Türkiye's third-largest city, an open, youthful Aegean port: watch the sunset from the Kordon seafront, wander Kemeraltı bazaar, Konak's clock tower and ride the historic Asansör lift. From here you day-trip to UNESCO-listed Ephesus, the House of the Virgin Mary, Şirince village, Pergamon and Pamukkale; the clear water of Çeşme and Alaçatı and their windsurfing suit families too. İzmir is famous for its food, such as boyoz and kumru. Reached from Ulaanbaatar via Istanbul. Mongolian citizens get 30 days visa-free in Türkiye.
🛂 Visa: Visa-free · 30 days✈ Flight: 14h☀ Best months: April, May, June, September
Once capital of Rome's province of Asia and the best-preserved ancient city in the Mediterranean: the Library of Celsus, the 25,000-seat Great Theatre and marble streets. The Terrace Houses (separate ticket) hold wall paintings and floor mosaics of wealthy homes. About 1 hour from İzmir; go early or late to avoid the heat and bring water and a hat. The fee rises to €45 from April 2027.
Like a well-travelled friend for a first-timer: before you go, landing, SIM, transport, money, food, safety, manners, apps, leaving — step by step.
🧳Before you goMongolians need no visa for Türkiye, so the main preparation is the flight connection, the season, planning day trips and insurance.+
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Visa: 30 days visa-free
According to the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mongolian citizens with ordinary passports may stay up to 30 days visa-free for tourism. The passport must be valid for at least 60 days beyond the stay — 90 days from entry for a 30-day stay. Border officers may ask for a return ticket and hotel booking.
Tip: Day trips to Greek islands such as Chios, Samos or Lesvos require a Schengen visa for Mongolian citizens — Türkiye's visa-free rule does not apply in Greece.
There is no direct Ulaanbaatar–İzmir flight. A single Turkish Airlines ticket via Istanbul (UBN–IST–ADB) checks your bags through and makes the airline responsible if you miss a connection. You clear Turkish immigration in Istanbul and continue on a domestic flight. Remember Istanbul's two airports (IST and SAW) are far apart.
Spring and autumn are the most pleasant for ruins; in high summer Ephesus is very hot. Spread Ephesus, Pergamon, Pamukkale and Çeşme over several days — staying a night in Selçuk makes the Ephesus area easy. Private hospitals are expensive, so travel insurance is a must.
Tip: With children, two nights in the city plus a few beach nights in Çeşme or Alaçatı works well.
🛬Landing and getting to townİzmir Adnan Menderes Airport (ADB) lies south of the city; flights from Istanbul arrive at the domestic terminal.+
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İZBAN train — the cheapest
The İZBAN station is a 1-minute walk from the terminal: trains run about every 12 minutes between 05:20 and 01:23, reaching Alsancak in ~25 minutes for ~40 TL with an İzmirim Kart. Buy and top up the card at the station machines. At night ESHOT buses 200, 202, 204 and 206 run.
Havaş buses leave timed to flights: Alsancak 220 TL (~30 minutes); Çeşme, Alaçatı and Kuşadası 600 TL. A metered taxi to Konak (~18 km) is about 925 TL, with no night surcharge. Only take taxis from the official rank.
If your phone supports eSIM, install a Türkiye plan from Airalo, Holafly or similar before the flight — it works as soon as you land in Istanbul. Wi-Fi is everywhere in cafés and hotels, but you need data for day trips and maps.
Tip: Download İzmir and the Selçuk area in Google Maps and Turkish in Google Translate for offline use.
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Tourist SIM
Turkcell's tourist pack is about 1,300 TL in town for 20 GB + 200 minutes, more at the airport. It is registered with your passport; pay in lira — prices quoted in dollars or euros are marked up.
🚇Getting around the city and regionİzmir's metro, tram, İZBAN trains, buses and cross-bay ferries all use one card.+
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İzmirim Kart
From 1 April 2026 a single ride on the metro, tram, ESHOT buses and ferries costs 40 TL; on İZBAN, trips over 20 km add a per-kilometre charge. Transfers within the time window are discounted. Several people can pay with one card.
For Selçuk (Ephesus) take a TCDD regional train from Basmane station or a bus; from Selçuk dolmuş minibuses go to Ephesus and Şirince. Frequent buses run from the city bus station (Otogar) to Pergamon (Bergama) and Çeşme. To see several sites in one day a guided tour or a rental car is more flexible.
Fast ferries from Çeşme reach the Greek island of Chios in ~25 minutes; Ertürk's tariff is €40 one way, €50 return. Mongolian citizens must hold a Schengen visa; when re-entering Türkiye check how your 30 visa-free days are counted.
The currency is the Turkish lira (TRY). Pay by card in lira or in cash lira in shops and restaurants. If a card machine offers to convert to dollars, decline and choose lira. ATMs of state banks such as Ziraat, Halkbank and VakıfBank charge lower fees.
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Museum tickets in euros
Foreign-visitor tickets for state museums and ancient sites are priced in euros and paid by card: Ephesus €40, the Terrace Houses €15, the Pergamon acropolis €15, the Agora of Smyrna €6, Pamukkale €30. If you plan many sites, consider the Aegean MuseumPass.
If service isn't included, leaving a small percentage in restaurants is customary. Bargaining in Kemeraltı bazaar is normal, especially for carpets and jewellery.
🍜Foodİzmir has Türkiye's most 'Aegean' cooking: olive oil, vegetables, fish and street breakfasts.+
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İzmir specialities
Boyoz (flaky pastry) with a boiled egg and gevrek for breakfast; a kumru sandwich at lunch, vegetables in olive oil at a lokanta, and fish and meze on the Kordon or in Alsancak in the evening. In Çeşme, try Alaçatı's seafood and artisan ice cream.
Tip: Ask the per-kilo price of fish first, and skip restaurants without prices on the menu.
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Cheap and reliable
Lokantas (ready-meal canteens), pide, lahmacun and döner are cheap and fast. Buy water and fruit at supermarkets (Migros, BİM, A101). Don't drink tap water — buy bottled.
🛡️Safety and health+
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Emergency number 112
Police, ambulance and fire share one number — 112, free, 24 hours.
Ephesus and Pergamon have little shade — in summer avoid the midday heat and bring hats, sunscreen and plenty of water. Marble paths are slippery, so wear comfortable shoes. If a summer forest fire breaks out, follow official instructions.
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In the city
Keep bags in front of you in crowded places such as Kemeraltı and Basmane. Check that taxis start the meter or use BiTaksi. Ege University, Acıbadem and Medical Park hospitals have international patient desks; call your insurer's assistance line first.
🙏Manners+
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Mosques and holy places
Don't enter during prayers. Women cover their hair with a scarf and keep shoulders and knees covered; men avoid shorts. Shoes come off. At the House of the Virgin Mary keep quiet and don't take photos inside.
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Beach and town
Swimwear is normal on the beach, but not in town, shops or restaurants. İzmir is an open city, but don't photograph people without permission.
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Getting along
Turks are hospitable — accepting an offered tea is polite. Insulting Atatürk, the Turkish flag or state symbols is a criminal offence.
📱Useful apps+
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Transport
BiTaksi — call metered taxis. Google Maps — metro, tram, İZBAN and ferry routes. The İzmirim Kart app — card balance and top-ups.
Google Translate's camera mode translates menus and signs; download Turkish for offline use. Check opening hours and tickets for Ephesus, Pergamon and other state sites on muze.gov.tr.
İzmir–Istanbul flights leave from the domestic terminal; in Istanbul you pass exit immigration when changing to the international flight. On one ticket your bags go through to Ulaanbaatar. The İZBAN train is the most reliable way to the airport — no traffic jams.
In shops showing 'Tax Free', show your passport and get the form; have it stamped by customs at your departure airport (Istanbul) and reclaim the VAT. Carry the goods unopened.
AI answer: double-check anything beyond our researched facts with an official source.
8:00–18:00 (March–October); November–February until 17:00
A small stone chapel in the woods of Mount Bülbül above Ephesus, where Christians believe the Virgin Mary spent her last years; both Catholics and Muslims pray here. A wishing wall and a holy spring. Usually combined with Ephesus.
A hill village 8 km above Selçuk, once Greek, with whitewashed houses and red roofs. Fruit wines, olive oil, crafts and gözleme; lovely for a stroll through narrow cobbled lanes. Reached by dolmuş from Selçuk.
Selçuk: Temple of Artemis and Basilica of St John★ 4.1 (9,000)
CultureArtemis free; basilica €6≈8:00–19:00 (winter until 17:30)
One of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World — only a single re-erected column and marshland remain of the Temple of Artemis, but its history is remarkable. On the nearby hill stand the Basilica of St John, the İsa Bey Mosque and Ayasuluk Castle. Selçuk town is the main base for Ephesus.
Kemeraltı bazaar and Konak clock tower★ 4.5 (40,000)
ShoppingFreeShops ≈9:00–19:00 (most closed on Sunday)
A vast old bazaar dating from the 17th century, starting from the 1901 clock tower on Konak Square: spices, dried fruit, evil-eye charms, gold, clothes and coffee in Kızlarağası Han (an Ottoman trading inn). Its lanes, small mosques and cafés are a maze — keep Google Maps handy.
A long walking and cycling promenade along the bay from Konak to Alsancak: sitting on the lawn to watch the sunset is an İzmir ritual. Cafés, bars and Alsancak's nightlife nearby. Good for walks with children; crossing the bay by ferry from Konak to Karşıyaka is lovely too.
A lift inside a 51 m brick tower built in 1907 by Jewish merchant Nesim Levi, linking the lower streets of Karataş to the clifftop above. The top gives a great view over the bay and city; nearby are Dario Moreno Street and historic houses of the old Jewish quarter.
The Roman-era Agora of Smyrna in the city centre — colonnades and vaulted underground galleries. Above it, Kadifekale castle on Mount Pagos (founded in the time of Alexander the Great) looks out over the whole bay; a taxi up is easiest.
FoodCheap (a boyoz with a boiled egg costs little)From morning (boyoz from 7:00)
Boyoz, a flaky pastry inherited from Sephardic Jews, eaten for breakfast with a boiled egg and tea. Kumru is a toasted sandwich with sucuk, cheese and tomato; gevrek is a sesame bread ring. Try them in small shops in Kemeraltı and Alsancak, with Turkish coffee in Kızlarağası Han.
BeachFree (sunbeds and windsurf lessons extra)24 hours (season May–October)
About 1 h 15 min west of İzmir: Alaçatı has stone houses, flowery lanes, windmills and world-famous windsurfing and kitesurfing; Çeşme has an Ottoman castle, a marina and Ilıca's shallow, clear sandy beach that suits children. The water is cooler than elsewhere on the Aegean. Ferries leave Çeşme for Chios (Schengen visa required).
CultureAcropolis €15; Asklepion €13≈8:00–19:00 (winter until 17:30)
About 1 h 45 min north of İzmir: capital of a powerful Hellenistic kingdom — the world's steepest theatre on the hillside, the Temple of Trajan and the remains of the ancient library; a cable car goes up. Below lies the Asklepion, an ancient healing centre. A day trip.
Pamukkale and Hierapolis (long day trip)★ 4.6 (50,000)
Nature€30≈8:00–20:00 (winter until 18:00)
About 3.5 hours from İzmir: walk barefoot on the white travertine terraces of the hot springs and see the theatre of ancient Hierapolis and Cleopatra's Pool. A round trip in one day is tiring, so leave early or stay a night.
