Tourists flock to sun-kissed shores of southern Turkey

By Sezgin Pancar

MERSIN, Turkey

Time stands still at the ancient city of Korykos in southern Turkey’s sun-kissed shore of Mersin.

Korykos is known for its natural caves, greenery, beaches and the legendary Kizkalesi (Maiden’s Castle).

It is believed that a king hid his daughter in Kizkalesi to protect her from a snake bite, that a witch predicted would become the cause of her death.

Hotels and guest houses are operating at full occupancy this season as tourists arrive in droves.

Sirin Oztop, the deputy of the local tourism association, told Anadolu Agency that the site of Kizkalesi and the whole beauty of the shore has been attracting tourists from all over the globe.

“Kizkalesi is really beautiful and worth seeing. Our guests can see the historical richness of the region as well as the sandy and sun-kissed shore of [Mediterranean] Sea,” he said.

"The tourism sector has been affected very seriously due to the events in the last three years. But 2018 has been an amazing year. We are very happy,” he added, predicting his expectations of more tourists during the summer.

“As they say: ‘You can’t give up once you drink from the water of Mersin’. We cannot get enough of this place. We already bought a house here for summer holidays,” Seyide Tiryaki, a holidayer, told Anadolu Agency.

“It’s an ideal place for children too,” she added.

The site unveils history “starting with the Hittite period and continuing with the Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine and Armenian periods", said UNESCO in a statement.

“The sequence of many cultures in Korykos, the unique reliefs, religious buildings, tombs and necropolis areas, harbor, the sea and land castles and many other architectural traces make the property outstanding,” its added.

*Sadik Kedir contributed to this report from Ankara