Library of Celsus
A two-storey marble facade with four statues of the virtues, the most famous archaeological image in Turkey and its most crowded spot at noon.
Benh LIEU SONG — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Slyronit — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Szilas — CC BY 4.0 · Szilas — CC BY 4.0
Few places let you walk a Roman city on this scale: from the Upper Gate to the Lower Gate runs the best part of two kilometres of marble street, columns, fountains and colonnades, and halfway down the two-storey facade of the Library of Celsus stops everyone in their tracks. It is the most photographed ruin in Turkey and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, once capital of the Roman province of Asia and one of the largest cities of the empire, often described as second only to Rome. The Great Theatre still holds its full 25,000 seats, and Curetes Street carries you down from the Hercules Gate past the Trajan Fountain and the Temple of Hadrian to the library itself. From Kuşadası it is a day trip of about 20 km, 30 to 40 minutes by hire car or taxi, which is how most Gulf visitors arrive. The cheap route is the dolmuş to Selçuk and a short taxi for the last 3 km to the gate; a guided half-day tour is the better choice if you want to understand what you are looking at, because signage inside is sparse. Enter at the Upper (Magnesia) Gate and walk downhill to the Lower Gate, which spares you a stiff climb and a taxi between the two gates at the end. Admission is EUR 40 for foreign adults, payable by card; cash is Turkish lira only and euro notes are refused. The Terrace Houses, the roofed Roman townhouses with their mosaics and painted walls, need a separate EUR 15 ticket sold at their own entrance inside the site, and you should not count on a Museum Pass covering it. They are worth every cent: they are almost the only shaded part of the site and the only part that shows how people lived rather than how they worshipped. The Ephesus Experience Museum inside the site is included in the main ticket, and children under eight go free with a passport as proof. Heat and crowds are the enemy. Cruise ships empty thousands of passengers out of Kuşadası port by mid-morning, and in August the marble throws the sun straight back at you with hardly a tree for cover, so arrive at the 08:00 opening or after 15:00, bring water, a hat and proper shoes; the marble is slippery and uneven and pushchairs struggle. From early June to early November the site opens after dark Wednesday to Saturday (19:00-23:00, last ticket 22:00, entry through the Lower Gate only) under floodlights, a fine option for families in summer, though it is suspended on concert and event nights. In winter the hours shorten and you may have the place almost to yourself; spring and autumn are the sweet spot.
A two-storey marble facade with four statues of the virtues, the most famous archaeological image in Turkey and its most crowded spot at noon.
Roofed Roman townhouses with intact mosaics and frescoes, on a separate ticket that earns its price, and almost the only shade on site.
A 25,000-seat arena that still hosts occasional concerts and events; climb to the top rows for the view down Harbour Street.
Efes Harabeleri, Selçuk, İzmir
Yes, and they are the part people regret skipping. Roofed, noticeably cooler, with mosaics and painted walls still in place and glass walkways over the rooms. Allow about 40 minutes; the ticket is sold at their entrance inside the site, so do not count on a Museum Pass covering it.
Yes, with planning: it is two kilometres on slippery marble with no shade, and pushchairs struggle. Start at the Upper Gate at opening so the walk is downhill, or choose the night opening (Wednesday to Saturday, June to November, via the Lower Gate), when the heat drops and the crowds thin dramatically.
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