Located in the very southwest of Turkey Hatay Antioch is in the modern-day Antakya in the Hatay province which is the southernmost province of the country bordering Syria. Surrounded by the Nur Mountains the city sits in a wide flat basin. Situated 22 kilometres from the Mediterranean sea the closest island is the shared Greek and Turkish island of Cyprus. The wonderful history of this area of the world has to be seen to be understood Hatay lies within the cradle of civilization. We continue to learn from excavations and the development of new technology, giving us new insights into the ancient history of Hatay Antioch, one place is Alalakh at the Tel-Acana Mound excavation site, known to have existed as an organized civilization dated 2000 BC. Today there are over 1 and a half million people living in the Hatay province, however, in the 4th century BC it was one of the Roman Empires largest cities and at this time a very influential biblical place of the early Christian church as mentioned numerous times within the New Testament. Other places of interest are Hatay Archaeological Museum, the Vespasianus Titus Tunnel from the 1st and 2nd century 35 kilometres from the city centre, the Habib-i-Neccar Mosque the oldest Mosque in Hatay and the rock church of Saint Peter.
How To Get There
Hatay International Airport was built in 2007. With both international and domestic daily flights getting to this eastern part of Turkey is simple.
By road from Istanbul, the journey will take approximately 13 hours at a distance of 1116 kilometres and from Ankara 7 and a half hours by road at roughly 670 kilometres. From the coastal city of Antalya, the distance is 794 kilometres and the journey will take approximately 9 and a half hours.
What To Eat
The city is well known for Hummus and Kebabs and there are so many places to choose from, located in the city centre is Laflafa Kofte a 5-star restaurant found on Ataturk Street as the name suggests famed for its Kofte (spiced meatballs). Located in a beautiful old building in the city centre on Istiklal street is Hatay Sultan Sofrasi incredible selection of many traditional Turkish dishes with a 4-star rating and Cigkofeci Omer Usta a basic café style small restaurant with a big reputation and a 5-star rating can be found at Pinar Apartments, Ataturk Street again in the heart of the city.
Climate
Located in a well-watered and fertile valley the Mediterranean temperatures here are typical Hot and humid from May till October. The winters are very mild but can see some rainfall and high winds