Mardin

A stone hill town overlooking the Mesopotamian plain, with Artuqid madrasas, Syriac Orthodox monasteries and multicultural old streets, and the monastic heartland of Tur Abdin to the east.

Mardin lies in southeastern Turkey. Its old town rises in tiers up the southern slope of Mount Mazı, a jumble of honey-coloured limestone houses, mosque minarets and church bell towers overlooking the endless Mesopotamian plain, just about 30 km north of the Syrian border. Since ancient times it has been home to Arabs, Kurds, Syriac Christians (Assyrian/Syriac Orthodox) and Armenians, and the Artuqid dynasty of the 12th–15th centuries left exquisite stone buildings such as the Great Mosque and the Zinciriye and Kasımiye madrasas. The heart of the old town is a main street running along the contour of the hill (First Street, Birinci Cadde), from which narrow stepped lanes and vaulted passageways called “abbara” branch up and down. Along it are copper workshops, almond sweet makers, wild pistachio soap workshops and terrace cafés, and gazing over the plain at sunset is the quintessential experience. About 5 km east of town is the Syriac Orthodox Deyrulzafaran Monastery, and about 30 km southeast lies Dara, a Roman-Byzantine frontier fortress; Midyat, about 65 km east, and Mor Gabriel Monastery, about 85 km away, make a day trip to Tur Abdin, the “Mountain of the Servants of God” known for its monasteries. The best seasons are Apr–May and Sep–Oct; in Jul–Aug temperatures often exceed 40°C, and snow occasionally falls in winter. Getting there: Mardin Airport is about 20 km from the old town, with direct flights from Istanbul and Ankara; you can also take a bus from Diyarbakır in about 1.5 hours. Plan to stay 2–3 days. The old town is best explored on foot, but it's steep with many steps, so wear non-slip shoes; dress modestly when visiting religious sites.

Top sights

• Mardin Old Town – A hillside old town of honey-coloured stone, where the main street, stepped lanes and covered arcades weave together, and rooftop cafés ove…
• Deyrulzafaran Monastery – A thousand-year-old Syriac Orthodox monastery that served as the patriarchal seat for nearly seven centuries. Its yellow stone walls glow s…
• Midyat Old Town – The core town of Tur Abdin, with golden-stone mansions, Syriac churches and silver-thread filigree workshops, and several popular Turkish T…
• Kasımiye Madrasa – A madrasa completed in the 15th century under the Ak Koyunlu dynasty, with a double-arcaded courtyard around a pool and a distinctive water…
• Zinciriye Madrasa – A madrasa built in 1385 under the Artuqid dynasty, with fine carved doorways and twin domes. The rooftop terrace overlooks the old town and…
• Great Mosque of Mardin – The Great Mosque from the Artuqid period in the 12th century. Its cylindrical minaret, with Seljuk-style relief carvings, is a landmark of…
• Mardin Museum – An archaeology museum housed in an 1895 Syriac Catholic bishop's residence, displaying artefacts from the Neolithic to the Ottoman era in U…
• Sakıp Sabancı Mardin City Museum – A city museum converted from an Ottoman barracks, using reconstructed scenes to tell the story of Mardin's crafts, folk customs and multicu…
• Forty Martyrs Church (Mor Behnam) – A Syriac Orthodox church founded in the 6th century, with finely carved stone doorways and a bell tower. Services are still held in Aramaic.
• Mardin Castle – An ancient castle on the hilltop above the old town, nicknamed the 'Eagle's Nest' and long considered impregnable. It has long been a milit…
• Mardin Old Bazaar – A labyrinthine old market below the Great Mosque, with the constant clang of coppersmiths, selling pistachio soap, almond sweets, spices an…
• Şehidiye Mosque – A 14th-century Artuqid mosque with a slender, carved minaret beside the main street, one of the most photogenic minarets in the old town.
• Latifiye Mosque – A mosque built in 1371 under the Artuqid dynasty, with a richly carved north gate and a cool, quiet courtyard with a fountain.
• Dara Ancient City – A frontier fortress city where the Eastern Roman Empire confronted Persia, with a huge underground cistern, rock-cut tombs and city walls t…
• Mor Gabriel Monastery – A monastery founded in 397, one of the oldest still-operating monasteries in the world. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Tur Abdin and p…
• Mar Jacob Church, Nusaybin – St. Jacob's Church in Nusaybin, the ancient city of Nisibis, dating to the 4th century. St. Jacob is buried in its underground crypt, and t…
• Savur – A stone town in a valley about 50 km northeast of Mardin, with old mansions, a castle and orchards. It is quieter and more authentically ol…
• Great Mosque of Kızıltepe – A 13th-century Great Mosque from the Artuqid period. Its mihrab and the stone carvings around its gate are considered the peak of Artuqid a…
• Hasankeyf – A town on the Tigris with over ten thousand years of history. In 2020 the Ilısu reservoir flooded much of the old town, and its monuments w…

Where to eat

• Cercis Murat Konağı – A Mardin specialist run by celebrated chef Ebru Baybara Demir in a restored Syriac Orthodox mansion, serving a set tast…
• Seyr-i Merdin Viewpoint Restaurant – A viewpoint restaurant overlooking the old town's stone houses and the Mesopotamian plain, famous for its breakfast pla…
• Bagdadi Restaurant – A Mardin restaurant in a historic stone building in the old town, known for alluciye eggplant lamb, black plum meat and…
• Kebapçı Yusuf Usta – An affordable kebab spot opened in 2001, where Mardin kebab skewers and grilled liver are favorites among locals.

Itineraries

• Southeastern Mesopotamia Antiquities – Savor Gaziantep's culinary heritage, stand before the giant statues of Mount Nemrut, and explore Göbeklitepe and the st…