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Ayvalık
With its lengthy golden beaches embracing the bright blue colors of the Aegean, Ayvalık is celebrated as a “natural wonder” of Western Anatolia and hosts 24 magnificent islands scattered over the sea, as well as coral reefs and evergreen coves that astonish underwater explorers with their beauty.
It goes without saying that what makes this charming district of Balıkesir this special is a long list of reasons. Imagine a fascinating habitat where olive and pine trees face the sea; a crystal-clear sea boasting Blue Flag beaches and a fascinating world underwater. Imagine a cultural texture that resembles an open-air museum with more than 1850 registered civil and religious pieces of architecture. Imagine stone houses, a deep-rooted history, rich cuisine and more. All these make Ayvalık a highly popular location with a variety of vacation opportunities that suit all tastes, including cultural tourism, water sports tourism, and gastronomic tourism.
Would you like to explore the unique coves of Ayvalık and spend a day full of sea and sunshine? join the daily boat tours, spend time on the Sarımsaklı and Altınova beaches, or watch the sunset in its most beautiful form at the Devil's Table. Offering a breathtaking underwater experience that divers can enjoy all year round, the sea at Ayvalık is also perfect for sailing and surfing.
A center for those with refined taste: Cunda Island
One of the most popular attractions of Ayvalık, Cunda Island welcomes those who enjoy a life of refined tastes and elegance. With its Greek architecture, Cretan cuisine, delicious wines, and lovely people, Cunda offers a unique experience of living altogether.
You can easily access the Cunda Island by minibus or any personal vehicle, including bike. The bridge that connects to the island happens to be the first strait bridge in Turkey. Also located in Cunda is the Devil's Table, where you can enjoy sunrise and sunset to the same glorious extent. The story has it that on the hill known as the Devil's Table, there once lived a woman named Penelope, who isolated herself from other people. The people got agitated and wanted to kill Penelope, nicknamed "the Devil", all to no avail, thanks to a goatherd who informed her of their plans to kill her in advance. The woman set up a mouthwatering table on the hill for those who wanted to kill her, creating a window of opportunity to escape as the community indulged themselves in the feast after a long time of suffering from famine. The hill has been named the Devil's Table ever since.
You can also find a footprint-shaped pit in the Devil's Table. The pit is preserved in an iron cage today and you can make wishes by tying colored ribbons around it. The pit has a story of its own: Ida, the wet nurse of chief deity Zeus, expels the Devil so that he would not hurt Zeus. Believed to have three legs, the Devil leaves a trail as he flees, with one footprint on the skirts of Mount Ida, one on the island of Lesbos, and one on the Devil's Table.
You can visit the Taksiyarhis Church or other historical religious buildings such as the Saatli Mosque, the Faneromeni Church, and the Aya Nikola Church. In addition to the Sarımsaklı Beach mentioned earlier, the Badavut Beach and the Ortunç Cove are some of the most frequented summer vacation spots on the Cunda Island.