Where to stay in Gaziantep

Gaziantep, historically Aintab and still informally called Antep, is a major city in south-central Turkey. It is the capital of the Gaziantep Province, in the westernmost part of Turkey's Southeastern Anatolia Region and partially in the Mediterranean Region.

Ain means a well or spring, and Aintep was a fortress on the site of the present castle since around 1500 BC. It was an outlying town of the city of Dülük 12 km north, until that was destroyed in a 14th century earthquake. Aintep then came to the fore: it was on trade routes and had occasional spells of prosperity but was wrecked again and again by warfare and yet more earthquakes. The last battles came in the aftermath of the First World War, when the victorious Great Powers seized territory from the defeated Ottoman Empire.

There are two accommodation strips: downtown along Atatürk Blv and İnönü Cd, and along D400 some 2-3 km north of the centre but convenient for motorists.

Getting in

Gaziantep Oğuzeli Airport (GZT) has frequent flights from Istanbul IST taking 1 hr 45 min, and daily from Istanbul SAW, Ankara, Izmir and Antalya. An occasional flight from western Europe calls here on its way to Ercan, to circumvent the legal flimflam over the status of Northern Cyprus. The airport has the usual facilities including car hire. It's 15 km south of city centre, the Havaş bus meets the flights from Istanbul, otherwise take a taxi. Gaziantep is on Highway D400, which runs the length of the Turkish Med coast from Bodrum to Adana then away east to the border with Iran.

Getting around

Gaziantep is a sprawling city but you can walk to most places of interest. Gaziulaş is the city transport combine, running some 70 bus routes, three tram lines and Gaziray commuter trains. Pay by bank card as you get on. The most useful tram for visitors is T1 (red line), from near the railway station to the north through the central districts to the south. Taxis are plentiful and inexpensive.

Wikivoyage contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0; excerpted.