşa Mah. Meydan Cami Sk. No:5. Very basic hotel but with warm water, clean, 50mt from Atatürk Alanı main square and budget-friendly.. Might easily bargain down to 10 TL pp, especially off-season. 10-20 TL pp.
Anil Otel, Guzelhisar Cad 12 just off Ataturk Alanı square. Exceptionally helpful staff, clean and bright rooms, great breakfast, a lobby where you can actually sit and relax. Excellent value for a budget hotel. 40 TL/single.
Adelante Hostel, Çiftehamam sokak .No:1 Ortahisar Trabzon. Adelante is a Hostel the first guest-house-hostel in Trabzon, located very near to the city centre. Full breakfast and wi-fi are both included in the price. In the house also they speak spanish and english. The perfect place for students and travellers. Capacity: 3 rooms/4 beds in each room £15(€13aprox)pp/night.
Every hour and 30min after each full hour buses from Prenskale company leave Trabzon's otogar bus station from morning to evening to Pazar (14 TL, less than 2h, tickets can be bought on the day of travel via Rize. The same buses usually continue until Hopa or even Batumi.
From Pazar you can connect by dolmus to Ayder at 14 TL, 45min via Çamlıhemşin during daytime.
Buses leave Trabzon's otogar for Kars near the ancient ruins of Ani at Midnight, arriving 8AM-9AM.
A direct bus to Dogubeyazıt leaves at 10PM, arriving 10AM.
Ulusoy buses for Erzurum leave at 7AM, 10AM, noon and later in the evening, arriving 5 hours later. 25 TL.
Mid-size buses every hour from Trabzon's otogar towards Torul and Gumuşhane. Last bus in the evening: 8 PM.
There are also long distance buses to other major Turkish destinations e.g. Istanbul, Goreme, Sivas, Izmir etc but it's a good idea to book these ahead of when you travel. There are many travel / ticket agent shops who can help you with this around Ataturk Alani, the main square in Trabzon.
There are many times of couch buses to Batumi per day. It takes about 4 hours.
Tourism Observer
