Best Things to Do in Adana

Adana combines a breezy, green riverfront and 3,500-year-old Cilician archaeology with dramatic mountain gorges in the Taurus range and one of the most celebrated culinary cultures in the Mediterranean. Here are the ten experiences that define a visit.

1. Walk across the 4th-century Roman Stone Bridge (Taşköprü) to Sabancı Central Mosque. Stroll the 310-metre car-free Roman bridge Built by architect Auxentius in 385 AD straight to the six minarets and riverfront gardens of the largest mosque in the southern Mediterranean.
2. Explore the 1541 Ramazanoğlu Ulu Cami, 1882 Great Clock Tower and Kazancılar Bazaar. Admire Mamluk black-and-white marble and 16th-century Iznik tiles, stand beneath Turkey's tallest historic clock tower, and watch copper-smiths and banana-milk makers in the old souk.
3. Take the morning train or drive to the 1912 Varda (German) Viaduct and Kapıkaya Canyon. Stand beneath the 99-metre-high stone railway bridge made famous in the opening scene of James Bond's Skyfall, then walk the flat riverside trail through Kapıkaya Canyon.
4. Tour the New Adana Archaeology Museum Complex. Housed in a restored 1907 National Textile Factory, displaying the bronze statue of the Hittite Storm God Tarhunzas on a chariot, the Achilles Sarcophagus and Roman Orpheus mosaics.

5. Climb to UNESCO-Tentative Anavarza Ancient City and Crusader Yılankale. Walk through a triple-arched 3rd-century Roman triumphal gate and 1,500-metre double city walls on the Çukurova plain.
6. Stroll or cycle the 33-hectare Merkez Park and Seyhan Dam Lake (Adnan Menderes Bulvarı). Cross suspension footbridges over the river and watch sunset over the islands of Seyhan Lake with a bowl of rose-scented bici bici.
7. Discover the 19th-century mansions of Tepebağ, the Cinema Museum and Atatürk Museum. Celebrate Adana's Golden Boll film heritage in restored riverside stone mansions.
8. Savour authentic hand-chopped Adana kebabı and dawn liver in Kazancılar. Taste the difference that crescent-knife (zırh) mincing makes over oak charcoal.

9. Take the 30-minute train west to Tarsus (St Paul's Well, Cleopatra's Gate and Roman Road). Explore the 6,000-year-old capital of Cilicia just half an hour from Adana Station.
10. Cool off in the Taurus mountains at Belemedik Nature Park or Yumurtalık. Hike through railway tunnels in the Taurus gorge or swim on the Mediterranean coast at Yumurtalık.