08 · City guide
Artvin
Province of the Çoruh valley, Georgian churches and Karagöl
Artvin is a mountainous province stretching from Hopa and Arhavi on the Black Sea coast to the interior of the Kaçkar and Yalnızçam mountains; the provincial center is built on steep slopes overlooking the Çoruh River valley. Known in the Middle Ages as Tao-Klarjeti, the region was one of the centers of the Georgian kingdoms; İşhan and Parhali in Yusufeli, the castles and monasteries of Ardanuç and the Tbeti ruins in Şavşat are traces of this heritage. Karagöl and the Camili (Macahel) Biosphere Reserve in Borçka, the Sahara yayla (highland pasture) in Şavşat and the Hatila Valley make up the province's protected nature. The culture and arts festival held every summer on Kafkasör Yaylası in the center is known for its bull wrestling. On the coast, the Sarp Border Gate opens to Georgia.
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Where shall we explore?
Machine translated — This content was machine-translated and may differ from the original Turkish text.Castle
Ardanuç (Gevhernik) Castle
Ardanuç, Artvin
A castle-town built on top of a huge rock mass in Adakale, the political center of the Klarjeti region in the Middle Ages; known in Turkish sources as Gevhernik Castle.
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Arsiyan Yaylası
Şavşat, Artvin
Şavşat's high yayla next to the Georgian border, home to lakes of all sizes and floating islands at elevations above 2600 meters.
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Artvin Atatürk Statue (Atatepe)
Merkez, Artvin
A 22-meter giant statue on Atatepe, south of the city, depicting Atatürk walking over rocks at Dumlupınar, with a viewing area.
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Artvin Castle (Livane Castle)
Merkez, Artvin
A small medieval castle on a sheer rock overlooking the Çoruh River at the entrance to the city, popularly known as Livane Castle.
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Ski resort
Atabarı Ski Center
Merkez, Artvin
A small-scale ski center about 16 km from the city of Artvin, at 1750 meters, surrounded by spruce and fir forests.
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Barhal (Parhali) Church
Yusufeli, Artvin
A Georgian church in Altıparmak (Barhal) village, built in the 10th century under King David III, unique in the region for its domeless three-aisled basilica plan.
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Berta Monastery (Ortaköy Kilise Mosque)
Merkez, Artvin
The main church of a 9th-century Georgian monastery overlooking Ortaköy, now used as a mosque; the place where the famous Berta Gospels were produced.
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Borçka Karagöl Nature Park
Borçka, Artvin
A nature park about 27 km from Borçka protecting two connected landslide lakes surrounded by dense spruce and beech forests.
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Camili (Macahel) Biosphere Reserve
Borçka, Artvin
A region in the Macahel basin on the Georgian border that became Türkiye's first UNESCO biosphere reserve in 2005, known for its pure Caucasian honeybees, wooden mosques and village life.
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Cehennem Deresi Canyon Nature Park
Ardanuç, Artvin
A narrow, deep gorge carved by the Ardanuç Stream on the Artvin–Ardanuç road; a canyon declared a nature park in 2018, explored along wooden walkways.
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Çifte Köprü (Kamilet Twin Bridges)
Arhavi, Artvin
Two historic stone arch bridges set at right angles to each other at the confluence of the Kamilet and Durğuna streams, at the entrance to the Kamilet Valley.
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Deniz Gölü (Büyük Peşevit Lake)
Yusufeli, Artvin
On the way to the Kaçkar summit at 3384 meters, ice-covered for most of the year; the largest lake in the Kaçkars and Türkiye's deepest glacial lake.
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Dikyamaç Village and Surroundings Lifestyle Museum
Arhavi, Artvin
An ethnography museum in Arhavi's Dikyamaç village telling the story of Eastern Black Sea village life through the everyday objects and clothing of local people.
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Dolishane (Doliskana) Church
Merkez, Artvin
A domed 10th-century Georgian church in Hamamlı village, known for its relief of a king presenting a model of the church and its rich stone carving.
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Dört Kilise (Tekkale Monastery)
Yusufeli, Artvin
A large 10th-century monastery complex, Othta Eklesia in Georgian, with a three-aisled basilica, set in a forested valley northwest of Tekkale village.
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Hatila Valley National Park
Merkez, Artvin
A national park just west of Artvin protecting the Hatila Stream valley, known for its narrow canyons with waterfalls, steep slopes and more than 500 plant species.
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Hopa Culture House and Museum
Hopa, Artvin
A culture house and museum in a restored 19th-century Laz house in Hopa, displaying about 5000 ethnographic objects reflecting local life.
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İşhan Monastery
Yusufeli, Artvin
A monastery church in İşhan village regarded as one of the masterpieces of medieval Georgian architecture, with multicolored dressed-stone facades, dome frescoes and rich stone carving.
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Mosque
İskender Paşa Mosque and Complex
Ardanuç, Artvin
A mosque in Adakale, Ardanuç's first settlement, named after Çerkez İskender Paşa, who took the castle in 1551; a stone with a Georgian inscription is set upside down in its wall.
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Kafkasör Yaylası
Merkez, Artvin
A yayla and recreation area very close to the city, surrounded by pine, fir and spruce forests, known for its summer festival with bull wrestling.
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Karagöl–Sahara National Park (Sahara Yaylası)
Şavşat, Artvin
Sahara Yaylası, about 17 km from Şavşat, set on flats at 1700–1800 meters among spruce and fir forests; the second section of the national park.
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Makriyali Church
Kemalpaşa, Artvin
The seaside remains of a medieval church in Kemalpaşa, where the Georgian King Bagrat V and the Trebizond princess Anna are said to have married in 1367.
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Maral Waterfall
Borçka, Artvin
A forest waterfall in the Camili Biosphere Reserve where the Maral Stream plunges about 63 meters in a single drop.
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Mençuna Waterfall
Arhavi, Artvin
A high waterfall in the Kamilet Valley, reached by a suspension bridge and a short forest walk on stone steps, forming a small pool below.
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Nature
Meşeli Fairy Chimneys
Şavşat, Artvin
Fairy-chimney-shaped rocks in Karagöl–Sahara National Park, exposed in the middle of a spruce forest when a landslide swept away the soil in the 1960s.
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Lake
Murgul Karagöl
Murgul, Artvin
A small high-altitude landslide lake at the foot of Mount Tiryal, within Damar village, surrounded by forest and mountain meadows.
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Opiza Monastery
Merkez, Artvin
The remains, in Bağcılar village, of one of the earliest monasteries of the Georgian Middle Ages, where the famous Opiza Gospels were copied.
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Peterek Castle
Yusufeli, Artvin
A medieval castle built on bedrock on a hill overlooking the Çoruh valley in Çevreli (Peterek) village, which served as the center of a sanjak of the same name in the Ottoman period.
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Porta (Khandzta) Monastery
Merkez, Artvin
A monastery founded at the end of the 8th century by Grigol Khandzteli in the Bağlık hamlet of Pırnallı village, preserving a medieval settlement fabric with its church, bell tower and fountain.
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Satlel (Şavşat) Castle
Şavşat, Artvin
A 9th-century castle on a high outcrop of bedrock in the Söğütlü neighborhood at the entrance to Şavşat, with towers, chapel remains and a rock-cut cistern.
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Şavşat Karagöl
Şavşat, Artvin
A landslide lake in Karagöl–Sahara National Park, surrounded by spruce and pine forests; one of Artvin's favorite lakes for camping and caravanning.
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Tbeti (Tibeti) Church
Şavşat, Artvin
The grand main church of the Tbeti Monastery in Cevizli village, built in the early 10th century under the Bagratid Ashot Kukhi; its dome collapsed in 1953.
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Yaylalar (Hevek) Village
Yusufeli, Artvin
A historic mountain village on the Artvin side of the Kaçkar Mountains, with wooden houses and guesthouses, where hikes to the Kaçkar summit and glacial lakes begin.
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Yeni Rabat (Akhaldaba) Church
Ardanuç, Artvin
A 10th–11th-century Georgian church in the Çamlık (Rabat) quarter of Bulanık village, notable for the triangular niches on its dome drum and its floral stone carving.
Practical information
Machine translated — This content was machine-translated and may differ from the original Turkish text.- Note
- The Yusufeli Dam reservoir has altered some of the old roads and settlements; yayla and forest roads may close in winter, so check current road conditions
- Climate
- Rainy, mild Black Sea climate on the coast; drier, more continental conditions in Şavşat, Ardanuç and Yusufeli
- Best time
- June–September; the Kafkasör Festival and bull wrestling take place in early summer, and the forests change color in autumn
- Getting there
- Rize–Artvin Airport (Pazar, Rize) is about 54 km from Hopa and about 125 km from central Artvin; the Sarp Border Gate in Kemalpaşa provides a crossing to Georgia
- Getting around
- The provincial center is built on steep slopes; a private vehicle is recommended for the Kafkasör, Karagöl, Macahel and Yusufeli routes