TÜRKİYE IN COLOUR · REGION GUIDE
🕋 Central Anatolia in Colour
Rumi's Konya, Ankara, colourful Eskişehir and the Hittite capital
by Fatih Koçoğlu, born in Şanlıurfa, raised in Istanbul
The heart of Türkiye is a high, wide plateau. Here is Konya, city of the poet Rumi and the whirling dervishes; Ankara, the capital Atatürk built; Eskişehir, a young student city of painted wooden houses; and Hattuşa, capital of the Hittite empire 3,500 years ago. Combine it with our Cappadocia guide.
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At a glance
- Best time
- April to June and September to October. Winters are cold and summers dry.
- How long
- One week for the four places.
- Getting around
- Fast trains (YHT) link Ankara, Konya and Eskişehir in 1.5–2 hours. Use buses or a car for Hattuşa.
- Suggested route
- Eskişehir → Ankara → Hattuşa (day trip) → Konya → on to Cappadocia
The places
KONYA
2 days · The city of Rumi
Mevlana Museum
The green-tiled tomb of Rumi (Mevlana), the poet of love. Quiet, moving and full of pilgrims.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Sema ceremony
Watch the whirling dervishes at the Mevlana Cultural Centre, usually on Saturday evenings. Every December, the Şeb-i Arus festival marks Rumi's death.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Karatay Medrese
A 13th-century Seljuk school with a famous blue tiled dome, now a tile museum.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Çatalhöyük
A Neolithic town about 9,000 years old, one of the first cities in the world. A UNESCO site, 1 hour away.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›
💡 Local tip: Konya is a conservative and spiritual city. Dress modestly at the Mevlana Museum.
ANKARA
1–2 days · The capital
Anıtkabir
The monumental tomb of Atatürk, founder of the Republic, with a museum. Watch the changing of the guard.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Museum of Anatolian Civilizations
From the first farmers to the Hittites and Urartians. One of the best museums in the country.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Hamamönü
Restored Ottoman houses painted in soft colours, with cafés and craft shops.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›
HATTUŞA
1 day · 2.5 hours east of Ankara
Hattuşa
The capital of the Hittite empire: city walls, a reconstructed wall section, the Lion Gate and temples. A UNESCO site.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Yazılıkaya
An open-air rock sanctuary with a parade of Hittite gods carved in the stone.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›
ESKİŞEHİR
1–2 days · The young, colourful city
Odunpazarı
An old quarter of colourful Ottoman wooden houses, glass workshops and cafés.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Odunpazarı Modern Museum
A modern art museum designed by the Japanese architect Kengo Kuma, built from stacked wood.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Porsuk River
Take a little boat or gondola along the river through the city centre.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›Meerschaum Museum
Eskişehir is famous for meerschaum (lületaşı), a white stone carved into pipes.
📍 Open in Google Maps ›
💡 Local tip: Eat çiğ börek, a thin fried pastry with meat, brought by the Crimean Tatars.
🍽️ What to eat and drink
- Etli ekmekKonya's long thin flatbread with minced meat.
- Fırın kebabıLamb slow-cooked in a stone oven, served on bread, a Konya classic.
- Ankara tavaLamb with orzo or rice baked in a pan.
- Çiğ börekEskişehir's crispy Tatar pastry.
- Met helvasıA white sweet from Eskişehir.
- Bamya çorbasıOkra soup, a Konya speciality.
✅ Good to know
- The YHT fast trains are cheap, fast and comfortable. Book online.
- Museum days and hours change. Check the official site before you go.
- Konya and Hattuşa have very little shade. Bring a hat in summer.
🗣️ Speak a little Turkish
Locals light up when you try. Tap a phrase for audio and a full lesson.
- Merhaba!mehr·hah·bahHello!Listen
- Teşekkür ederim.teh·shehk·kewr eh·deh·reemThank you.Listen
- Lütfen.lewt·fehnPlease.Listen
- Bu ne kadar?boo neh kah·dahrHow much is this?Listen
- Tuvalet nerede?too·vah·leht neh·reh·dehWhere is the toilet?Listen
- Hesap lütfen.heh·sahp lewt·fehnThe bill, please.Listen
- Burası çok güzel!boo·rah·suh chohk gew·zehlThis place is beautiful!Listen
- Afiyet olsun!ah·fee·yeht ohl·soonEnjoy your meal!Listen
▶ Video lessons
Turkish guides for your trip
What's next
Next destination🍃 Black Sea🧭 Türkiye travel essentials
Istanbulkart, taxi apps, airport transfers, tickets, a SIM, money, 112 and the official e-Visa — plus the Turkish phrases you need.
🎁 Get all 13 guides free
All thirteen “Türkiye in Colour” PDF guides in one go: itineraries, Google Maps links, food and phrases for the whole country.
Information checked in November 2026. Opening hours, ticket prices and visiting rules change often, so check the official site before you go.
More destinations
- 🕌 IstanbulThree days in the city on two continents
- 🎈 CappadociaFairy chimneys, cave churches and balloons at sunrise
- 🏖️ AntalyaOld town, ancient theatres and the turquoise sea
- ⛵ BodrumWhite houses, a crusader castle and the bays of the Aegean
- 🌊 İzmirThe Aegean city, Ephesus and the windmills of Alaçatı
- 🫒 Aegean TownsAncient cities, olive groves and white villages by the sea
- 🪂 Fethiye & ÖlüdenizRock tombs, the Blue Lagoon and a ghost village
- 🐢 Turquoise CoastLycian tombs, sunken cities and the bluest water in the Mediterranean
- 🐟 ŞanlıurfaGöbekli Tepe, the City of Prophets and my hometown
- 🍯 Southeast TürkiyeMesopotamia: mosaics, stone cities and the best food in the country
- ⛰️ Eastern AnatoliaMount Ararat, a lost medieval capital and a church on an island
- 🍃 Black SeaGreen mountains, tea fields and a monastery on a cliff
Photo credits
- Mevlana Museum, Konya, Türkiye — Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Odunpazarı houses, Eskişehir, Türkiye — Murat Özsoy 1958, CC BY-SA 4.0
- City wall of Hattusa, Central Anatolia, Türkiye — Murat Özsoy 1958, CC BY-SA 4.0
