“Black Cape” Population: 3,300
Old name: Akri Melaina (Greek)
Market day: Wednesday
If you glance at a map of Turkey, Karaburun, at the far north end of the Karaburun Peninsula near Çeşme, looks as if it should be really remote. The limited public transport options might give you the same idea. There is also some wild coastal scenery once you get past Mordoğan.
Unfortunately, once you get to Karaburun it doesn’t feel a whole lot different from many other Turkish villages and there are disappointingly few interesting old buildings to justify the effort entailed in getting to it.
Like Urla, Karaburun is divided into two parts: Yukarı (Upper) Karaburun, where the bus terminates, is where most of the shops, banks and other amenities can be found along with the delightful Cafe Nergis; Asağı (Lower) Karaburun sits round the harbour – ask to be dropped at the Hükümet bus stop and then walk downhill to the harbour (be careful coming back though as not all buses bother diverting to Hükümet for passengers).
Yukarı Karaburun is backed by the beautiful Karadağ (Black Mt, 670m).
The harbour has a small shingle beach and a few indifferent cafes as well as the large Number One Restaurant. It is not, frankly, very exciting although the view across the bay to Büyük Ada (Big Island) is pleasant enough. It’s separated by a headland from İncirlikoy, a second cove which has a better beach but is much more built up with holiday homes. A promenade has now been laid along the waterfront.
On a casual visit you may think the entire surrounding area is given over to cultivating olives but in fact this is where most of Turkey’s narcissi (nergis) are grown. They flower in winter, making that a good time for a visit.
Sleeping
Nine km beyond Karaburun at Yeni Liman (New Harbour) village the Lipsos Ata’nın Yeri is a real getaway-from-it-all place, right on the beach and owned by a man who is a whiz with the seafood cooking. Sink into an armchair here and you may never leave. Tel: 0232-735 4364
Dostlar Konuk Evi. Tel: 0541-485 1993
Nergis Otel. Tel: 0232-731 4146
Transport info
There are hourly buses to Karaburun from İzmir’s Üçkuyular western bus terminal.
There are no direct buses from Çeşme/Alaçatı but if you catch the Urla bus you can be dropped off at a road junction to intercept one of the buses coming from İzmir. This cuts down on travelling time but in summer you may find that the buses arrive already full. You can either wait for the bus on the outskirts of Urla where you can at least retreat to town for a drink if nothing shows or out on the highway near the university where there is no shade or amenities, a bad idea in high summer.
Local buses to Yeni Liman leave from the bus terminal in Yukarı Karaburun.
Be warned that the road to Karaburun is long, winding and slow. This is not a journey to undertake if time is tight. In high summer a ferry from Eski Foça takes much of the pain out of it.
Day trip destinations
There’s some lovely coastal scenery between Mordoğan and Karaburun
