WITNESS A WORLD HERITAGE SITE
Selçuk Ephesus is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, the list of the world’s cultural and natural treasures drawn up by UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee. Inscribed on this prestigious list in 2015 with four components in total, including the Ancient City of Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary, Çukuriçi Mound and Ayasuluk Hill, Selçuk is a city that embraces its past, protects its heritage and lives with the awareness of passing it on to future generations.
Would you like to visit these UNESCO World Heritage sites and witness history and cultural heritage for yourself?
EASY TO REACH
Just one hour by road from İzmir, the pearl of the Aegean. From İzmir Adnan Menderes International Airport you can get here within an hour by rail (İzmir’s İZBAN commuter line and TCDD trains) or by road.
It is a destination that is very easy to reach from abroad and from within Türkiye, and getting around the town and its surroundings is effortless.
Thanks to its advantageous location, Selçuk Ephesus is easily reached by sea, air, road and rail, on both domestic and international routes.
From İzmir you can fly direct to many countries, and with many daily flights to and from İstanbul, just an hour’s flight away, you can easily get here from thousands of destinations around the world.
Türkiye’s major holiday destinations such as Bodrum, Fethiye, Marmaris, Pamukkale, Kuşadası and Ayvalık are just a few hours away by road.
You can also reach Selçuk by the seasonal ferry from the island of Samos to Kuşadası Port.
With its location and transport links, Selçuk Ephesus is a holiday paradise within easy reach. Come and discover it…
FOLLOW THE TRAIL OF HISTORY
- The city that is home to the Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World… The Temple of Artemis was the most important temple of its time.
- Ephesus, mentioned in the Bible, is one of the Seven Churches of early Christianity.
- The House of the Virgin Mary was declared a place of pilgrimage by the Vatican in 1961 and has been visited by Pope Paul VI (1967), Pope John Paul II (1979) and Pope Benedict XVI (2006).
Explore, read about and listen to Selçuk Ephesus, where archaeological excavations are still under way and new discoveries come to light every day…
A HISTORIC CITY REMEMBERED FOR ITS STRONG WOMEN
Perhaps by a quirk of history, Ephesus has always been a city associated with women.
With its 9,000-year-old stone figurine, the Amazon women of its founding legends, the Artemis of Ephesus who continued the cult of Cybele, the Mother Goddess of Anatolia, and finally the Virgin Mary, Ephesus has carved its name into history as a city remembered for its powerful female figures. The strong characters of these women were etched into the city’s archive and have come down through thousands of years to the Selçuk Ephesus of today. Wherever you go, from Şirince to Ephesus, from the House of the Virgin Mary to Çukuriçi Mound, the mystical energy of these legendary strong women pervades the air of Selçuk.
A HARMONY OF FLAVORS
A meeting point of many civilizations and cultures throughout its history, the city has a unique blend of Cretan, Greek, Balkan and Turkish cuisine.
Olive oil, the most precious ingredient of Aegean and Mediterranean cuisine, has been used here for 4,000 years. The oil pressed from the olive trees around Değirmenboğazı, near Şirince, is known to carry the scent of countless fragrant herbs and is highly prized.
Fruit and vegetables, wild herbs and greens grown in the fertile soil where the waters of the Menderes basin meet the Aegean breeze are the mainstays of the local cuisine. Wild greens are boiled or sautéed and dressed with olive oil, and salads and meze made with herbs are also eaten for their healing properties. The birthplace of çöp şiş, the city is known for its local dishes, too, and is famous for specialties such as stuffed zucchini flowers and şevketi bostan. Peaches, mandarins, pomegranates and quinces, among its most important crops, have an aroma all their own and are sold under the city’s name in markets across the country. Hardly a visitor comes to Şirince, famous for its fruit wines, without tasting and buying some. Gökçealan village is renowned for the Osmancık grape, native to the area, and the wineries near the village are known for their award-winning wines.
In short, the dishes, salads, meze and drinks that grace the tables of this city delight your palate and nourish your body.
WORTH DISCOVERING
(Şirince, Gökçealan, Çamlık Railway Museum, Çetin Culture Village Museum, Belevi Mausoleum, Zeytinköy Gebekirse Lake, Bird Sanctuary, Aquapark)
Beyond the holiday you know and have planned, Selçuk Ephesus has surprises in store that you would never expect. Even away from its UNESCO heritage sites, you can discover a wealth of different and special places.
SET YOURSELF FREE (EPHESUS SKYDIVING)
If You Really Want to Be Free, Jump Out of the Plane!
To bring its activities to a wider audience, the parachute school, with its team of trained experts, has turned the airfield in Selçuk/Ephesus into a skydiving center (DROPZONE) that is open all year round. Thanks to its climate, Ephesus is suitable for jumping in every month of the year, and it also stands out for its proximity to many tourist sights (the Ancient City of Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary, Şirince, the Temple of Artemis, Kuşadası, the Seven Sleepers, etc.).
Besides beginner courses, the parachute school offers training in many disciplines (accuracy, style, formation skydiving, canopy formation, skysurf, freestyle, wingsuit).
TANDEM JUMP
A tandem jump begins with a 15-minute briefing. Accompanied by an experienced tandem pilot, you jump from 4,000 meters and enjoy 45 seconds of freefall at 200 km/h.
Then, as you glide over the Ancient City of Ephesus under the two-person parachute, the sun shining on the Aegean Sea and a deep blue sky will keep you company.
So that you never forget this amazing experience and can share it with your loved ones, aerial camera operators will film your jump from the moment you leave the plane until you land.
Under normal conditions the jump can be completed within an hour, but please note that you may have to wait 1–3 hours because of weather conditions and other bookings.
Don’t forget your sneakers
To enjoy your jump, remember to bring comfortable clothes and sneakers. Sandals, boots and high heels are not suitable for jumping.
Before a tandem jump, participants must sign a WAIVER confirming that they have no physical or mental health problems.
There is no age limit for tandem jumps, but participants under 18 may jump only with the consent of a parent (who must show an ID card). Other than this, the requirements for a tandem jump are a weight of at least 45 kg and at most 90 kg, and a maximum height of 1.90 m.
www.skydiveefes.com THK Gökçen Aviation Ephesus Skydiving and Flight Center, Selçuk – İzmir
Phone: +90 232 892 64 47
Mobile: +90 505 545 21 93
Email: info@skydiveefes.com
COME TO THE MEETING POINT OF CIVILIZATIONS
After its first settlement, this city was founded on different sites and has gone by different names over time. Call it Ephesus, Ayasuluk or Selçuk, as you like: these coordinates have always been a city of migration that has witnessed many different civilizations throughout history.
A city of migrants, you might say, Ephesus Selçuk is where civilizations that arrived through migration met, and it has long been a focus of cultural exchange. We recommend a visit to Selçuk Ephesus City Memory, where you can see with your own eyes how this meeting point of civilizations evolved through history and how it was transformed by different cultures over the ages.
Originally a tobacco warehouse, the building was also used as an arms depot during World War I and, after an extensive restoration, finally opened in 2012 as the Selçuk Ephesus City Memory Center. The center is committed to presenting the city as a whole, with its nature, people, places, historical objects, memories and documents, and to treating Selçuk Ephesus not merely as a place but as an economic, social, cultural and political whole. Touring it, you can walk through the chronology of these lands and feel as if you are on a journey through time.
Web: https://www.facebook.com/SelcukEfesKentBellegi/
Phone: +90 232 892 60 30/ 103 – +90 506 224 37 84
Address: İsabey Mh. Namık Kemal Cd. No: 13 Selçuk/İzmir/Türkiye
SEA, SAND AND SUN
9 km from Selçuk and 6 km west of the ancient city of Ephesus, Pamucak (Ephesus Beach) stretches for some five kilometers. In places the sandy shore is as much as 80 meters wide. If you come in late spring, summer or early autumn, you can enjoy Ephesus Beach to the full. Selçuk Ephesus has sunshine nearly 300 days a year, and the swimming season runs from May to early October. Along the kilometers of this Blue Flag beach, officially certified for its cleanliness, the sea temperature can reach 25–26 °C in the hottest months (July and August).
If you are looking for a calm, peaceful beach, this is the place for you. Don’t be surprised if the sea daffodils, the shore’s protected flowers, whisper to you that Alexander the Great once passed this way, or that countless kings and queens cooled off in these waters…
As a protected area, the shore remains largely unspoiled. On its beaches you will find showers, toilets, umbrellas, sun loungers, snacks, and alcoholic and soft drinks. The nearby water parks and jeep, ATV and horse safari operators offer plenty of other activities; give them a call to plan your day.
Whether for water sports or camping… or arriving by camper van, you won’t find a more convenient beach. For those looking for a more comfortable stay, five-star hotels are close by too. More choice, a more enjoyable holiday!
A FRUIT PARADISE
With its Mediterranean climate and proximity to the sea, Selçuk Ephesus offers ideal conditions for growing olives and fruit, and is famous in the region for its mandarins, quinces, pomegranates, peaches, grapes and figs. Along the roads you are likely to see shops and stalls selling fruit and fruit juice. If you are traveling by car, why not stop for a quick vitamin break?
The hilly land of the region is mostly covered with olive trees. Olive oil is pressed from the oil olive variety known as Memecik. Cold-pressed oil from olives harvested around Değirmenboğazı and Şirince in particular takes on the aroma of the mountains’ wild and fragrant herbs, leaving a special taste on the palate. There are places where you can buy olive oil while you are here; local brands such as Tane and Yaane are recommended.
When you visit Şirince, the first thing to catch your eye will be its fruit wines. Made from the fruit of the region and nearby areas, they are Şirince’s signature product, and you can taste a wide variety of them in the wine houses you will find at every turn.
The vineyards lining the road from Selçuk Ephesus to Gökçealan village will catch your eye at once. If you come in late August or early September, be sure to watch the grape harvest. Buy some grapes and sample the local flavors. We especially recommend a visit to Yedibilgeler Winery and Hotel, between Çamlık and Gökçealan. Wines made from the grapes grown here have won awards at competitions around the world. As you taste these special wines, we are sure their names will surprise you too. Enjoyed with these wines, named after the gods of mythology and the philosophers of the region, the sunset here is truly magnificent.
http://www.yedibilgeler.com/
ANOTHER NAME FOR A BOUTIQUE HOLIDAY
Famous for its boutique businesses, the town offers hotels and establishments where you will find personalized service of the highest quality. Our boutique places to stay, suited to every budget, have very high guest ratings on online platforms. Run in line with the principles of sustainable tourism, they are sure to leave you satisfied.
To find establishments offering everything from shuttle services to gastronomy and route suggestions, you can get help from the Small Hotels Association.
Small Hotels Association https://www.facebook.com/selcukefeskucukoteller/
When planning your trip, don’t miss our Where to Stay page.
