Türkiye's ancient cities: Where world history and fables come to life

Traveling across Türkiye is a practice of remembering. Stepping foot in the city of Izmir, just an hour-long flight from Istanbul, I was instantly immersed in history. A visit to the local Culture and Arts Factory, which once stood as a tobacco factory in the 19th century, lays out Türkiye’s rich history with displays of headless statues and intricate sarcophagi.

For breakfast, my companions and I were served with a sweet dish called Asure, and the chef told us it stems from the legend of Noah’s Ark — once the Ark landed safely, Noah and his family gathered the last remaining bits of food and cooked them together as a means of celebration.

And that was just the beginning.

Izmir City is the pearl of the Aegean coast, but there's more to be unearthed in its nearby towns and provinces — the journeys of Saint Paul, the mythology of the Greek and Roman gods and goddesses, the city of the Gladiators. The best place to find these stories, of course, is in the well-preserved ruins of Türkiye’s ancient cities — starting with Hierapolis in the neighboring province of Denizli.

Hierapolis and Pamukkale, Denizli

White terraces and thermal waters paint a picture of Pamukkale. The town is known for its shimmering travertines, a form of limestone formed by spring waters, a perfect example of how history and nature intersect in the province of Denizli.

Nearby lies the ruins of Hierapolis, an ancient city once known for its hot springs. Founded by Eumenes II, king of Pergamum, The city got its name from Hiera, the wife of Telephus, the supposed founder of Pergamon's Attalid dynasty.

It took us an hours-long bus ride to reach this place from Izmir City. Upon arrival, our tour guide, Huseyin Demir, loaded us on a buggy and brought us to the highest point of Hierapolis, where an ancient Roman theatre sat looming over the ruins. We sat on the stone benches that once was able to hold 12,000 spectators, and stared at the stage below, listening to the echoes of laughter of our fellow tourists.

The vaguely eerie experience was worth the trip, I decided.

Returning to the travertines downhill, we walked barefoot along the terraces, wading through the icy thermal waters — and if I slipped on the moss and fell to my knees, well, the scar is just another memory I get to keep, and a cautionary tale for everyone else.

Kibyra Ancient City, Burdur

Nothing is quite as enchanting as the Kibyra Ancient City in the province of Burdur. After close to a two-hour bus ride from Denizli, we arrived near sundown, and in the dying light, we beheld the remnants of what was once an important city of the Roman civilization: the agora, built around a columned shopping street, the orchestra section in the odeon, and the 2,000-year-old fountain that is now able to spout out spring water after its restoration.

Amazingly, the famed mosaic of Medusa remains intact on the ground of the ancient music hall in red, green, and gray. It wasn't reconstructed, Huseyin stressed.

And interestingly, the stadium, which used to accommodate 10,000 people, is believed to have hosted epic gladiator competitions, earning Kibyra its title, “City of Gladiators.”

As Kibyra is located on mountainous slopes, the walk from the agora back to the entrance rewarded us with a priceless view: the town of Gölhisar, twinkling in the dusk.

Kaleiçi, Antalya

Antalya was the last stop in our five-day adventure in Türkiye, and nothing could have prepared me for its charm. We stayed in its historic center, Kaleiçi, also known as Antalya’s Old Town, which bore remains of an ancient walled city.

In my exhaustion after a long day’s journey from Burdur, I barely registered Hadrian’s Gate when we arrived late in the night. In the morning, we got a better view: the memorial gate, which used to be the entrance of the city, and the grooves on the pavement left behind by cart wheels in the olden times. Due to its geographical location — on top of a natural cliff overlooking the Mediterranean Sea — it was a city that placed importance in defense, as it was vulnerable to raids by pirates and rival empires. This enclosed city was a place where past meets present.

Kaleiçi is a labyrinth of cobblestone streets, Ottoman houses, boutiques, and cafes. What functioned as a sort of north star for me and my companions was the Saat Kulesi, the Clock Tower, located in the city center (conveniently close to a Migros Supermarket).

Outside, the Mediterranean waters surrounded us. Apparently, Antalya holds the world record for having the highest number of Blue Flag-certified beaches — an eco-label awarded to destinations that meet high environmental and safety standards — at 233. While we didn’t go for a swim, the warm sun and salty sea breeze were enough to imprint on us the taste of a happy summer day. 

Perge Ancient City, Antalya

It was hot in Perge. The sun beat down on us during our tour in the ancient city, coloring everything in gold and burnt orange: the sculptures, the marble pillars, the remnants of the Roman baths, the columned main street.

At the ancient market, we spotted a chunk of rock on the ground bearing the shape of a fish. It probably meant that one of the shops used to sell seafood, our tour guide said.

It was a fascinating glimpse at what Roman public life could have looked like.

Perge also has a place in Christian history. No less than Saint Paul is said to have arrived in the city via the Aksu River during one of his missionary journeys.

Inside an enclosed stadium, my companions and I took a photo together because — “We’re standing on history!”

But what I’ll remember most is that it was really hot. No wonder the Roman baths had a chamber called a "frigidarium." It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what could have meant.

Side Ancient City, Antalya

Nothing could have capped our historical trip better than Side. It’s not a place where past and present simply meet — rather, they coexist. The ruins of the ancient city are preserved perfectly alongside a lively modern seaside town. Walking around the city center, you step over glass flooring that shows remnants of crumbled buildings below. New houses stand beside the shards and pieces of the homes that fell long ago.  

When night brought out the shadows, we were beckoned by the sight of strobe lights near the distance. We walked past a restaurant that was loud with live music, and eventually reached a massive set of ancient pillars — the Temple of Apollo, built in dedication to the god during the Roman period. Beyond the structure, there was a dance recital for children happening on stage. We sat on large white stones and basked in the night, before heading to the seaside where we enjoyed the view of what was once Pamphylia’s most vital port.

We passed a line of seaside restaurants and trekked through a bustling shopping street on our way back to our bus, and I kept thinking of Apollo, and Roman gladiators, and Saint Paul, and centuries worth of human stories preserved in one country. It’s undoubtedly my favorite part of visiting Türkiye — feeling as if I was in the stories I used to read and love in childhood.

I told our guide Huseyin this, and he said, “This is truly where history comes alive.”

“Take Troy, for example,” he continued. “Everyone knows the story of Troy and Helen of Troy, but most people don’t realize it’s here, in modern-day Turkey — in the ancient region of Asia Minor, or Anatolia. When visitors learn that, they’re amazed. It’s wonderful to connect those stories from books to the real places.”

And the country knows the importance of its own heritage. Half of the sites we visited had ongoing excavations. In 2024, the number of archaeological works reached 765, Huseyin said; the number is expected to reach 800 in 2026.

In Türkiye, the past isn’t contained in the books we used to read — it lives in marble, stone, sunlight, and the gentle murmur of thermal waters. Noah's Ark is in the sweet soup, Medusa is on the mosaic floor, and there's a deity in every city.

There are places where myth and memory blur until history feels alive, and Türkiye is the best of them. 

This trip was sponsored by Turkish Airlines and the Turkish Ministry of Tourism. —LA, GMA Integrated News