Central Aegean

Central Aegean is the central section of the Aegean coast of Turkey, including Izmir, the third biggest Turkish city, and its vicinity.

Cities

Izmir — Turkey's 3rd largest city, undeniably capital of Aegean Region, with beautiful neighbourhoods and promenades on its waterfront
Alaçatı — village with well preserved local stone architecture, ancient windmills, and a cove perfect for windsurfing
Alaşehir — a bleak agricultural town, although the ruins of the St John's Church attest that this was a major centre of early Christianity when it was known as Philadelphia
Akhisar — a lovely atmospheric city that contains the ruins of Thyatira.
Birgi — medieval Turkey at its best, overlooking the Küçükmenderes Valley
Çeşme — town on Turkey's (almost) westernmost tip with an impressive citadel
Foça — town north of Izmir noted for its preserved architecture and the nearby islands that are one of the last refugees of endangered monk seals
Ilıca — village known for its thermal springs discharging from sea floor, near Çeşme
Kula — an inland town with much traditional architecture and a volcanic area, the only UNESCO Global Geopark in the country
Kuşadası — resort town south of Izmir, with a harbour that almost any cruise ship on a Mediterranean tour calls
Manisa — inland city east of Izmir, a possible for visiting Sardis, the Lydian capital, as well as the beautiful Mt. Sipylus nearby
Selçuk — town serving as a gateway to Ephesus, which is also a historic center in its own right.
Tire — inland town with a well-known street market
Uşak — a city with a museum exhibiting what is purpoted to be the treasure of Croesus and several ancient sites in the surrounding countryside

Other destinations

Dilek Peninsula — perhaps the only stretch of undeveloped coastline in the region
Ephesus — well-preserved ruins of Roman city
Şirince — inland village close to Ephesus/Selçuk, surrounded by olive- and vineyards, can be best described as Turkey's Tuscany
Sardis — a set of ruins in Salihli district of Manisa province, the former capital of Lydia.

Understand

Central Aegean encompasses what were historically called Ionia on the coast, and Lydia inland.

Get in

Izmir Adnan Menderes Airport IATA: ADB is located south of Izmir and serves flights from around Turkey and western Europe.
Buses are available to Izmir from most, if not all, cities in Turkey.
Ferries connect Çeşme and Kusadasi with the Greek islands of Chios and Samos, respectively. Also, Izmir has a weekly ferry service from Istanbul during summer.
Trains leave Bandırma (on the coast of Marmara), Denizli (in the Southern Aegean), and Ankara (in Central Anatolia) for Izmir.
See Istanbul to Izmir for various approaches into the region from the north.

Get around

By train

Central Aegean is home to the densest and the oldest rail network in the country: the earliest construction dates back to 1857. In addition to the relatively frequent regional trains that run on main trunk lines between Izmir and Manisa, and Izmir and Aydın, many railbus (raybüs) services connect agricultural towns lying at the end of branch lines and larger settlements, especially Izmir.

By bicycle

A section (dead link: March 2023) of EuroVelo 8, one of the European cycling routes across the continent, was developed from Dikili and Bergama in the north, through Foça and Izmir, to Çeşme in the west and Ephesus in the south.