The Guardian recently included Türkiye’s southeast region of Gaziantep as one of the best places to visit this year. The city has remained off the radar for most until recently due to its proximity to war-torn Syria, but it’s now enjoying a comeback, as its history, culture, and food are phenomenal. Here’s a look at Türkiye’s culinary capital, its famous baklava, and other great reasons to visit Gaziantep.

About Gaziantep

Gaziantep (Antep) is one of Türkiye’s hidden gems. You won’t find the city featured on many superyacht itineraries, but for those keen to escape the tourists, it is a place to take a tour and undoubtedly worth visiting.

Gaziantep is vibrant and interesting. It’s an ancient city dating back to the Neolithic period that once flourished along the Euphrates River. The old town is filled with museums, Seljuk and Ottoman architecture, historic sites, cafés, and local restaurants serving incredible cuisine – all excellent reasons to visit Gaziantep.

Enjoy The World’s Best Pistachio Baklava

It’s impossible to talk about Gaziantep to an audience with a chef onboard without first mentioning the local cuisine, as Gaziantep is Türkiye’s culinary capital, a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy, and a must-visit for all adventurous foodies.

The region is famed for many dishes, including kebabs, soups, local bread, and desserts, so watch out for a post on the best dishes from Gaziantep in the coming weeks. But for now, let’s focus on baklava, as the city produces the best pistachio baklava in the world.

Pistachios (fistic) are a big deal in Gaziantep, and these little nuts are farmed and exported in great quantities. Each September, the pistachios are harvested, but for use in local baklava, pistachios are picked early to ensure they contain an optimum protein count and the least fat content.

You will immediately notice the difference between regular pistachios and those from Gaziantep, as they have a stronger, more nutty taste and don’t require green additives to give them their vibrant colour. These delicious nuts are sold throughout Türkiye, and chefs prize them for their quality and flavour. Pistachios are showcased in many of Gazianteps regional dishes and desserts, but none more so than the phyllo pastry delight that is baklava.

The café culture in Gaziantep is fabulous, and over 180 patisseries in the city serve baklava as the main event. Over recent years many of the historic old buildings have been refurbished and are now home to restaurants and dessert houses serving perfect mouthfuls of this well-loved dessert to eager locals and travellers. Enjoying fresh baklava in Gaziantep is a highlight, but if you can’t pay a visit to sample and fetch some for yourself, let us know. The 360 Yachting Provisions Team will organise a selection of Türkiye’s best baklava to be delivered to the yacht.

Things To Do In Gaziantep

Aside from cafe hopping and enjoying dessert, there are many other reasons to visit Gaziantep. Other popular sites of interest include:

Visit Zeugma Mosaic Museum and View the Roman Mosaics

The Zeugma Mosaic Museum is the world’s largest mosaic museum and one of Gaziantep’s main attractions. It is home to many great examples of ancient Roman mosaics, from large, intricately bordered floor mosaics depicting ancient Gods and legends to stunning wall panels and religious pieces. The most famous mosaic at the museum is titled The Gypsy Girl, found in a dedicated room on the second floor. This beautiful mosaic is often called the Mona Lisa of Zeugma due to her intense gaze and eyes.

Gaziantep Castle (Kale)

If you want a birds-eye view of the city, visit Gaziantep castle. This Seljuk-era citadel is built on top of a Byzantine fortress, and the site once played an essential role in the fight for freedom from the French. Aside from the views, the castle is also home to the Gaziantep Defence and Heroism Panoramic Museum, where displays pay tribute to the people of Antep that defended the city during the War of Independence.

The Gaziantep Coppersmith Bazaar

Gaziantep feels a world away from the coastal resorts and is a city deeply rooted in tradition, where copper has been skilfully shaped and moulded for centuries. A trip to the Coppersmith Bazaar will likely surprise you as you see coppersmiths using age-old techniques to create traditional tea sets, plates, and pans. Unlike some of the bustling tourist bazaars where you’re beckoned to haggle and buy the goods by over-eager traders, this bazaar is far more atmospheric and laid back, with little hassle, simply the opportunity to browse copper and a good selection of other handmade goods and leather items.

Pick Up Souvenirs and Sandals at Bedesten Zincirli

Another historic bazaar worth visiting in Gaziantep is Bedesten Zincirli. This old indoor trading warehouse has around 70 stalls selling all sorts of locally produced souvenirs, from silk scarves and Turkish pottery to jewellery, fabrics, spices, artwork, and traditional local sandals. You may hear the market referred to as the Meat Hall, as it was once a butcher’s market, but this name certainly doesn’t conjure up an accurate representation of what the building is like today, as its impressive vaulted ceiling and interior market is an Aladdin’s cave of interesting take-homes.

Rumkale

The former Euphrates riverside fortress of Rumkale (Roman Castle) is found between Gaziantep and Sanliurfa. It is Roman in origin, but the site has a long past and was also occupied by Byzantine and Armenian warlords during the Middle Ages, followed by the Mamluks of Egypt and the Ottomans.

Today, Rumkale towers over a lake due to the building of the Birecik Dam and is accessible by boat from Zeugma or the town of Halfeti. Those who want to visit tend to do so, as it is in a hollowed room here that John the Apostle is said to have stayed and written a copy of The Bible during the Roman Empire.

Explore The Half-Sunken Town of Halfeti

The semi-submerged town of Halfeti is one of Türkiye’s most unique sites and a place where old buildings and minarets poke up from the depths of translucent former river waters.

Much of the town is now an underwater museum, having become a sunken city in the 1990s when the construction of the Birecik Dam caused large sections of the town to become flooded. Halfeti is today split into two sections, the new and old, with the latter still visible under the river’s clear waters. A visit is a real delight as you can marvel at semi-submerged stone houses, the underwater ruins of an old palace and castle, and take photos of the top of Savasan Koy minaret, the main signature image of Halfeti. A visit to the town can easily be combined with a trip to nearby Rumkale.

ORGANISE A BESPOKE TRIP TO GAZIANTEP

360° Yachting can organise trips, excursions, and short breaks away to beautiful locations in Türkiye, not just the towns and attractions that appear on the mainstream listings. If you would like us to arrange a bespoke trip to Gaziantep to sample the fine local cuisine and visit any of the places mentioned, please CONTACT US.