Passport, wallet, phone, mask... All set.
My journey to Kars started at 4 a.m. with an early morning flight from Istanbul to the Turkish capital Ankara. Aware that I was heading to Turkish “Siberia,” I packed the warmest clothes I had in my closet and left the house.
The flight from Istanbul to Ankara takes around an hour. Why Ankara, you ask? Well, that was the actual starting point of my trip. I was taking the touristic Eastern Express, an almost 1,400-kilometer (800-mile) train route from the capital to Kars, an ancient eastern city near Turkey’s rugged border with Armenia and Georgia.
I arrived in Ankara at around 8 a.m. As I was not sure how long it would take me to get to the train station, I took one of the earliest flights. Don’t repeat my mistakes, have your sleep. The railway station is around an hour's drive away from the airport. There are a few ways to get there, you can choose to take a taxi, use public transportation or opt for private Havaş buses.
After having some coffee with a friend, I finally arrived at the train station. The building was filled with local and foreign tourists excited about the unforgettable trip we were about to set out on.
The service was suspended less than a year after starting because of the coronavirus pandemic, but Turkey restarted its mainline trains routes on Dec. 15 last year. Trains depart from the capital every Wednesday and Friday, while they leave Kars on Fridays and Sundays.
My epic journey across Turkey’s snow-capped Euphrates plateaus started at 4 p.m. Wednesday. Tired from the morning flight, I fell asleep after having dinner excited to wake up in the morning to breathtaking winter views.
There are a few details you need to know about the train.
The Eastern Express became extremely popular after people started sharing photos of the scenery on social media. The huge interest in the experience prompted the Turkish State Railways (TCDD) to add a new train into service on the same line solely for tourism after it became so popular that people trying to reach eastern Turkey by train could no longer find tickets.
Basically, both take the same route, but the touristic Eastern Express makes longer stops so that tourists have time to explore other Turkish cities on the way to Kars, which also means it lasts more than 30 hours, depending on weather conditions. The touristic train only has sleeper cars and a dining car. Oh, if you're feeling too lazy to walk to the restaurant, you can also order food to your cabin.
The touristic train costs TL 650 (around $48) per person, but if you want to the cabin to yourself you'll need to purchase both seats, which will cost TL 1,300 (around $100).
One thing I should mention upfront – the views are absolutely beautiful the whole way. The train makes its way around snow-covered peaks and wooded landscapes, crossing brimming rivers swelling as the snow melts in the spring sunshine, passing through long dark tunnels carved into mountains ... Breathtaking. Try to put your phone aside and take in the experience, because, believe me, you will have the chance to take amazing pictures for your social media later.
On the Ankara-Kars route, the train stops for two hours and 20 minutes in the city of Erzincan, three hours in Iliç, a town and district of Erzincan province, and 3 hours in Erzurum.
When the train stopped in Iliç I could not believe my eyes. I walked out of the wagon and saw the Euphrates River, the longest river in Southwest Asia, sitting just meters in front of me surrounded by sparkling white snow. I stood there breathless for a moment and took in the view.
After walking back to the station, I learned that there are buses that take people for drives around the area. I had no idea where they were heading, but I knew I had to join.
The journey through the snow-capped mountains took around 40 minutes and our first stop was Karanlık Canyon, literally "Dark Canyon," a deep steep gorge located between the Iliç and Kemaliye districts of Erzincan province. In the summer the canyon offers outdoor recreational activities such as rock climbing and boat rides. There are no activities in the winter due to the weather conditions but trust me, the view alone is worth coming to see.
The next stop was Kemaliye (Eğin), a town and one of Erzincan province's nine districts, which sits nestled in between mountains. The town is known for its historic architecture, including many Ottoman-era houses, and its commanding view of the Euphrates River flowing south through a gorge above the Keban Dam.
Although it is unclear when exactly the town was founded, it is estimated that its establishment dates back to the 10th-11th centuries. The town was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage Tentative List last year. According to UNESCO's website, Kemaliye has a cultural and natural landscape bearing testimony to 600 years of Ottoman-Anatolian urbanism and architectural texture. One of the essential elements lending the town its authentic atmosphere is Kemaliye's beautiful houses, which when covered with snow look even more picturesque.
Walking through the streets I noticed a tiny shop selling a local sweet called “lök.” A delicacy made out of dried mulberry and walnuts mixed together, it actually tasted much better than I expected.
After having lunch, we hit the road to get back to the train.
Because of the weather conditions, the train arrived in Kars later than scheduled. It was very early morning; the attendant woke me up with the great news that the train had reached its final destination. I packed my stuff and ran out of the wagon excited to explore a new city. It was still dark and there weren't many people out on the streets. I caught a cab and headed to my hotel. At first glance, Kars was nothing to write home about: two-three-story buildings, cute streets and the usual people rushing to work. I checked into my hotel at around 5:30 a.m. and decided to sleep for a few more hours until breakfast.
Speaking of hotels, here are some notes. Most of the hotels are located close to the city center and are surrounded by restaurants and cafes where you can try local food and stores where you can shop for souvenirs and locally made goodies. There are dozens of nice hotels in Kars, including the Cheltikov, Kars hotel, Şuara Butik Hotel and Kars Beylerbeyi Palace.
The hotel I chose to stay in was a little different from all the others. Set on the Kars River, the Katerina Sarayı (Catherine Palace) hotel in a historical stone building is 16 minutes by foot from the Castle of Kars and 7 kilometers (4.35 miles) from Kars Airport.
Catherine Palace was built by Dutch engineers in the Baltic architectural style on Russian Czar Nicholas II's orders during the Russian occupation of 1879.
The historical building was used as a mansion, hospital and military unit in the republic era after the Russian invasion. The building was completely evacuated after the 1980 revolution and neglected until 2015, during which time it was severely damaged, especially the interior.
In 2015 the building was restored by local businessperson Mustafa Erdoğdu and it now serves as a 33-room hotel. The most beautiful part of the hotel is its garden overlooking the Kars River. Draped in snow, the garden has a fireplace and a small bar where you can enjoy a cup of Turkish tea or hot wine while listening to live music in the evenings.
Let’s get back to business.
After having breakfast, the first destination I headed to was Ani to see the ruins of the medieval Armenian city. Located around 45 kilometers away from Kars city center, you can literally see Armenian soil since the ancient city is located right next to the border. In order to get here, you can either rent a car, take a tour or just take a taxi.
The journey to the ancient city felt like I was traveling on another planet, a breathtaking world of white with endless, sparkling landscapes. In one word, again, beautiful. Thanks to sunny weather and clean air, I was lucky enough to see the foggy silhouette of Mount Ağrı, also known as Mount Ararat, which is the highest peak in Turkey, and the Armenian Highlands with an elevation of 5,137 meters (16,854 feet).
Almost an hour later we arrived. Ani was once one of the largest cities in the world, ruling with might over the region, covering an area of 1 million square meters (10.8 million square feet). Once a hustling, bustling commercial center on a branch of the ancient Silk Road, sitting at the crossroads of other trade routes that flowed into the heart of Anatolia, Ani now lies off the beaten track – deserted and exotic in all its remoteness. Covered with snow it looked like a city from fairy tales as you could smell the history in its air. Every inch of the ancient city has its own story and Turkish archeologists are still working on unearthing more structures.
“The latest building we unearthed was the first Turkish bath (hamam) built in Anatolia region,” said the head of excavation works Muhammet Arslan. The excavations stop during the winter season when snow fulls covers the ancient city, but work picks back up as soon as the weather gets better.
All the structures in Ani were built using local volcanic basalt, which is easy to carve, served as a functional insulator and came in many vibrant colors such as rosy reds and jet blacks. Not all of the buildings are situated on the central route used by guides or explorers nor are they easily accessible, and the usual half-day trips give you nowhere near enough time to explore every single one scattered across the plateau. But that’s a whole another story to write.
Long story short, it is definitely worth seeing.
My next destination was Lake Çıldır. Located around 65 kilometers from Kars, the lake is situated 1,959 meters (6,427 feet) above sea level and usually starts to freeze at the beginning of winter as temperatures drop to minus 10 degrees Celsius (14 degrees Fahrenheit) at night.
Spanning 123,000 square meters, what makes Lake Çıldır unique is that tourism activities and fishermen's livelihood start when the lake is frozen.
Every year, once the lake freezes, the villagers of Taşbaşı get their horses ready for a ride on the ice. The troika coachmen also offer tourists visiting the lake a chance to go on the ride of their lives.
Standing on a thick layer of ice knowing that you are walking on a frozen lake is an unforgettable feeling. The troika rides have two routes – a long and a short one. The long one is TL 50 (around $4) and the short one is TL 30. After going on a ride, you can also enjoy a cup of tea, again, while standing on a 60-centimeter (24-inch) thick layer of ice. There is no place in Turkey where Turkish tea is not served, I’m now absolutely sure of it.
Side note: You will have a chance to take great pictures to fill up your Instagram account here. If you are a nature freak like me, you should definitely pay the lake a visit.
Surrounded by historical and natural marvels, Kars has a lot to offer to its visitors within the city, too. The first thing you will notice is the Kars Castle, which was destroyed and rebuilt many times and now is one of the most popular touristic sights in the city. Also known as Iç Kale, the castle was first built during the rule of the Armenian Bagratid dynasty and then rebuilt in 1153 by Firuz Akay on Sultan Melik Izzeddin Saltuk II's orders. The outer walls surrounding the city were built in the 12th century. The castle, which was destroyed by Timur in 1386, was rebuilt again in 1579 by Lala Mustafa Pasha, who came to Kars on the orders of Ottoman Sultan Murat III. Ottoman sources show that the castle was rebuilt with the help of 100,000 soldiers and workers. In 1606, the castle was destroyed once again, this time by the Iranian Shah Abbas I. It was restored twice after the Iranian attack, once in 1616 and once in 1636, with each restoration adding new elements to the castle. The castle was then badly damaged during the Russian occupation following the Ottoman-Russian War of 1877-1878.
Located on the hill next to the Kars River, the castle is illuminated at night, adding to the city's magical atmosphere.
Right next to the castle you will see the Kümbet Mosque also known as the Cathedral of Kars, a former Armenian Apostolic church. Constructed in the mid-10th century by the Armenian Bagratid King Abas I, it was converted into a mosque in 1579. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, it was converted into a Russian Orthodox and later an Armenian cathedral. In 1993 it was converted into a mosque and named the Kümbet Mosque. It is now part of a larger Islamic complex that includes the Evliya Mosque, the biggest mosque in Kars.
In addition to historical and natural beauties, Kars has a few museums that may interest you. The first one I headed to was the Caucasian Battlefields Military History Museum. A former large bastion that was designed by the Ottoman Empire to protect the eastern borders in Kars province, known as the "Bloody Bastion" since a battalion was martyred there during the Ottoman-Russian War, was turned into a war museum a few years ago offering historical flashbacks.
Amid the Ottoman-Russian War, on July 5, 1828, some 14,000 Russian soldiers comprising of five brigades under the command of Russian Gen. Ivan Paskevich launched a night raid on the bastion, which was located 200 meters from the center then, equipped with 70 cannonballs and 20,000 bullets. The ammunition used in the bastion and on the battlefields in that period is now on display at the museum.
The Russians, who took the fortress, lost 4,000 soldiers in the raid, while 500 Ottoman soldiers who fought hand to hand against the enemy power were martyred.
The museum has a room devoted to soldiers who lost their lives during the Battle of Sarıkamiş in 1914-1915. According to different sources around 60,000-90,000 soldiers froze to death while trying to pass through the mountain.
To memorialize the soldiers and capture the tragic experience, the museum features an installation that uses mirrors to create the optical illusion of a tunnel that is lined with pairs of the soldiers' shoes, each bearing a light that resembles a candle.
War tools that were used in the bastion and battlefields in that period and photos of the soldiers are on display at the museum, as well.
Another museum you won't want to miss is the Kars Museum, also known as the Archaeological Museum. Archaeological artifacts from Kars and its surrounding region, as well as objects uncovered through the excavations in Ani have been put on show here. Many findings from prehistoric times, the Bronze Age, the Urartu period, the Ottoman Empire to the present day are on display.
In a few weeks or so, Kars will also open a cheese museum where you will have the opportunity to try all kinds of cheese produced in the province and see how they get made. You can even try to make it on your own.
After you are done with the historical part of the city, don’t forget to take a walk around the streets to get a sense of the atmosphere. There are many restaurants in the city center that offer live music and dance performances along with tasty local food.
Side note: Make sure to try the most popular local dish – goose meat with rice. For those who have never tried it, goose meat tastes a little like chicken but is not as soft. The dish is usually served along with a salad with tomatoes and cucumbers and some pickles.
Another popular destination in Kars is the Sarıkamış ski resort. The resort has over 21 kilometers of slopes for skiing or snowboarding, attracting thousands of tourists every year.
There are five ski runs at Mount Cıbıltepe, the longest of which is 12 kilometers, and the area is laden with pine trees. There is limited accommodation at the resort but there are more options in the town of Sarıkamış. A favorite pastime at this particular destination is to take a ride on a horse-drawn sleigh.
With crystal snow on its tracks, Sarıkamış is an ideal skiing destination surrounded by yellow pine forests that block the wind. The prime time to ski in Sarıkamış starts in December and lasts until April, making it the place with the longest open availability in Turkey.
