Trabzon

Trabzon (formerly Trebizond) is the largest city in the Eastern Karadeniz region of Turkey. Trabzon functioned as an independent state or empire during several periods in its long history, ruling over a vast area from Sinop in the west to Georgia in the east, even including territory in Crimea. Within Turkey Trabzon is known as a hospitable, energetic, traditional and patriotic city, which is culturally somewhat distinct from the rest of the country.

History
Trabzon was founded around 756 BC by Greek colonists from Sinope, who hailed from Miletus. They called their new colony Trapezous, ancient Greek for "table", due to the topography of the central hill, squeezed between two rivers with steep cliffs on both sides. While the dominant language and culture in the city remained Greek, the colony attracted many settlers from the surrounding Caucasian, Anatolian and Persian peoples, creating a unique regional cultural blend that still leaves its traces today. Trabzon has been a major trade centre through history — for long, it was a main port-of-call on one of the main routes between Europe and Persia and beyond, which involved taking a ship across the Black Sea from Romania (and later Constantinople). After the Roman conquest, the city was given a new harbor and a paved road towards Persia. The road fostered trade and cultural exchange, and was used for attacks on the Persian Empire during the Roman and Byzantine periods. After a Turkmen attack on the city was repelled by a local force in the 1080s, the city broke relations with the Byzantine Empire and acted as an independent state. The Mongol sack of Baghdad diverted more trade caravans from Tabriz to Trabzon and the city grew in wealth from the taxes it could impose on trade between Europe, Persia and China. The city traded intensely with Genoa and to a lesser extent with Venice during the early renaissance, with some cultural influences going both ways. During this era, Trabzon was visited by many travellers, Marco Polo being among them.

In medieval times, the city served as the capital of the Empire of Trebizond ruled by the Komnenos family, which also provided several emperors to the Byzantine throne in Constantinople. The longest surviving rump Byzantine state, Trabzon was captured by the Ottoman Turks in 1461, almost a decade after the fall of Constantinople.

During the 18th and 19th centuries Europeans wishing to explore the Caucasus, Iran and the eastern domains of the Ottoman Empire used Trabzon as a point of departure or return. World War I left deep scars in the city; it lost many of its young male Muslims at the battle of Sarıkamış in 1914, its entire Armenian population in the genocide of 1915, and most of its Greek inhabitants during the population exchange of 1923. Closed borders with the Soviet Union meant that the city could only recover culturally and economically in the 1970s. Trabzon as of 2022 is a city under reconstruction, but offers many historical, cultural and natural sights. The city constitutes the largest urban metropolitan region of Turkey's Black Sea coast, with nearly 1 million inhabitants. Trabzon functions as the cultural capital of the Turkish Black Sea coast, and its inhabitants are very proud of their city and region.

Trabzon has just returned on the tourist radar, and the city is still investing in tourist infrastructure. Like a few other Turkish cities such as Istanbul and Izmir, Trabzon is culturally located somewhat in between Anatolia and Eastern Europe. In the case of Trabzon this is due to the Pontic Mountains, which used to form a cultural barrier. Coming from the Anatolian heartland, it feels like one is entering Europe, while coming from the Caucasus, Trabzon comes across as the first city with Middle-Eastern influences. Tourists who visit Trabzon come mostly from a few countries: nearby Georgia, Russia, the Netherlands, Germany, Greece, Azerbaijan, New Zealand and the Gulf states.

Climate
Trabzon experiences a mild, humid, and very cloudy oceanic climate, like most of the Black Sea coastline. However, Trabzon's sheltered location allows it to stay warmer and drier than most of the regions that surround it, especially in winter. This causes the city to show some characteristics of a humid subtropical climate.

Summers in Trabzon are warm, humid, and often mostly cloudy. Rain is frequent, but often light and brief, owing — as usual — to its sheltered location. This is generally a good time to visit, although high humidity does sometimes become a problem, especially at night.

Winters are cool with long stretches of northerly winds bringing temperatures down to slightly above the freezing mark, and rainy, or less frequently, snowy weather. These periods are bridged by mild to warm, clear days, caused by dry, southerly winds descending the mountains. This can raise the temperature to above 18-19 °C, creating almost summerlike conditions.

Spring and fall are both mild, but they differ in rainfall. Fall is the rainiest time of year, as Western European windstorms, some of which restrengthen in the Black Sea after hitting Europe, are most common during this time. Spring, on the other hand, is relatively dry and often the time with the most sunshine, even though one really shouldn't expect to see sunny skies at any time of the year when traveling to this region of Turkey.

Talk
The Eastern Black Sea Region has its own dialect of Turkish, more influenced by Greek and Persian than the Anatolian varieties. Because of the isolation of the coastal cities, the dialect retained archaic grammar and vocabulary that has been lost in other Turkish dialects. The most striking example is the restricted use of vowel harmony, one of the building blocks of all Turkic languages. This means that the local dialect can sound funny to speakers of 'standard' Anatolian or Istanbul Turkish. Much Turkish low-brow humor revolves around characters from Trabzon, but the locals don't appreciate the jokes that are made at their expense. The western districts of Trabzon province form a gradual transition area to Anatolian Turkish. This Turkish will be more easily understood for tourists who have studied the language.

Next to old varieties of Turkish, there are some minority languages that are spoken, mostly in the rural communities to the southwest and southeast of the city. Romeyka is the most archaic Greek language spoken in current times; its speakers are concentrated in the Of-valley along the Solaklı River in the villages on the mountain slopes in Çaykara district and surrounding areas. There are also small pockets of Greek-speaking Muslim villages in Tonya and Sürmene districts. Most locals don't like being called Greek; instead they use the terms Rum or Romioi (meaning Roman/Byzantine) to describe their heritage. However, they are very proud of their language, and they are happy to use it to converse with Greek-speaking tourists. Speakers of Modern Greek are generally unable to understand the local dialect, while people that have an understanding of Pontic or Cypriot Greek, or those who have an advanced education in Classical Greek, are able to engage with locals in basic conversations. It is still possible to find Pontic Greek speakers in Trabzon city, and tourists should not be afraid to openly speak Greek in public spaces. It is more likely, however, to find a local who is fluent in German, Dutch, French or Russian.

English language courses are immensely popular among the young generation, but it is not yet as commonly spoken as in neighboring Georgia. There are small groups of Georgians and Ukrainians in the city.

One of the most remarkable languages in the Trabzon region, kuş dili, is whistled in several villages straddling the border of Trabzon and Giresun provinces. It is one of a few whistled languages in the world, and it is kept alive through a yearly festival in Kuşköy (Bird village).

Read
Trabzon has long been touted as the "city of tale in the East". Its historical prominence, intellectual independence and trade relations with Italian city-states were elements that earned Trebizond a legendary mythical place in European literature until well after its economic and cultural peak when it functioned as the capital of the Empire of Trebizond in the 14th and 15th century (both Don Quixote and Picrochole wished to possess the city). The most renowned work of modern literature that describes the city is Rose Macaulay's The Towers of Trebizond. Travellers interested in classical history might want to read Xenophon's Anabasis, in which Trabzon enters as the first Greek city the soldiers encounter after their retreat from Persia. For those interested in the Renaissance trade relations of Trabzon, there is The Spring of the Ram, the second book from the series The House of Niccolò by Dorothy Dunnett, and The Burnished Blade by Lawrence Schoonover. Popular Turkish novels which feature the city are Pomegranate Tree by Nazan Bekiroglu and Aleko of Trebizond by Kadri Özcan. L'immortelle de Trébizonde, a French novel about the Armenian genocide by Paule Henry Bordeaux, has been republished, and Anyush is a publication by Martine Madden. Those attempting a round trip along the Black Sea could read Kéraban the Inflexible by Jules Verne; Turkish students recreating the journey concluded the trip was even more difficult a century later (virtually impossible since 2014). Those heading to Georgia might want to read about the myths of the Argonauts and their quest for the Golden Fleece; those heading west, to Samsun or Sinop, about the Amazons.

View
The Black Sea region, and Trabzon in particular, has an important place in the history of Turkish theater, photography and cinema. The Pontic Greeks of Trebizond were among the first groups in the Ottoman Empire to establish theaters, musical venues and photography studios as early as the 1870s, and they were soon followed by the Armenian and Turkish population of the province. The long history of the city - and that of the Pontus in general - had already led to the creation of musicals and operas in Western Europe, such as Offenbach's The Princess of Trebizond, which is still a popular play for theater groups around the world. The scenic pastoral environments surrounding the city, as well as the diverse local cultures and rich local folklore, has inspired many modern Turkish movie directors. Cinema from the region often addresses issues such as migration, isolation from modern society, dysfunctional or traumatized families, or mental health issues. Some notable films that have been recorded in the region are: Pandora's Box (about a woman suffering from Alzheimer) and Waiting for the Clouds (about an elderly Pontic Greek woman rediscovering her past) by Yeşim Ustaoğlu, Bal by Semih Kaplanoğlu (about a young boy in the mountains who has to learn to deal with grief), Cold of Kalandar by Mustafa Kara (about the struggle of a farmer hoping to strike gold during a strong winter), Zephyr by Belma Baş (about a youg girl who is abandoned by her mother), and Autumn by Özcan Alper (about the struggle of a former convict when he returns to his home soil).

Listen
Trabzon has its own musical culture, which stands apart from the rest of the country in rhythm, instrumentation and lyrical narratives, and has some Caucasian influences. Trabzon music is typically made to dance. Especially the 'Horon' circle dance has been a binding agent between the local people for millennia. The most popular topics of folk singers from Trabzon are melancholy for a lost childhood in the mountains, memories of a deceased friend or parent, or a doomed love affair (such as between a wealthy person and a peasant, or a Muslim and a Christian). Music from the region typically features prominently the local national instrument - the 'Kemençe' violin - and sometimes makes use of minority languages, such as Romeyka Greek or Laz. 'Karadenizli' (Black Sea) music is popular throughout the country, however, and local artists often collaborate with other Turkish artists, and musicians from the Pontic Greek diaspora in Greece. Some of the most popular artists from the region are Kazim Koyuncu, Volkan Konak, Apolas Lermi, Onur Atmaca, Ekin Uzunlar, and Adem Ekiz.

Get in
Not by train: Trabzon is the largest city in Turkey to entirely lack a railway, which it needs for its Black Sea freight. They've been talking about building one for over a century and look set to continue.

Not by boat either: Black Sea ferries no longer sail here.

By car
The largely 6-lane D010 coastal highway is of high quality, and can bring you to Trabzon within 2½ hours from the border with Georgia and within 4½ hours from Samsun. The E97 is the main road connecting Trabzon to the rest of Anatolia, it runs south to Gümüşhane and then eastward towards Bayburt. The D915 from Bayburt to Of via Caykara has been chosen as the most dangerous road in the world and should not be attempted during winter. It does offer beautiful views on the surrounding landscape.

By bus


In high season it is a good idea to book your trip ahead online.

Destinations:
 * Buses from/to all major cities in Turkey. Example (price, journey time, density): Istanbul (120-140 TL, 18 hr, several per day), Kayseri near Cappadocia (12 hr, daily), Kars (daily bus at 09:30 and midnight, 8 hr), Ardahan (45 TL, at 12:30), Doğubeyazıt (leaves at 22:00, arriving 10:00), Ulusoy (4-6 per day, 5 hr), Torul and Gümüşhane (hourly until 20.00).
 * From/to Georgia: Tbilisi (about 12 hr) which serve as a useful point of entry to the country from Caucasus, also hourly leaves a bus to Batumi (if the border crossing is too busy, the bus might turn around at the Georgian border, so be sure to get all your belongings off the bus. On the Georgian side you can take a minibus for 1 lari to bring you the short distance to the center of Batumi&mdash;you need a Batumi Card to pay the bus, but just ask some passengers and give em 1 lari. Otherwise, many buses coming from the Caucasus heading to Istanbul pass through Trabzon. The buses themselves are quite good. No toilets on board but they stop every 3-4 hr for breaks, and free hot drinks are served throughout the journey.
 * From/to Azerbaijan: In the morning there are two bus connections heading to Baku.

On foot
The center of Trabzon is walkable; most of its historical sights lie in an area of 1½ km by 500 m. This includes the area around central Meydan square in the east, the bazaar quarter in the center, and the historic walled city towards the west. If one is interested in taking in as many historical sights as possible, it is advisable to plan several walks around these different areas of the city. The historic city was built on a hill between two ravines (Zagnos to the west and Kuzgun to the east), thus there is a lot of height difference between neighbourhoods, and travellers should be prepared to climb up and down stairs and walk streets with steep inclinations. Car traffic has been limited through the historic neighborhoods, making it safer for pedestrians. Since the arrival of the coastal highway the city has been amputated from the sea. To alleviate this the city has started constructing a promenade along most of its 5 km-long western coast. With few restaurants or other facilities, it has yet to regain its historic attractiveness.

By minibus
Notable locations outside the central zone are the Hagia Sophia to the west of the city and Boztepe tea garden overlooking the city towards the southeast. To get to these locations one best uses a minibus (dolmuş). There are dolmuş stops on Kahramanmaraş Street west off Meydan square.

There is also a small minibus station just southeast of Meydan, under the viaduct. For transport towards one of the villages towards the east of Trabzon and in Rize province, there is again a different dolmus station along the coastal road.



Churches and mosques
Trabzon has dozens of churches and mosques dating from the Byzantine period, the Empire of Trebizond and the Ottoman Empire. During the classical period the city at least had temples for Hermes (the god of trade), Apollo (sun), and multiple Mithraeum for the Persian-Greek god Mithras. A bronze statue of Hermes can be found in the basement of the Trabzon Museum. On the places of these temples, which were destroyed for the most part in the 3rd century, Christian chapels were built. The oldest surviving church is the 6th- or 7th-century Armenian church of St. Anna, which was built to the east of the Kuzgun (Tabakhane) valley because Armenians were not allowed to live inside the city walls. After the Ottoman conquest most churches within the walled city were converted into mosques. Many of these buildings retained some elements that hint at their Christian past. During the 18th and 19th centuries there was a boom in the construction of mosques and churches. Most of the historic churches and mosques of the city survived the first world war and the building frenzy of the 1970s onward. One of the most famous churches of the city however, the 19th-century Saint Gregory of Nyssa, which stood on the rocky outcrop at the former Genoese castle Leonkastron, overlooking both harbors of the city, was dynamited in 1930.

Islamic architecture
Much of the Islamic architecture in Trabzon makes use of Seljuk and local Pontic/Caucasian references, instead of Ottoman ones found in other Turkish cities. Baroque Revivalism was also quite popular, and still has some influence on new mosque constructions.

Caravanserai
Three of the historic caravanserai of the city have been restored. They are all near each other in the Bazaar district.

Other buildings of interest




South of Trabzon
A spectacular rock-hewn monastery perched dramatically on the narrow ledge of a steep cliff in the forests south of Trabzon. It was built in the fourth century, just before the Roman Empire split into east and west, by two Athenian priests, Barnabas and Sophronius, who, according to legend, found a miraculous icon of the Virgin Mary in a cave. The monastery's location in this geopolitically tumultuous corner of the globe naturally saw times of trouble and fell into ruin numerous times throughout its history, with its most thriving times falling under Byzantine and Ottoman rule.

The 20th century, however, was not kind to the monastery. It was abandoned following the chaos and inter-ethnic violence at the end of World War I, and the population transfer of Trabzon's (formerly Trebizond) Greek population back to Greece. Its remote location gave it some sanctuary, but its frescoes still attracted the occasional casually hurled rock by a bored shepherd. The beautiful frescoes today suffer from decades of heart-wrenchingly pointless vandalism by travelers&mdash;judging from the various alphabets and names scrawled across these impressive religious works of art, it appears that just about every culture in the world has taken part in the desecration. The buildings have been fairly heavily restored, as the Turkish government has stepped in to protect the monastery and to turn it into a museum. During restoration work in 2017 a passage was discovered leading to a hidden chapel, which has frescoes depicting life, death, heaven and hell. Visitors can view all areas of the monastery, including previously inaccessible spaces such as the library and the newly discovered chapel.

Getting there:
 * The simplest way to get to the monastery is by tour, and you can find a tour in town by just asking any other traveller there (no tourist visits Trabzon without seeing Sümela). For instance, Eyce Tours offers round trip to Sumela for about 30 TL (address: Atatürk Alani, at Taksim İşhanı sk. 11. (462) 3267174). The Metro and Ulusoy bus companies run minibuses to the monastery during summer months from their Atatürk Alani offices.
 * The monastery lies close to Maçka, about 30 km south of Trabzon, and those preferring to get to the monastery on their own means instead of taking a tour can get to Maçka by taking minibuses heading for Gümüşhane, Erzurum or other destinations south from Trabzon. There is also a direct bus connection run by Maçka municipality from Cemil Usta street south of Meydan square. The rest of the way, approximately 17 km to the actual site of monastery, can be done by hitchhiking. The dolmuş from downtown Maçka have the same price than if you would buy it from Trabzon (20 TL) and departs at 10:30, which will take you to the entrance of Altındere National Park (Milli Park). Then, the monastery is about half an hour walk away, which can be done through a forest trail, which has been widened in order to cope with the ever increasing numbers of visitors, or along the tarmac road leading to the monastery.
 * Those approaching with their own vehicles can get as near as 300 m to Sümela, where there is a car-park in front of Hagia Barbara Chapel. There is an additional fee of 20 TL for cars, paid at the entrance of the national park.

Since Sümela is closed for the moment (but you still went to Maçka village for some reason), you can explore Altındere national park. Upstream along Altındere (Golden River) above the tree line are beautiful landscapes with ice cold lakes. An alternative route could lead eastward towards the ghost towns of (Dumanlı, in far northern Gümüşhane province), dispersed over a number of valleys high up the mountains. The ruins are of a collection of mining towns abandoned when their Pontic Greek inhabitants were forced out during the population transfer. Santa is accessible by a car, although getting there is an adventure in itself. Otherwise, these are multi-day treks for which you need an experienced tour guide. The best place to arrange this would be in Trabzon at one of the tourist offices off Meydan square.



East of Trabzon




Mansions
In the rural districts of Trabzon one can find many historical 18th and 19th century churches, mosques and mansions.

Sports

 * Watch football at
 * Go climbing or bouldering at 

Hamams, beaches and swimming pools
Trabzon city has been left without a beach since the construction of the coastal highway. However, there is a small public beach called Kaşüstü Plajı at Yomra town, some 10 km east of Trabzon. Larger public beaches can be found at Akçakale, 25 km to the west, and at Kalecik, 25 km to the east of the city. The water of the Black Sea is not suitable for swimming during the colder months of the year. Also, these shingle beaches don't offer the comfort or facilities that one finds in the Turkish riviera. The nearest beach holiday destinations are Giresun to the west and Batumi to the east. Within the city are 4 historical bathhouses (hamams). Two of them have retained their function and are open to the public. The central Hamam is continually operational for both sexes, while the 'Eight columned bath' in the lower part of the old town has specific days for male and females.



Festivals

 * Black Sea Theatre Festival Mostly (but not exclusively) groups from countries around the Black Sea participate in this festival.
 * International Painting Festival Promoting painting in the wider area of Trabzon.
 * Kadirga Festival (third week of June, Kadirga Yaylası, southwest Maçka district) The largest and oldest folk festival of Turkey. On the Pontic Alps near the Gümüşhane province border. Locals, European Turks and Pontic Greeks meet on the mountain pastures to celebrate their shared culture in folk costume, music, dance and cuisine. On other summer pastures (yayla's) there are similar (but smaller) festivities.
 * Sultan Murat Festival (Sultanmurat Şenlikleri) After the Kadirga Festival this is the largest folk festival of Trabzon. It is held in the end of August on the Sultanmurat yayla, 25 km southwest of Çaykara village.
 * Ramadan The Islamic holy month (called Ramazan in Turkish) is very visible in Trabzon. While most liquor stores and restaurants close during the day, in the evening it can be hard to find a free spot on the many sidewalk cafes surrounding central Meydan square.
 * Assumption Day (August 15, Sümela Monastery) Every year since 2010 the Greek Orthodox patriarch has led a 'divine liturgy' at the Sümela Monastery (Moní Panagías Soumelá) in Maçka district, south of the city. Because of the size and location of the monastery, only a few hundred people are allowed to join the liturgy. In Maçka village screens are set up for other pilgrims.
 * Kalandar (Calendar Night, 13–14 January) In some villages in Maçka, Tonya, Sürmene and Çaykara districts, similar to Pontic Greek Momogeroi, the "old-new year" of the Julian calendar is celebrated. The tradition goes back to pre-Christian Dionysian rituals. Locals wear traditional clothing, or guise themselves as the 'village doctor', a herder and his sheep, the demons Karakoncoloz or Momoyer, or (less frequently) as the blackfaced 'Arab traveller' Haji Firuz/Arápis. It is similar to trick-or-treating festivities in other European countries, such as Halloween or Sint-Maarten. Youths go house to house, singing songs and collecting sweets or ingredients for a shared meal around a campfire. In the recent past, Trabzon welcomed Pontic Greek cultural organizations to participate in the festivities, but since 2019 the national Turkish government has denied visa applications to these groups.
 * A historically important festival in Trabzon was Epiphany on January 6. Thousands of Christians and Muslim onlookers gathered at Kalmek point, the place where the city protrudes the most into the Black Sea, to see the Christian ceremony. With the departure of the Greek Orthodox population, this tradition was lost to the city.

Outdoors
Trabzon is well known in Turkey as a destination for nature tourism and outdoor sports activities. The mountainous districts in Trabzon and neighboring Giresun and Rize provinces offer plenty options, but most areas are hardly developed for (international) tourism. However, this is also what makes the region attractive to adventurous travelers and Turkish families fleeing the hordes of tourists in Istanbul or the west coast. The beauty of Trabzon really lies in its alpine nature and remote, independent village life; Waking up in a traditional timber shed by the sound of cowbells and the scent of morning dew drawing the endless flower fields into your bed. Having fresh milk, corn bread, eggs and cooked green vegetables and spring water straight from the tap. To have this experience, you have to leave Trabzon, leave Uzungöl, and move higher up the mountain slopes, to the villages with their typical architecture and beautifully ornamented timber mosques, or even higher, where there are 'open air mosques', similar to the very first mosques in the world. Even though the people here are devout, they are not conservative in the traditional sense. It is normal for men and woman to mingle, make jokes, etc. Sufism has had a strong influence on these remote districts, and many people still grow up speaking minority languages like Romeyka Greek, Laz or Hemsin Armenian. As the region has grown in popularity amongst foreign tourists during the past two decades, the amount of trash left behind in nature has likewise increased. If you are planning to spend time in the mountains, you could consider taking extra waste bags with you.

Kervan Yolu (Caravan Road)
One of the historic routes connecting Trabzon to Persia across the Pontic Mountains was the caravan road from Sürmene to Bayburt. Multiple inns, castles, mosques and churches line the road. As it climbs up the mountains you pass scenic villages and landscapes. The area is popular with bird watchers and nature photographers, as it is one of the most important routes for migratory birds in Turkey. The road also takes you to Mount Madur (Theches in antiquity), where Xenophon and the 10,000 first spotted the sea and shouted "Thálatta! Thálatta!", 2400 years ago. The local tourism board is promoting the route for eco-tourism.

Hiking & mountain biking
The traditional rural life in Trabzon province revolves around transhumant seasonal migrations with cattle. Even before the summer starts villagers head up from the agrarian settlements in the bottom of the valleys to the summer pastures above the tree line, which are called 'Yayla'. There are many hamlets on the yayla's from which one can make hikes through the surrounding alpine landscape. The higher parts of the province are popular with bird watchers and have a rich flora. Mountain biking along the relatively flat, connected pastures, is fun and doable. You will see a lot of Turkish tourists on their mountain bikes. Mountain bikes will not be available for rent in most rural villages, so the best option would be to rent them in Trabzon or Uzungöl. Some better known yayla's in Trabzon province are (from west to east):

Trekking & bikepacking
The densely forested mountain slopes and vast plains above the tree lines of Trabzon province are ideal for multi-day trekking adventures. However, for most districts there are no maps available in print or online. The exception is Çaykara district, which is the most detailed area of Turkey on OpenStreetMap. Incidentally this is one of the most densely settled valleys along the Black Sea coast, which means you will never be farther than a few kilometers from the nearest village. Some villages have small hotels or home-stays, especially near Uzungöl lake, but you are always free to camp in the wild. In some villages you can also rent a traditional chalet or herder's shack on the yayla. Expect to be invited for tea in every village, especially if you have children with you. The most important languages for communication in the villages are Turkish and Greek, but especially during the summer you might also find people that speak German, English, Arabic, Dutch or Russian. The highest peaks of the Pontic Mountains in Trabzon province lie in the southeast of Çaykara district near, and reach to just over 3 km. This area is also known as Yedigöller, referring to the 'Seven Lakes' that lie between the mountaintops (not to be confused with the national park bearing the same name in the western province Bolu). It is possible to trek from Haldizen in Çaykara to yayla and  plateau in Rize province, and then further eastwards to the Kackar mountains (the highest peaks of the Pontic Mountains). It is also possible to do a part of this route before returning to the coast via Ikizdere. Along the way you will pass small villages with traditional architecture. Especially the village of Çamlık - downstream from Ovit - has maintained the tradition of timber construction. These are multi-day hikes.

However, most mountaineering enthusiasts instead go directly to the Kackar mountains in next-door Rize province. Kate Clow popularized this area through her book, which includes detailed routes with coordinates.

Because dense fog can obscure a clear day within a few minutes in these mountainous areas, it is ill-advised to wander around alone or without GPS. Brown bears, wolves and other wild animals can be found in the forests. It is legal to set up camp in the wild, but be sure not to leave any trash.

Rafting
Fırtına valley in upper Hemsin district of Rize province is ideal for rafting in Fırtına river, with its many centuries old arch bridges.

Winter sports
Although many valleys in the Trabzon region are suitable for winter tourism, for a long time there was no development in this direction. There is however a long tradition of locals using a contraption similar to a snowboard, called a petranboard, for transport down snow-covered slopes. There is just one small ski-resort, at the Zigana-pass between Trabzon and Gümüşhane, though it is being enlarged. The only way to experience the higher pristine slopes of the Pontic Mountains to the southeast of the city is by helicopter. Heliskiing trips can be arranged from Uzungöl, Ikizdere and Ayder, but are expensive and can be dangerous for the inexperienced. There were plans for a ski-resort with pistes and lifts around lake Uzungöl, but as of 2020 they have not materialized.

Buy
As an important trade node, Trabzon also developed its own refined export produce. The area is rich in mineral deposits and it is thought that even in its early years as a Greek colony, part of its exports to the Agean were valuable metals. The ultra-fine handwoven gold and silver bracelets of Trabzon are a popular wedding gift throughout the country. Other local trades that still survive in the market quarter are copper-smiths and leather-workers. An exceptional souvenir would be a Kemençe (Pontian Lyra), the national instrument of Trabzon. A half-decent playable Kemençe violin will cost at least 1300 TL (Feb. 2022). There are also clock and keyring (chain) versions.

For those heading to Iran or the Caucasus by bike, Trabzon is a good stop for maintenance, or to find supplies at one of the bike shops or outdoor supply stores. It will likely be many hundreds of kilometers before you have the opportunity to repair or restock. Alternatively, you might also find supplies at one of the many hunting or fishing shops of Trabzon.

Local cuisine
Typical ingredients for a Black Sea meal differ greatly from those of Anatolia. Vakfikebir ekmegi is the local sourdough bread similar to Italian Pane Casareccio. It is baked in a stone oven and can weigh up to 7 kg. Because the Black Sea coast is too moist for the cereals that grow so abundantly in the rest of Anatolia, the main grain variety used in rural communities surrounding Trabzon is maize. Thus cornbread is also a popular dish. Hamsi (Anchovies) are a main staple for the region. They are typically fried and eaten whole. Fishermen from Trabzon catch about one-fifth of the Turkish total. There is even an Anchovies bread (Hamsikoli). The Black Sea region grows 70% of the worlds hazelnut production, and they are also often used in dishes. Some fruits that are grown in the region are cherries, persimmon and kiwi fruit. The Black Sea cuisine is heavy on stews and soups of vegetables and beans. It also includes many dairy dishes such as Kuymak/Muhlama, fresh cow milk and Ayran, and different types of cheeses.

The pide (pizza) and köfte (meatballs) of Trabzon are famous in Turkey for their distinctive taste. Trabzon pide is a kind of pizza with cheese and eggs, similar to Adjarian Khachapuri, but there are many varieties. Many places sell these typical dishes, a cheap but good example near the city center is.

Eating out
There are a few restaurants at the northern side of Meydan square on the street "İskele Cd.". Most menus revolve around meat or fish dishes. Fast-food stores and kebab shops can be found at the western end of the square.

If you are fond of pastries, sweets and ice-cream, there are many places along Uzun Sokak selling baklava, helva and dondurma. The most famous pastry store is Beton Helva, where they combine helva and ice cream.

Most food in Trabzon is cooked to a high hygienic standard, and additionally most restaurants give you free hand wipes to clean your hands before and after eating food.

Akçaabat specialties and restaurants
Akçaabat, the historic village Platana, some 10 km west of the city, is renowned throughout Turkey for its special kind of meatballs, called Akcaabat koftesi. Made with ground meat, garlic and bread it's very delicious with ayran(yogurt mixed with water) and piyaz (beans,lettuce). There are plentiful quality restaurants in Akcaabat town such as, , , . You can have a walk and drink tea after dinner in Akcaabat Fisher Port. You can also try "kiymali" which is made with meat and served with butter. Don't forget to visit the historic neighborhood with its dozens of timber mansions when you are in Akçaabat.

Drink
There are only a few restaurants that serve alcohol in the city center. Among them being and  in Nemlioğlu Cemal Sokak (sidestreet of Uzun Sokak). Other options are a bit further from the center, between Trabzon and Akcaabat, such as or. A lot of the more traditional restaurants offer non-alcoholic cocktails. Luckily, because Trabzon is a student city, there is still quite a broad choice between music venues compared to other Turkish cities.

Coffee & tea
They are hidden within the shopping complex Canbakkal İş Merkezi, a few blocks to the west of Atatürk Alani square. Kahve Durağı and offer many kinds of coffee and cakes. Cinema-themed, next to Royal Cinema also offers western (and Turkish) coffee and tea. It is a kind of hip place where young Trabzonites come to play games after going to the movies. You might need to make reservations (like for most popular or trendy restaurants in the city). on Kahramanmaraş Cad. offers coffee and more with a rooftop view of the city. It is on the 7th floor of the Silk Road Business Center. A hot glass of locally grown black tea is served at the many tea gardens throughout the city, most of them located in public parks. The gardens with the best views can be found on Boztepe hill, just southeast of the city center. Other notable tea gardens are located in Fatih park just south of meydan square, and at Atapark just west of the historic walled city. As of Feb 2022, the Ganita tea garden, with its seaside location and view of the old Genoese fort, is closed due to renovation work.


 * As of writing (Feb. 2022) this area is undergoing major renovations, and is closed to the public.
 * As of writing (Feb. 2022) this area is undergoing major renovations, and is closed to the public.

Sleep
The cheapest hotels are down from Atatürk Square towards the port, but they usually function as unofficial brothels. By European standards the area is safe, and the prostitutes quite discreet. Some of the more upmarket hotels in Trabzon are DoubleTree, Zorlu Grand Otel and Novotel. Zorlu Grand Otel is in central Trabzon, at Maraş Street. Novotel is some distance out of Trabzon, in Yomra (a town close to Trabzon) but it takes only ten minutes from city centre with a car or dolmuş (bus) to get there.

Learn
Trabzon has a long educational history; after the Pandidakterion of Constantinople it had one of the first universities in the world teaching in subjects such as astronomy, mathematics, philosophy and medicine. Trabzon has remained a place of higher learning. Karadeniz Technical University (KTU) is the oldest university in the Turkish Republic outside Istanbul and Ankara. It has nearly 50,000 students (about 20% of the urban population of Trabzon city). The university is growing in popularity amongst foreign students, but is not yet as popular as universities in Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir or Eskişehir. The university participates in the Erasmus program for European students. Avrasya University is a new private university.

Stay healthy
In general the quality of food and drinks in Trabzon is fine, but tap water in the city is heavily chlorinated. In the mountain villages tap water has been connected to local springs and is absolutely safe to drink. Fresh dairy produce are delicious but if you are unaccustomed to this, it could upset your stomach. Very few local dishes contain a large amount of oil (or are wrongly prepared that way), but butter and cheese are a staple. Most of the vegetables and fruit that you can buy at markets in the province are grown locally in an organic way, so they are perfectly safe to eat. If you see wild fruit next to the road while on a hiking or biking trip, it is placed there for travellers to enjoy. But be aware of the local poisonous 'mad honey' (deli bal), which is derived by bees from the flowers of poisonous Rhododendron species. This hallucinogenic honey is legally sold in Turkey and can be acquired from roadside stalls. Most beekeepers are, however, unlikely to sell it to tourists.

Stay safe
Trabzon is generally a safe city for visitors and has low crime rates. As the city is not touristic, you will not be bothered by pushers of restaurants or shop owners in the bazaar quarter. During the 1990s and early 2000s there was a problem with street prostitution around the harbor due to the collapse of the economies of the neighboring ex-Soviet states. This problem has mostly been tackled, and the city's nightlife is now also safe and comfortable for women. The mountainous hinterland of the city is also safe, but rather sparsely populated. It is not recommended to travel in these remote areas alone, but if well prepared it is possible to do a bicycle camping trip by yourself. If you plan on hiking in the forested mountains, be sure to read about how to deal with bear encounters.

Internet

 * Internet in hotels and internet cafés (costing 1-2 TL/hour) is glacially slow and unreliable, with a tendency to drop connections for high-bandwidth programs, such as Skype. Trabzon municipality provides internet to folks free of charge at central parks (with registration via SMS / SIM card). The city has a high-speed internet connection.

Consulates

 * Georgia
 * 🇮🇷 Iran
 * 🇷🇺 Russia

In Turkey

 * Rize — capital of the province to the east of Trabzon in the heart of Turkey's tea growing region. The deeply pious city has some touristic attractions, such as a historic neighborhood and a castle, but mainly functions as a stop-over for those heading to the Firtina-valley and Ayder - a village near the Kaçkar peaks, the highest point of the Pontic Mountains. The local people are known for the quality of their dairy produce, honey, and variety of pastries, which you may find at stores in the city, and at other major towns in the province.
 * Giresun (W 175 km) — capital of the province to the west of Trabzon, standing out with its lively nightlife; trips to a nearby island with lush vegetation can be arranged from here. The mountains behind Giresun don't reach as high as those in Trabzon province, but offer much of the same natural and cultural beauty - without foreign tourists.
 * Gümüşhane - via the Zigana Pass and Torul. Take the same path as many famous travellers before you like Xenophon and Marco Polo and cross the Zigana Pass to the south of the city.
 * Kars — via Bayburt and Artvin. Cross the Pontic Mountains to the mountain fortress city of Bayburt, visit the hidden Georgian churches along the Çoruh river towards Artvin and end up in Kars - a good jump point to the nearby ancient ruins of Ani. From Kars you can either head to Georgia or south-eastern Turkey. During this trip you will see very different landscapes.
 * Tonya to escape the heat and visit the surrounding green mountains.

Abroad

 * Georgia via Batumi. Follow thousands of Trabzonites to their favorite weekend destination, the Georgian beach holiday resort town Batumi, with its clubs and casinos, 3 hours drive east.
 * Iran via Doğubeyazıt - Historically Iran was reached by Europeans through the Trabzon-Tabriz route via the Zigana-pass south of the city. This is still the main route connecting the city to Anatolia.