Hattusa
Hattuşa
The capital ruins of the Hittite Empire, a World Heritage Site, with the Lion Gate, an underground passage and the rock-carved Yazılıkaya shrine. A classic long day trip from Ankara.
Hattusa lies in Boğazkale, about 150 km east of Ankara (roughly 2.5 hours by car). It was the capital of the Hittite Empire from the 17th to the 13th century BC and was inscribed as a World Heritage Site in 1986. A ring road links the Great Temple, the Lion Gate, the King's Gate, the roughly 70-metre underground passage (Yerkapı) and the royal acropolis, and the city walls are immense. Two kilometres away, the rock walls of the open-air Yazılıkaya shrine are carved with a procession of 12 underworld deities. The site is vast, so you'll need a car or hired driver, and one ticket covers both locations. The village museum displays excavated finds, while the most important clay tablets and sphinx sculptures are in the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara and in Istanbul.
Opening hours
Approx. 08:00–19:00 (until 17:00 in winter)
Nearby sights
- Hamamönü
- Ankara Castle
- Aslanhane Mosque (Ahi Şerafeddin Mosque)
- Rahmi M. Koç Museum Ankara
- Erimtan Archaeology and Arts Museum
- Museum of Anatolian Civilizations
- Kocatepe Mosque
- Temple of Augustus and Rome