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Contrary to popular belief, Istanbul is not the capital of Turkey. That designation goes to Ankara, the modern-yet-ancient city perched on the high steppes of Anatolia. Rapid and haphazard growth has created a somewhat ugly landscape, but there is still a ton of stuff to see and do. And while the dusty steppe may seem stark, local politicians have made an effort to plant trees all over the city to spruce things up.
At first glance, Ankara appears to be an uninspiring landscape of modern, Soviet-style concrete monstrosities. However, Ankara was ancient when the Greeks arrived more than 2,500 years ago. This long history is on full display with historic castles, great museums, and a still-standing Roman heritage dotted around the city.
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Ankara is absolutely worth a stop on a visit to Turkey. Its location makes it an easy transition point between Istanbul and Cappadocia, two of Turkey’s main tourist hotspots. If you can spare two or so nights in Ankara, you’ll find there is more than enough to occupy your time.
Getting In
As the capital of Turkey, Ankara understandably gets a ton of flights from all over the rest of the country. Ankara Esenboga Airport is a big facility with an attractive, open design. It was constructed out of the same kind of stone as Anıtkabir, Ataturk’s Mausoleum. In addition to the many domestic flights, there are also several daily international flights. Most of these are to London or big cities in Germany.
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Esenboga Airport is a bit far from the city center. Worse still, there is little in the way of public transportation into town. An airport bus service departs from outside the arrivals terminal to AŞTİ, the city’s main bus terminal, with a few stops along the way. Otherwise, the best option to avoid possibly dishonest taxi drivers is to use Uber, which works all over Ankara.
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Ankara is served by Turkey’s YHT high speed rail network. Trains connect Istanbul with Ankara in around four and a half hours, and Ankara with Konya in about ninety minutes. More high speed rail is currently in development. There are also night trains from Ankara to destinations like Kars and Diyarbakir further east, though these take a very long time. The YHT terminal is centrally located, housed in a modern glass-and-steel structure that offers all sorts of amenities and services.
Travel by bus is very popular in Turkey. The network is well-developed and quite comfortable. Buses go from Istanbul to Ankara in around 6 hours. The huge AŞTİ terminal serves inter-city buses. The terminal is very modern and features lots of services like LED departure screens and ticket desks. Major bus companies include Metro Turizm and Pamukkale; you can book both online, though there is rarely a need to book ahead.
Getting Around
Ankara has a very confusing layout, with winding freeways separating neighborhoods, large slums adjacent to sleek modern business districts, and undeveloped hills above densely populated valleys. Some neighborhoods are very walkable, but getting between them might mean crossing a ten-lane highway or passing through a crumbling slum. Naturally, Google Maps will be your friend here, since navigation can be such a challenge.
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There are two competing bus companies that serve Ankara: EGO and OHO. They run the same routes and stop at the same stops, but you’ll pay with a transit card on EGO (also used for the metro) but only with cash on OHO buses. There is very little information about schedules online or in person. Ask you hotel concierge for help or be prepared to wait.
Ankara’s metro system has four lines: M1, M2, M3, and M4. Useful stops for tourists include Ulus, Kızılay, and Sihhiye in the city center and Anadolu, which is close to Anıtkabir. Transit cards are available from self-service kiosks or ticket booths inside metro stations, though I’ve found that not all these booths are always staffed. You can only pay for transit cards with cash. Just tap the card on the turnstile for the metro or at the readers onboard buses.
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The metro is a reasonably good means of getting around Ankara, since it stops close to important tourist attractions. This isn’t the case with Ankara’s suburban rail, which goes out to suburbs that have little to offer the traveler.
Taxis are ever-present. Stick to official ones and be vigilant about meter use. Taxi drivers have a dishonest reputation the world over, and this is especially true in Turkey. Uber also works and is a better option for getting around.
Anıtkabir
Ankara’s biggest international and domestic tourist attraction is the tomb complex of Ataturk, founder of modern Turkey. The sprawling marble complex is surrounded by a forested hill park, which absorbs the chaotic din of city traffic and creates a peaceful atmosphere. The monument feels a lot like the ones out in Washington DC.
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Walking up the road through the park, visitors first come to a grand staircase, which leads up to the Path of Honor, lined with stone lions. This leads to the grandiose central plaza; the mausoleum is on the right. The rest of the plaza is surrounded by arcades which provide impressive views of Ankara.
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Ataturk’s Mausoleum is the main feature of the site; his sarcophagus is at the back of the imposing, unornamented main hall. Visitors can walk through the hall to view the tomb but are expected to always show decorum and respect. Ataturk founded modern Turkey out of the ruins of the Ottoman Empire; he is still revered like a saint even today.
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There is a large museum within the columned walls of the complex. It discusses the War of Independence (from the Turkish perspective of course), Ataturk, and the foundation and early years of modern Turkey. Some of the exhibits are quite interesting, especially the old pictures from the 1920s and 30s. Some may find the museum dry, however.
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Anıtkabir is free to enter and visit. Opening hours are 9am to 4:30pm. It gets busiest with school and domestic bus tour groups at midmorning.
Ankara Castle
This impressive hilltop fortress was built during Ottoman times, but it has much older foundations. Within the high walls, winding, cobbled streets lead up to the citadel at the crest of the hill. From the inner citadel, the fortifications rise to a point at the Eastern Tower. There are spectacular views of the whole city from up top (and the biting wind of the steppe). It is certainly a bleak landscape, but beautiful in its own way.
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The walled inner citadel has a ton of cafes and tourist shops to browse through. Ankara Castle is free to enter, including the fortifications up top. It gets popular with domestic tourists, but rarely overcrowded. The main gate into the castle is right across from the Erimtan Museum, and up the road from the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations.
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Gençlik Park
Ankara is very green for such a dry, bleak surrounding landscape. Gençlik is an outright miracle: trees, manicured green lawns, and a blue man-made lake with fountains. This is one of several such parks scattered across the city, and all are a welcome break from the dreary concrete jungle.
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Gençlik Park sits right in the center of the city, adjacent to several transportation hubs. Ulus Metro Stop is on the north edge of the park, and the YHT high speed train terminal is on the south edge. A network of paths and lakefront promenades crisscross the park.
There are also amusement park rides at one end of the park, including a ferris wheel. The lake has a nightly fountain and light show performance as well. Overall, there is a ton to experience at Gençlik Park.
Museum of Anatolian Civilizations
This is one of the finest museums in Turkey. The Museum of Anatolian Civilizations focuses on the ancient cultures that passed through Central Anatolia: Hittites, Assyrians, Urartians, Phrygians, and more. Other museums in Turkey focus on classical civilizations like the Greeks and the Romans, so this museum stands out as distinct.
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The Museum of Anatolian Civilizations is a piece of history in its own right: the building was built by the Ottomans some 500 years ago. As you peruse the exhibits, the stone walls and domed ceilings make history feel alive. Some museums are sterile; this one most certainly is not.
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Enter through the front entrance from the courtyard. Turn right for the first section, which displays artifacts from the earliest days of Anatolian civilization. Some of the highlights come from Catalhoyuk, a Neolithic village founded at the dawn of history. For example, the oldest city map ever found is on display.
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After this section, you’ll pass through the Hittites, Phrygians, Assyrians, Urartians, and other sections, each represented by an astonishing array of artifacts. One of my favorite sections is the cuneiform display; there is a large case full of tablets and translated descriptions. Other things that drew my attention were the inlaid wooden pieces from the Phrygian culture and the beautiful examples of metalwork from the Urartian culture.
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The center of the museum houses the Stone Hall, which showcases the best examples of stone statues and reliefs from around Anatolia. Not only are there bas reliefs and friezes, but even giant statues of gods and kings.
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The museum has a Greek and Roman collection down in the basement. It is interesting but pales in comparison to the other exhibits.
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Entry is 150 TL or with a Turkey Museum Pass. Opening hours are 8:30am to 7pm.
Erimtan Museum of Civilization
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Located further up the street from the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations, the Erimtan Museum is a good next stop. This small and modern museum space feels very different from its neighbor. The collection spans from 3000 BC up to the Byzantine era, so it feels more balanced than the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations. Most of the displayed objects are Greek or Roman, however. This is also a nice contrast.
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Inside, the museum is small but open. You can see both levels from the ticket office, which keeps the space from feeling claustrophobic. Displays are very engaging; artifacts are lit up and viewable from multiple angles or ensconsed into the walls. Another thing I love about the museum is the span of material displayed: ceramics, metals, glass, jewels, and woodcarvings.
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Ermitan Museum focuses on quality instead of quality, and you can spend plenty of time with each piece. This does mean fewer overall artifacts to see, but there is still more than enough here to fill out at least an hour. In addition, the museum has a café with a patio out back if you need a recharge after museum hopping. Finally, a small but well-stocked gift shop rounds out the museum’s offerings.
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Tickets to the Erimtan Museum are 40 TL. Opening hours are 10am to 6pm, last entry at 5:45pm. However, the museum is closed on Mondays so plan ahead.
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Victory Monument
Ankara is a city of monuments and museums, and these are for the glory of Turkey in the same way that the monuments and museums of Washington DC represent America. One such example is the Victory Monument, which depicts Ataturk, father of Turkey, on horseback. It was built in 1927 and is one of the rare few examples of a Turkish monument with Arabic inscription. This is because Ataturk dropped the Arabic script in favor of an adapted Latin alphabet as part of is efforts to modernize and Westernize Turkey.
The Victory Monument stands at the center of Ulus Square, which is always bustling with automobile and pedestrian traffic. You can pass it when going from the Haci Bayram Mosque or the Roman Baths to Ankara Castle and the museums, or vice versa.
Julian’s Column
This 4th century column is a great example of Ankara’s hidden-in-plain-site Roman heritage. It was built for Julian the Apostate, Rome’s last pagan emperor, to commemorate his passing through on the way to war with Persia.
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Julian’s Column is in a courtyard at the entrance to a university building. Cross the street from Haci Bayram Mosque and it’s right there. It isn’t much to look at, but it is still worth passing by.
Haci Bayram Mosque
Haci Bayram Mosque is an important 15th century pilgrimage site named after a famous Ottoman poet and mystic of the Sufi order. It is set in a bustling yet peaceful park atop a low hill. The area immediately around the mosque garden has lots of shops and cafes in restored Ottoman houses. I didn’t go inside because there was some sort of pilgrimage-related activity going on and I didn’t wish to disrupt that, but visitors can usually go inside in between prayer times.
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The remaining wall of the 1st century AD Temple of Augustus stands just outside the walls of the mosque. This was a very important archaeological site, though little remains. It spent a time as a Byzantine church before falling into disrepair.
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The mosque complex also affords excellent views of Ankara Castle from a terrace on the east side.
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Roman Baths
Ankara’s most extensive Roman site is the 3rd century baths complex located just north of the Victory Monument in Ulus Square. Emperor Caracalla had these baths built; he also built the more famous ones that still bear his name in Rome.
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Only the basement and ruins of the first floor remain today, but even this is enough to stir the imagination. Visitors can see remnants of the caldarium (hot water), tepidarium (warm water), and frigidarium (cold water) sections of the baths.
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In addition to the baths, a path winds through the grassy park around the complex. There are hundreds of short stone carvings alongside the path. Not only can you see the baths from all angles, but the complex is on a bit of a knoll. This means you can also get a nice view of the surrounding district.
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Entrance to the baths complex is around 40 TL. Bring cash and expect to wait a minute or two if the ticket booth is empty: someone will come along eventually. The site is open from 10am to 4:30pm year-round.
Ankamall
If the cold Anatolian steppes and dreary concrete landscape are getting to you, pop into Ankamall for a few hours and immerse yourself in Western consumerist culture. Ankamall is a large, modern, American-style shopping mall located in the northwest section of the city. As the second largest shopping center in Turkey, you can find just about anything in here. There is a good mix of Western and domestic stores and restaurants.
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Ankamall has a big food court with American and Turkish chain restaurants. This is helpful since most of these have staff that speak at least a little English. And if you desperately need an American-style cheeseburger, you have options.
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There’s a metro stop in the parking lot, so it is very easy to get to Ankamall from other parts of the city. I found that many parts of Ankara gets a bit too dark to comfortably/safely walk around after dark, so the mall is a good option if you want to stroll a bit past nightfall. Ankamall is open from 10am to 10pm.
Final Thoughts
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Ankara is one of the unusual cases where a country’s capital city is underrated and under visited. Turkey’s equivalent of London, Athens, or Rome is Istanbul, but Istanbul is only the historic capital, not the modern one. Ankara is a very different city to Istanbul, and many visitors bypass it altogether. However, I think Ankara, as challenging as it may be to visit, is still an important destination when visiting Turkey.
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Cities like Istanbul and Antalya are focused largely on tourism, while Izmir is Turkey’s most Western-minded city. The furthest east you go in Turkey, the deeper you can dive into Turkish culture. Ankara is a business and political city, so while there are Western aspects, it feels much more like a Turkish city than do more tourist-frequented ones. It may not be the prettiest, and it may seem chaotic in all the wrong ways at times, but Ankara is still worth a visit. Whether you come to Ankara on a city break or as a stopover on the way to Cappadocia, you’ll appreciate how it blends historic Anatolia with modern Turkey.