Ayvalık

An olive-oil town on the northern Aegean coast, with a Greek-style stone-house old town linked to Cunda Island, sunsets at Devil's Table and boat trips around the islands' little coves.

Ayvalık lies on the northern Aegean coast in Türkiye's Balıkesir Province, across the water from the Greek island of Lesbos, and is a seaside town famous for its olive oil. Before the 1923 Greek–Turkish population exchange it was a Greek town known as Kydonies, and it has kept swathes of 19th-century stone houses and several Orthodox churches converted into mosques, giving it a distinctive blend of Greek and Turkish character. The town divides into three areas: the old town and waterfront (stone-house lanes, the Saatli Mosque, the Taksiyarhis Church Museum and the harbour where island-hopping boats depart); Cunda Island, linked by a causeway (a seaside village, seafood restaurants, Windmill Hill and the Ayışığı Monastery); and, south of town, the Devil's Table viewpoint and the beaches of Sarımsaklı and Badavut. Jun–Sep is the best time for swimming and island-hopping, while May and Sep–Oct are mild and less crowded, ideal for exploring the old town and olive groves; in winter many beach facilities and tour boats shut down. Getting there: the nearest airport is Edremit (Koca Seyit), about 45 minutes' drive away; İzmir Airport is about 2.5 hours away, and there are direct long-distance buses from Istanbul and İzmir. In summer, ferries run to Lesbos (Schengen visa required). Plan 2–3 days. The ancient city of Pergamon is covered under the İzmir destination, but you can also visit it on a day trip by private car from here (about 60 km). Food to try: Ayvalık toast, seafood mezes and local olive oil.

Top sights

• Ayvalık Old Town – A well-preserved old town of Greek-style stone houses, with coloured shutters, churches converted into mosques and old olive oil workshops…
• Cunda Island (Alibey Adası) – A small Aegean island linked to the mainland by a causeway. Its seaside town is full of old Greek houses and seafood restaurants, and the w…
• Şeytan Sofrası – A lava plateau on the hilltop south of town, overlooking the Ayvalık Islands and the bay, Şeytan Sofrası is the most famous sunset viewpoin…
• Ayvalık Islands Nature Park – A nature reserve made up of more than twenty small islands, where a day island-hopping boat tour takes in the bays and swimming in turquois…
• Sarımsaklı Beach – A fine-sand beach about 7 km long on the south side of Ayvalık, with shallow, calm water and many hotels and beach clubs, making it a top c…
• Taksiyarhis Church Museum – A Greek Orthodox church built in 1844 in the old town, now a memorial museum known for icons painted on fish skin and finely carved woodwor…
• Rahmi M. Koç Museum Cunda (Taksiyarhis Church) – A 19th-century Greek cathedral in the center of Cunda Island's town, restored by the Koç foundation as a museum displaying vintage cars, to…
• Saatli Mosque – A mosque converted from a Greek Orthodox church, whose bell tower serves as a minaret, making it a landmark and meeting point in the old to…
• Çınarlı Mosque – Another old-town church converted into a mosque, originally the Church of Saint George, with a small square under an old plane tree where y…
• Ayışığı Monastery – The ruins of a Greek monastery on a hillside by the sea on the north coast of Cunda Island, with stone walls and arches facing the Aegean…
• Badavut Beach – A natural beach west of Sarımsaklı with dunes and pine forest behind it, quieter than the main beach, with clear water that suits swimming…

Where to eat

• Tamam Meyhane – One of Ayvalık's most highly rated meyhanes, with a blackboard menu of freshly made daily meze. Reservations needed.
• Mesut Büfe – A long-running snack counter on Toast Street, making Ayvalık tost with sausage and cheese since around 1990.
• Cunda Uno Restaurant – Operating since 1991 in the same stone house in the center of Cunda Island, known for its pizza and seafood meze.

Itineraries

• North Aegean Ruins & Islands Road Trip – Drive south from Istanbul via Gallipoli, Troy, Bozcaada, and Assos to the charming town of Alaçatı.