Izmir

Curving around the deep natural amphitheatre of the Gulf of Izmir on Turkey's central Aegean coast, Izmir is the country's third-largest metropolis and its most relaxed, outward-looking seaside city. Instead of turning its back on the water, daily life here flows along miles of continuous waterfront lawns, cycle tracks and tram lines where ferries crisscross the bay between Konak, Alsancak and the northern shore of Karşıyaka.

Behind the palm-lined quays, 8,500 years of urban history unfold from the multi-storey Roman stone arches of the Agora of Smyrna and the hilltop ramparts of Kadifekale down into the 17th-century caravanserais of Kemeraltı Bazaar. Within an hour of downtown stretch the stone windmill alleys of Alaçatı and Çeşme, the olive groves and wineries of Urla, and the ancient marble cities of Ephesus and Pergamon. Start with our before-you-go briefing and top things to do in Izmir.

Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport (ADB) sits 18 kilometres south of the city centre and has its own dedicated station on the İZBAN suburban rail line, linking the terminals directly with central Alsancak and the Metro interchanges at Hilal and Halkapınar in under half an hour, alongside Havaş coaches to Alsancak and Karşıyaka. Within the city, a rechargeable İzmirim Kart or any contactless Visa/Mastercard covers the Metro, Konak and Karşıyaka trams, buses and İzdeniz bay ferries. See getting to Izmir and how ferries and trams work.

For a city-and-day-trip stay, base yourself in Alsancak or Pasaport to walk out to the Kordon seafront promenade, fish restaurants and ferry piers every evening, or stay around Konak and Çankaya for immediate access to Kemeraltı Bazaar and the Metro. If you are visiting in summer primarily for beaches, windsurfing and vineyard dinners, split your nights between central Izmir and a stone boutique hotel in Alaçatı, Urla or Sığacık. We compare all options in where to stay in Izmir.

Start at the 1901 marble Konak Clock Tower and lose yourself in the coffee courtyards of Kemeraltı Bazaar, ride the historic 1907 Asansör cliff lift in Karataş, walk the subterranean water channels of the Roman Agora, watch sunset over the bay from the Kordon or Bostanlı, and take day trips to Ephesus, Pergamon and Urla. Full list in things to do in Izmir.

Izmir's cuisine blends Levantine, Sephardic Jewish, Cretan, Balkan and Anatolian traditions around olive oil and wild Aegean herbs. Begin the morning like a local with warm, flaky unleavened boyoz pastries and a slow-roasted oven egg (fırınlanmış yumurta), order a hot toasted kumru sandwich packed with tulum cheese and grilled sausage at lunch, and spend the evening over cold wild-greens meze (deniz börülcesi and şevketi bostan) and grilled sea bream along the water. Read more in our Izmir street food guide and Aegean meze and seafood.

Founded at Yeşilova Höyüğü around 6500 BC and refounded on the slopes of Mount Pagos by Alexander the Great in the 4th century BC, cosmopolitan Smyrna flourished for centuries as a multi-faith Aegean trading port where Ottoman Muslims, Greeks, Levantine Europeans, Armenians and Sephardic Jews shaped its architecture, music and table.