Adana: What to Know Before You Go

Short answer: central Adana is flat and organized along the green banks of the Seyhan River, you never pay extra for the ten dishes of salad and flat bread served automatically with your Adana kebab, always specify "mild" (acısız) when ordering your glass of purple şalgam for the first time, and tap any contactless Visa or Mastercard on city buses.

How Adana is Laid Out Along the Seyhan River

The wide Seyhan River flows from north to south right through the middle of Adana, dividing the city into two main districts: historic and commercial Seyhan on the western bank, and residential Yüreğir on the eastern bank:

• The Historic Riverfront & Old Town (Kuruköprü, Tepebağ & Ulucami): anchored by the pedestrianised 310-metre Roman Stone Bridge (Taşköprü) and the monumental Sabancı Central Mosque. Directly behind the mosque on the western river bluff rises the historic mound of Tepebağ, dropping south into the 16th-century Ulu Cami, Great Clock Tower (Büyük Saat) and Kazancılar Bazaar.
• The Green Park & Café Belt (Merkez Park, Ziyapaşa & Gazipaşa): stretching for three kilometres north of Sabancı Mosque along both banks of the river is 33-hectare Merkez Park, bordered to the west by the plane-tree-shaded shopping and café boulevards of Ziyapaşa, Gazipaşa and Atatürk Caddesi, and opening north onto the vast inland sea of Seyhan Dam Lake.

Three Local Rules at an Adana Kebab Table

First, never order starter salads or bread at a traditional Adana kebapçı: the moment you order a single portion (bir porsiyon) or a "half-and-half" skewer of Adana kebab, waiters automatically cover your entire table with 8 to 10 complimentary plates of sumac-and-pomegranate red onion salad (tablacı salatası), ezme, charred tomatoes, pickled chillies and warm butter-brushed flatbread. Second, when ordering şalgam suyu (fermented purple carrot and turnip juice), ask for acısız (mild) with a dash of spicy pepper sauce on the side. Third, remember that in July and August midday temperatures hit 37°C, sightsee during core daytime hours and return to the riverside parks in the early evening.

New Airport Note (COV) and Contactless Cards

Commercial flights serving Adana and Mersin now operate out of the modern Çukurova International Airport (COV), located 35 minutes west of central Adana via 24/7 Havamaş shuttle coaches. Inside the city, contactless bank cards work at all municipal bus and Metro validators.