Our 4-day trip to Trabzon was very good.. Although we tried to turn Trabzon into ruins, we were partially successful in this.. If you ask why partially, because let Trabzon take 4 days, it needs at least 15 days.. Natural beauty and history gush from everywhere in Trabzon.. We had the opportunity to visit Trabzon center, Sürmene, Uzungol and Macka in Trabzon.. In this article, I will try to write a list of Places to visit in Maçka in detail.
If you are looking for a place where history and nature are intertwined in Turkey, the address is Maçka.. In our opinion, Maçka, which is the most beautiful district of Trabzon, completely fascinated us with its lush nature and deep history.. You can easily see a thousand and one shades of green and the deepest traces of history in Maçka.. Places to visit in Maçka Let alone Trabzon, it is among the most important places you should see in Turkey.
TO VISIT IN MAÇKA PLACES
There are many monasteries among the places to visit in Maçka. These monasteries are not places built on such a flat area.. Special places built on the tops of high mountains, between the rocks. Although it is difficult to go to the monasteries, your desire to explore takes you here.. Apart from this, there are also very beautiful Black Sea villages in our list of places to visit in Maçka.. There are some places on our list from the center of Maçka..
If you ask how many days the list of places to visit in Maçka will be completed, according to us, this time is 2-3 days. This time may seem long for you, but it is an ideal time for you to enjoy and feel the beauties of nature deeply.. You may also find it difficult to find and go to some places in Maçka.. For this reason, we gave Maçka 2-3 days.. Let’s start our list with the Sumela Monastery, the most important place to visit in Maçka.
NOTE : Places to visit in Maçka are generally located in places between high mountains. It is important that your vehicle is solid and high to go there.. If possible, it will be better if you use a 4×4 jeep or off-road vehicle.
SUMELA MONASTERY
Places to visit in Maçka list, is one of the most important historical places not only of Trabzon but also of Turkey.. I say visit Sumela Monastery for once in your lifetime.. Because it is really a very beautiful and important place.. Instead of making a short explanation about Sumela here, I recommend you to read my article titled Sumela Monastery: Trabzon’s Star. Where is Sumela Monastery? You can find all the details and our experiences about Sumela, such as Visiting Hours of Sumela Monastery.
I want to make a warning about Sumela Monastery. The monastery was not closed when we went (October – 2020). But we could not visit all parts of the monastery due to renovations.. We heard that Sümela was temporarily closed due to falling stones in November 2020.. Therefore, before you go to Sümela, it would be nice to clarify whether it is open or closed.
VASELOON MONASTERY
Places to visit in Maçka
The most mysterious place of the strong> list, Vazelon Monastery, is a place that is quite difficult to go to but incredibly beautiful to discover.. Although most people say that you cannot go here because of the roads, we were able to discover Vazelon, albeit with difficulty, with the desire to explore within us.. I also wrote a separate article for the Vazelon Monastery.. In my article titled Vazelon Monastery: The Mysterious Place of Trabzon, you can find answers to the questions Where is Vazelon Monastery and How to Go to Vazelon Monastery, which are very important for exploring the Vazelon Monastery .
ALTINDERE VALLEY NATIONAL PARK
Altındere Valley National Park, which is home to Sümela Monastery, is one of Maçka’s a paradise on earth on the south side. Altındere Valley, one of the most beautiful places in the Eastern Black Sea Region, is beautiful in summer and in spring.. This is a magnificent geography that hosts every shade of green.. Misty mountains, sparkling streams, forests adorned with spruce, fir and yellow pine trees unique to the region, paths, deer, delicate roe deer… Nature is very generous here in every respect.. The location of Altındere Valley National Park, which you will pass through on your way to Sümela Monastery, is here.
HAMSİKÖY
Hamsiköy, the most beautiful and most popular village of Trabzon, is located within the borders of Maçka district.. This beautiful Black Sea Village reminded us of Heidi’s grandfather’s village. On the one hand, the mountains of Maçka touching the clouds, on the other hand, the rivers flowing, everything is unbelievably beautiful.. We loved Hamsiköy very much, even though the increasing unplanned construction in Hamsiköy overshadowed this beauty..
When you come to Hamsiköy, you can’t go back without eating the popular rice pudding here.. Details about Hamsiköy Sütlacı with its delicious taste can be found in my article titled What to Eat in Trabzon.. The location of Hamsiköy is here.
TURKEY – SPAIN FRIENDSHIP MONUMENT
On the right of the road at Maçka Junction, on Trabzon Gümüşhane road The remaining Turkey – Spain Friendship Monument has a sad story. The monument depicts the carriage of the wounded Spanish soldier by the Turkish soldier..
As for the story of the Turkey – Spain Friendship Monument; Spanish soldiers, who were on duty in Afghanistan and consisting of 62 people and served in the Peace Corps, completed their duties and returned to their countries, due to the accident they experienced in the region, the plane carrying the soldiers crashed and 2 monuments were built in the region in memory of these dead soldiers.
As for the dramatic accident; The plane carrying the soldiers had to pass the airport twice due to heavy fog, and unfortunately, on the third attempt, it crashed on Pilav Mountain due to heavy fog.. A total of 74 people lost their lives in this accident, including the aircraft crew and soldiers.. There are two monuments on Pilav Mountain, where the accident took place, and in the center of Maçka.. The location of the monument in the center of Maçka is here.
HISTORICAL MACKA BRIDGE,
Places to visit in the center of Maçka between and 19. The Historical Maçka Bridge, built in the 19th century during the Ottoman Empire, has 2 arches.. While the width of the historical bridge is 7.85 meters, its length is approximately 34 meters.. The bridge, which used to be open to vehicular traffic, was restored in 2010 and closed to vehicular traffic.. The location of the historical Maçka Bridge is here.
CAKIRGÖL
Places to visit in Maçka list, Çakırgöl is located at an altitude of 2533 on the summits of the Zigana mountain range.. Located 36 kilometers from Maçka, Çakırgöl is a lake with a circumference of 1160 meters, a length of 250 meters, and a depth of 2 to 15 meters.. This lake is fed by 8 small water springs known as “eye” among the people.. Çakırgöl, which is a glacial lake in terms of formation, is visited by many people in summer..
Cakırgöl, which attracts many visitors with its highlands around it, has been declared a “winter sports tourism center” by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism due to the early snowfall and the fact that it does not melt for a long time.. Çakırgöl’s location is here.
SOLMA TOURISM CENTER
Solma Tourism Center, a Black Sea plateau located 22 km from Maçka. This beautiful plateau, which is preferred by those who escape from the hot weather in summer, is located at an altitude of 1800 meters.. There are places where you can stay in the Şölma Tourism Center, which is being tried to be brought to the region in terms of tourism. In addition, there are also shops that serve such as grocery stores and coffee houses.. Those who want to spend time with nature without having any problems with eating and drinking can visit Şolma Tourism Center.
ŞİMŞİRLİ VILLAGE
The most beautiful place in Maçka One of the villages of Şimşirli Village, Şimşirli Village, is located in a forest with cascading streams and green gushing from all over.. The number of households in the village, whose other name is Kuştul, decreased over time.. Şimşirli Village has a reputation among the villages in the region.. The reason for this fame is that birdtongue originated from here.. Rumor has it that the language spoken by Turks and Greeks has strange equivalents in Turkish syllables and this language is also bird language.
KUŞTUL MONASTIRI – PERISTERA MONASTIRI
We said that there are plenty of monasteries in the list of places to visit in Maçka. Located within the boundaries of Şimşirli-Kuştul Village in Esiroğlu Town of Maçka, Kuştul Monastery is a monastery built in 752. This beautiful monastery was looted in 1203 and was used again in 1393 after being abandoned for a while.. It was built for the third time after it was completely burned in the fire in 1906.. Unfortunately, the condition of the monastery, of which few ruins have survived, is not heartwarming.
As in the monasteries in the region, there is a bedrock church and rooms inside the Kuştul Monastery.. The rooms are divided into two parts, the guest room and the monk’s room.. The monastery, which is entered by a staircase from the west side; with large halls and halls. The cruciform church of the monastery was destroyed over time and disappeared without a trace.. Unfortunately, many parts of the monastery have been destroyed by treasure hunters..
You can drive to a certain part of the ruined Kuştul Monastery.. You have to walk the rest of the way. The location of Kuştul Monastery on Google map is wrong. Here you need help from the villagers to find the monastery.. We could not go to the Kuştul Monastery due to time constraints, but as a result of our research, it is useful to pay attention to these warnings.
NOTE: Kuştul Monastery is also known as Peristera Monastery.. In fact, this place was called Khidr Ilyas Monastery among Muslims at the time.
Places to visit in Maçka Our list is complete.. If you have the opportunity to visit Maçka, you will understand why I call Maçka the most beautiful district of Trabzon.. You will see nature, history and culture in the best way here.. Our trip to Trabzon was very enjoyable and beautiful. For our experiences about Trabzon, you can take a look at the Trabzon stories that I pinned on Instagram.. All my articles about Trabzon are below.. Visiting Musmutlu.:)
FINAL NOTE: Zilkale and Uçarsu Waterfall have also been added to the list of places to visit in Maçka on some sites.. Let me state as follows; While Zilkale is within the borders of Rize, Uçarsu Waterfall is located within the borders of Akçaabat district of Trabzon.. Therefore, do not try to look for these places in Maçka. 🙂