Kütahya

Kütahya is a city in the Central Anatolia region of Turkey, with a population in 2022 of 578,640. It's industrial but has a well-preserved old quarter, and is renowned for its decorated tiles.

Kütahya is also the name of the province. Of the other towns, the one most worth visiting (usually as a day-trip from the city) is Çavdarhisar for the Roman ruins of Aizanoi.

Understand
Kütahya is at an elevation of 970 m, so it's routinely below freezing in winter, and summers are dry with temperatures approaching 35°C. It's in a valley hemmed in by mountains, so it's on a trade route, and industrial smog gets trapped above it.

In antiquity this was Kotyaion (Κοτύαιον), the city of Kotys - she was a war goddess whose riotous, licentious worship would outdo any modern resort nightclub. The region was called Phrygia, which the Romans took over and divided. They assigned Kotyaion to Phrygia Salutaris, the healthy bit, since presumably they couldn't put it in Phrygia Pacatiana, the peaceful bit. It was on the edge of several empires and was captured by many - including by the proto-Mughals under Timur. One of the longer-lasting reigns was the Germiyanid kingdom of the 14th / 15th centuries, in turn overthrown by their northern neighbours the Ottomans. In 1514 the Ottomans captured Tabriz in Persia and copied a trick of Timur in bringing its artisans, especially tile-makers, to embellish their home cities. Many were Armenian Christians, who established workships here and in Iznik. These towns already made Çini - china-style ceramics - but now the artistry and production boomed.

The Armenians fled in the pogroms of 1915 / 16 and the tile-making trade collapsed, taking 50 years to recover. Kütahya made a living from industry based on agriculture, and from standard bathroom tiles, but it was bypassed by better transport routes to the north. Travellers and freight between Istanbul and Ankara now ply the motorways, and the railway junction city of Eskişehir grew as Kütahya waned. It's a provincial place with few international visitors, though the establishment in 1992 of Dumlupınar University has given it more buzz.

(Saat Kulesi) is the city's central landmark, on the east side of Zafer Meydanı, Victory Square. Locals refer to the spot as Vazo, the Vase, for the tiled monument on the traffic roundabout - this is 3 m high but less easy to spot if you're new to town.

The provincial governership (Valilik) is in a kitsch, faux Ottoman-arched building west side of the square, while the town council (Belediye) occupy a modern building east side. All the main streets converge here. Atatürk Bulvarı heads north to the bus station and becomes the main highway to Eskişehir. Abdurrahman Kara Ağa Bulvarı (commonly İstasyon Cd, Station Street) leads northeast to the railway station. Cumhuriyet Caddesi, Republic Street, starts southwest but turns into the pedestrianised Lise Cd, towards Old Town, Great Mosque and the castle. Adnan Menderes Bulvarı runs west and Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bulvarı runs east.

By bus
Buses from Istanbul run every hour or two and take six hours, for a fare in 2022 of about 300 TL. They may run via Gebze, Izmit and Adapazari or via Bursa.

Buses from Antalya take 7 hours. Buses run every couple of hours from Ankara (4 hr 15 min) but usually you take the YHT train to Eskişehir. From Eskişehir it's a frequent bus, taking an hour.

Buses from Izmir take 5 hours via Turgutlu, Salihli (for Sardis), Kula, Gediz and Çavdarhisar. They continue via İnegöl to Bursa.

Operators on these routes are Metroturizm, Pamukkale, Flix Bus and Kütahyalılar.

The is 4 km northeast on D230 towards Eskişehir. It's a modern building with a few small shops (including for the inevitable tiles), cafe, toilets and left luggage. It's usually fairly clean. The old city centre otogar has been demolished.

Frequent minibuses take 15 min to the centre. Your inter-city bus ticket should be good for this transfer, check when buying.

By train
Izmir Mavi runs daily from Ankara at 19:00 via Eskişehir at 22:15 to reach Kütahya at 23:30. It trundles on south overnight via Tavansanli, Balıkesir, Soma, Akhisar and Manisa to arrive at Izmir Basmane at 09:30. The northbound train leaves Izmir at 18:00 to reach Kütahya at 04:00, Eskişehir at 05:30 and Ankara at 08:30.

Ege Ekspresi runs daily from Izmir at 06:30, taking 9½ hours via Manisa, Akhisar, Soma, Balıkesir and Tavsanli; the southbound train to Izmir leaves Kütahya around 09:30.

Pamukkale Ekspresi runs daily from Eskişehir around 10:30 to reach Kütahya at 12:00 and continues south via Afyonkarahisar and Sandikli to Denizli, arriving near 19:00. The northbound train leaves Denizli before 08:00 to reach Kütahya around 14:30 and Eskişehir around 16:00.

Three regional trains also run daily from Eskişehir, taking 70 min to Kütahya, and one continues to Afyon.

, elegantly tiled, is 1 km east of city centre, at the end of Abdurrahman Kara Ağa Blvd, across the main highway D650.

By road
From either Istanbul or Ankara head towards Eskişehir, then pick up D230 / D650 south. This winds through the canyons but is a good divided highway. D650 continues south from Kütahya all the way to Antalya.

From Izmir take E96 / D300 east towards Uşak and branch off onto D595 / D240.

Get around
Walk, the sights are all central, and you're unlikely to use either the dolmuşes (various colours) or yellow city buses.

See

 * is the best preserved part of old town, a cobbled alley lined by tastefully restored Ottoman-era mansions.
 * (Yeşil Cami) was built in 1905. It's the interior that's green, with rich tilework.
 * Analıca Mosque 200 m northeast of Grand Mosque is 13th century.
 * Kurşunlu Mosque 200 m northwest of Grand Mosque was built in 1377 and restored in 2018.
 * Analıca Mosque 200 m northeast of Grand Mosque is 13th century.
 * Kurşunlu Mosque 200 m northwest of Grand Mosque was built in 1377 and restored in 2018.
 * Analıca Mosque 200 m northeast of Grand Mosque is 13th century.
 * Kurşunlu Mosque 200 m northwest of Grand Mosque was built in 1377 and restored in 2018.
 *  Aizanoi 60 km southwest is usually done as a day trip from Kütahya, as there are few amenities in the adjacent village of Çavdarhisar.
 *  Aizanoi 60 km southwest is usually done as a day trip from Kütahya, as there are few amenities in the adjacent village of Çavdarhisar.
 *  Aizanoi 60 km southwest is usually done as a day trip from Kütahya, as there are few amenities in the adjacent village of Çavdarhisar.
 *  Aizanoi 60 km southwest is usually done as a day trip from Kütahya, as there are few amenities in the adjacent village of Çavdarhisar.
 *  Aizanoi 60 km southwest is usually done as a day trip from Kütahya, as there are few amenities in the adjacent village of Çavdarhisar.

Do

 * Hot springs and hamams: this is a geothermal area.
 * Football: Kütahyaspor play soccer in TFF Third League, Turkey's fourth tier. Their home ground is Dumlupınar Stadium (capacity 11,500), 500 m southeast of town centre.

Buy

 * Supermarkets: Migros is the most central, just north of "the vase" behind Hilton Garden Inn. It's open daily 09:00-22:00.
 * Banks and ATMs also cluster in this area.
 * Tiles (çini) are the big thing here. They come in three grades. Turist işi is the basic stuff in souvenir shops. If you're looking for something that the cat will knock off the table or the kids crack in cookery experiments, go for these, and haggle. Fabrika işi is quality work prepared by apprentices under the supervision of a çinici, a master maker, and his / her own personal work is özel iş. There are shops just north of the Vazo at the beginning of Atatürk Blv, and south towards old town. Çiniciler Çarşısı ("Tile Bazaar") is on the retail park 5 km out on the Eskişehir highway. Think about the weight in your home-bound luggage, and the average baggage-handler's limited appreciation of the grades of traditional tiles. All the produce is modern, and if it's touted as antique, with any luck it's fake. If you're unlucky, you'll be in big trouble for trying to export a genuine antiquity.

Eat

 * M&N fish restaurant is next door at Lise Cd 3.
 * Others south and west of the Vase are Osmanli Kebap, Mis Gözleme and Santral Iskembe Salonu.
 * North around Atatürk Blvd is the main strip, with Amir Tantuni, Nora Bistro within the Hilton, Star Gözleme, Pita Kitchen, Fesleğen (below), MPlus Cafe and Hatay Döner.
 * North around Atatürk Blvd is the main strip, with Amir Tantuni, Nora Bistro within the Hilton, Star Gözleme, Pita Kitchen, Fesleğen (below), MPlus Cafe and Hatay Döner.

Drink

 * North along Atatürk Blvd are Adıyamanlı Çiğ Köfteci Erkan Usta, the Hilton bar, Kokoreç11 Bozüyüklü Alihan Usta, and Tombiş.
 * No 1 Pub is a block west of the clocktower on Akabe Sk.

Sleep

 * Çinili Otel 2 is a very basic place next to Gülpalas.
 * Nehir Termal is a spa hotel, west edge of town on Şair Ali Pesendi Cd. It wasn't open in 2022.
 * Nehir Termal is a spa hotel, west edge of town on Şair Ali Pesendi Cd. It wasn't open in 2022.
 * Nehir Termal is a spa hotel, west edge of town on Şair Ali Pesendi Cd. It wasn't open in 2022.
 * Nehir Termal is a spa hotel, west edge of town on Şair Ali Pesendi Cd. It wasn't open in 2022.
 * Nehir Termal is a spa hotel, west edge of town on Şair Ali Pesendi Cd. It wasn't open in 2022.

Connect
Kütahya and its approach roads have 4G from all Turkish carriers. As of July 2022, 5G has not rolled out in Turkey.

Go next

 * Aizanoi 60 km southwest is worth a day-trip. The highlight is the Temple of Zeus.
 * Afyonkarahisar is another traditional city, with historic houses and hilltop castle.
 * Eskişehir is a university city and transport hub with a small preserved old quarter.