Photos from Izmir
SushiCity Restaurant Alsancak Japon Chinese Asian Cuisinerestaurant
Konak Yalı Mosqueattraction
İzmir Clock Towerattraction
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Typical highs around 28°C, lows around 17°C. About 24mm of rain a month.
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İzmir is the third most populous city in Turkey, after Istanbul and Ankara. It is on the Aegean coast of Anatolia, and is the capital of İzmir Province. As of 2025 end of year estimate, İzmir Province has a total population of 4,504,184 while İzmir city is home to around 3.5 million inhabitants. It extends along the outlying waters of the Gulf of İzmir and inland to the north across the Gediz River Delta; to the east along an alluvial plain created by several small streams; and to slightly more rugged terrain in the south. İzmir's climate is Mediterranean.
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My Izmir travel guide. The Kordon, Konak Square, the bazaar, the Agora and Kadifekale, the Asansör, Ephesus as the day trip, where to stay, and what to eat.
Izmir is the Turkish city Istanbul makes everyone skip, and that is most of its charm. It is an easygoing Aegean port built for walking the waterfront, with three million people wrapped around a long bay and Ephesus an hour down the road. I was there over the New Year expecting fireworks, and Izmir does not really do fireworks. The city was quiet, the bars were open, and the Kordon was where the locals spent the night.
The famous monuments (the Clock Tower, the bazaar, the Agora, the Asansör, Kadifekale) you see once and the box is checked. Most travelers do not come back. That is also fine. Here is how to plan the once.
Planning brief
Izmir is Turkey's third-largest city, a port of about 3 million on the Aegean coast, wrapped around a long bay. Easier than Istanbul, lighter on monuments, and an hour up the road from Ephesus. The Kordon, central monuments, and Ephesus are separate parts of the trip.
The central city and Ephesus require separate routes, with Selçuk about an hour south by rail or road.
Most Izmir hotels sit far from where the city eats and drinks. Book in Alsancak or near Konak Square if walking matters. The further-out chains are quiet and have balconies.
The waterfront promenade is where Izmir spends its evenings. Start here.
Plainclothes police run papers checks in the central districts. They are usually screening for transit migrants. Switching to English is the easiest fix when one stops you.
The Kordon, Konak, Agora, Asansör, and Kadifekale form the central city route. Ephesus sits south near Selçuk and requires a separate train or road journey.
Other onward routes include Çeşme and Alaçatı for the beaches west of the city, Pergamon (modern Bergama) for the inland ruins to the north, and Şirince, the wine village above Selçuk.
Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport (ADB) sits south of the city. The İZBAN suburban rail runs directly from the airport terminal into the city center and is the cheap, reliable way in. Taxis and rideshare take roughly 30 to 45 minutes to the central districts depending on traffic.
Inside the city, the metro, the İZBAN trains, and the bay ferries cover the longer distances. The central districts are walkable. The ferry across the bay between Konak and Karşıyaka is the best $1 view you will get.
İZBAN is the airport answer. The station is connected to Adnan Menderes Airport, and the line runs into the city with transfers to the metro and tram around places like Hilal, Halkapınar, and Alsancak.
Izmir Metro is the one-line city spine from Narlıdere/Fahrettin Altay through Konak, Basmane, Hilal, Halkapınar, Bornova, and Evka 3. Izmir Tram is the nicer waterfront/local layer, especially T2 Konak along the south side of the bay.
Choose between central (walking distance to Alsancak and Konak) and further out (the Marriott / Hilton / Sheraton chain hotels in the surrounding districts).
Central puts you on foot at dinner. Alsancak is the dining-and-nightlife district near the water, and Konak is the central core around the bazaar. Both put the city walkable and a short ride from the rest.
Further out is the trade-off. Most of the international chains, including the Four Points by Sheraton Izmir I stayed at on a previous trip, sit a metro or taxi ride from where the city eats and drinks. The properties themselves are good, with huge balconies and quiet rooms, but every dinner is a commute. If you are coming to walk the Kordon and eat in Alsancak, stay central. If your trip is built around a balcony, a long bath, a couple of leisurely Ephesus days, and not much nightlife, the further-out chains are the relaxed choice and tend to be cheaper for the size of the room. I had a quiet week on a balcony and did not regret it.
A practical note. Carry your passport or a clear photo of it on your phone when you go out. Plainclothes police run random papers checks in the central districts, mostly because Izmir has been a transit point for migrants. Tourists occasionally get pulled into the screen. They speak Turkish and they are not in uniform, so it can take a beat to realize what is happening. Switching to English is the easiest fix. The officer will usually clock you as a tourist and move on.
Izmir is light on famous monuments and strong on a few good days of walking. Each of the major sights is a half-day done well.
The Kordon is the wide seafront promenade along the bay, the place the city walks, runs, and sits at sunset. Start here and let the city open up from the water.
Konak Square is the central plaza, marked by the ornate Clock Tower (Saat Kulesi). Levantine French architect Raymond Charles Péré designed it for Ottoman governor Kâmil Pasha, who commissioned it to mark the 25th anniversary of Sultan Abdul Hamid II's accession to the throne. Groundbreaking was September 1, 1900. The tower opened exactly one year later, on September 1, 1901. Twenty-five meters tall, four 75 cm clock faces, and the symbol of the city.
Behind Konak spreads Kemeraltı, the historic covered bazaar, a working market of lanes, mosques, and tea houses good for a long unhurried wander.
To the east sits the Agora of Smyrna. The original was built by the Greeks in the 4th century BCE, ruined by an earthquake in 178 AD, and rebuilt under Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. The site is laid out on three terraced levels around a 165 by 200 meter market square, with a basilica for legal proceedings, shops, and colonnaded walkways. Excavations started in 1933 and have peeled back layers of Ottoman cemetery, Byzantine reuse, Roman reconstruction, and Hellenistic original. The Satyros relief and a body part of a Herakles statue both came out of this dig.
In the Karataş quarter, the Asansör is a historical hydraulic elevator built in 1907 by Jewish banker and trader Nesim Levi to spare the neighborhood the 155-stair climb between the coast strip and the houses on the hill. The elegant brick façade was imported from Marseille. The lift ran on water power until 1985 when it was electrified. Its income covered the expenses of the Karataş Jewish Hospital until the building was sold in 1942. The top is now a terrace with the view over the bay.
Kadifekale, the "Velvet Castle," sits atop Mount Pagos at 186 meters above the city. Legend says Alexander the Great fell asleep under a plane tree here and was told by the oracle of Apollo to refound Smyrna on the hill. The current fortress was actually built by Lysimachus, one of Alexander's successors, in the 3rd century BCE. Roman Smyrna held it as its main defensive stronghold. Byzantine engineers expanded the cisterns underneath. The Ottomans reinforced the walls and added a mosque after taking the city in the 15th century. The climb is the panoramic view down across the city and the bay. Almost nobody is up there.
Alsancak is where the city eats and drinks. Most bars stay open late and the prices are friendly. Two practical notes from a walk that did not go to plan.
One: if you ask the bartender for "the largest beer," the answer is a two-liter glass. The walk for food after one of those is a different walk than you thought.
Two: see the passport note above. I learned about the plainclothes police checks the hard way, mid-walk, mid-two-liter. The officer was in jeans, started speaking Turkish, and I assumed he was selling something. The English half of the exchange cleared it up quickly and he waved me on. Some street cats and a plate of sushi later, all was forgiven.
Yes, and it is the standout reason to base on this coast. Ephesus sits near the town of Selçuk about an hour south of Izmir. The Library of Celsus, the Great Theatre, and the marble streets are remarkably intact. Trains and buses run from Izmir to Selçuk, and organized day tours are easy to join. Go early to get ahead of both the Aegean heat and the midday tour crowds. The site is large and largely unshaded, so bring water and a hat.
Pair Ephesus with Şirince, the wine-and-stone village 8 km uphill from Selçuk, for an unhurried full day rather than the standard half-day in-and-out.
Izmir eats on the Aegean: seafood, olive oil vegetable dishes, mezze, and the city's own street snacks like boyoz pastry and kumru sandwiches. Alsancak and the bazaar are the densest eating grounds. As in Istanbul, the cats are part of the social fabric. You will share your shrimp tails with the ones that find your patio table.
| Spot | What it is |
|---|---|
| Sardin Balık Restaurant | Seafood |
| %100 Steakhouse Konak Pier | A steakhouse at the Konak Pier waterfront |
| Küçük Ev Mantı Cafe | Mantı, the Turkish filled dumplings |
| Fix Döner | Döner kebab |
| KimChikin | Korean-style fried chicken |
| Key Restaurant | A general restaurant |
| NEDOLAR Alsancak | A restaurant in the Alsancak district |
| Best Pizza Izmir | Pizza |
| ÖZAK Naturel Restaurant | A general restaurant |
The Izmir Clock Tower dates, French architect, and 1901 inauguration follow the Wikipedia entry on the İzmir Clock Tower. The Agora of Smyrna's construction, earthquake rebuild under Marcus Aurelius, and dimensions follow the Wikipedia entry on the Agora of Smyrna and Turkey Travel Planner's writeup. The Asansör's 1907 construction by Nesim Levi, the Marseille bricks, and the 1985 electrification follow the Wikipedia entry on the Asansör and Elevator World's article on the water-powered installation. The Kadifekale founding by Lysimachus and the Alexander dream follow the Wikipedia entry on Kadifekale and Audiala's Kadifekale guide.
