Top 4 Places to Experience the Nature and Wildlife of Turkey

Turkey is symbolized by the Blue Mosque, Hagia Sophia, Taksim Square, and hot air ballooning at Bosphorous Bridge and Cappadocia. Along with all these, Turkey is also famed globally for its spectacular national parks and floodplain forests.

Featuring wildlife and sprawling biodiversity, Turkey’s national parks and delta plain forests attract a plethora of visitors, especially photographers and nature lovers, and leave them in wonder.

So, on your next visit to Turkey, why not go beyond the bustling cities to explore its national parks, floodplain forests, mountains, rivers, and waterfalls? Check out these top 4 places to experience Turkey’s diverse landscapes and wildlife.

• Camili Efeler Forest

The Camili Efeler Forest sits in Northeastern Turkey, close to the Georgian border, and offers up one of Turkey’s most pristine forest ecosystems. It offers a mix of boreal coniferous and deciduous forests that provide a vital migration way for birds of prey each fall.

During the fall migration, raptors such as golden eagles, honey buzzards, black kites, long-legged buzzards, and saker falcons may be seen. The forest is found within the Eastern Black Sea Mountains Important Bird Area.

The forest is also home to one of the world’s most essential bee species. The Caucasian honey bee not only produces large quantities of honey in cold environs, but they are also mild-mannered and easy for beekeepers to work with.

• Goreme National Park & Cappadocia

Central Turkey’s Goreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia are recognized as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The area is most likely Turkey’s most well-known natural site.

The park is known for its cave hotels, unique rock formations, and a collection of natural chimneys, cones, and pillars cut into the volcanic landscape. Much of the area was shaped by eons of natural erosion, but human hands also played a role in shaping the landscape.

During the early 4th century, Christian monks fled here to escape the persecution of Rome. They carved out homes and hermitages in the porous tuff rock. People still live in some of these homes, and some have become hotels where travelers can enjoy a truly unique overnight experience.

One of the best ways to take in Goreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia is by grabbing a hot air balloon ride over the landscape. Tour companies are great and will happily pick you up from your hotel for an early morning flight to capture the sunrise.

• Tatlica Waterfalls

Looking to the north along the Black Sea coast, Tatlica Waterfalls sit in the Sinop Province. These falls were only just discovered in 1997 during the construction of a local dam.

More than two dozen individual falls in the area that all flow into each other. From May to November, citizens visit the falls to take advantage of campsites and hiking trails, bridges, and staircases formed alongside the falls.

• Mount Ararat

For a truly epic experience, try summiting Mount Ararat. The peak is located in Eastern Turkey, close to the borders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran. Turkey’s tallest peak, Mount Ararat, is the last resting place for Noah’s Ark.

The peak consists of two central volcanic cones, of which Greater Ararat is the tallest in elevation. With over 5,000 meters, Greater Ararat presents a high-altitude climb that may be difficult but isn’t very technical.

It would be best to secure your climbing ticket well in advance, as it can take several months to process your application. The climb has been banned because it is classified as a restricted military zone.

Final Words

These are some fantastic natural wonders Turkey has to show. I hope these sites encourage you to look beyond Istanbul and the famous seaside resorts to discover wildlife areas not many tourists seek out.

While Cappadocia may be well and truly on the leading tourist trail, the more remote forests and national parks see little traffic and present a natural look at Turkey’s wild side.