Kars: Cheese Route, Museums and Architectural History

You can explore Kars on a culture-focused trip through different historical periods and themes. Cheese culture, military history and the changing uses of historic buildings offer distinct areas of interest. When planning your trip, what matters most is the nature of these connections: some places represent a clearly defined theme, while others are notable for the historical succession of their uses or their protection history. This can help you decide which aspect you would like to focus on.

Cheese culture along the Kars Cheese Route

The Kars Cheese Museum opened to visitors in 2022 as Turkey’s first themed cheese museum. It is also a tasting stop along the Kars Cheese Route. The route was registered as Turkey’s first cheese route and listed as the world’s 18th cheese route. The museum thus combines a clearly defined theme with a connection to the route. If you are especially interested in cheese culture, you can make this a distinct focus of your trip planning.

Museums and military history

The Kars Museum was founded in 1959 and moved to its current service building in Kars in 1980. These two dates mark different stages in its institutional history: 1959 is the year it was founded, and 1980 the year it moved. This historical connection differs from the Kars Cheese Museum’s explicitly cheese-focused theme.

The Kafkas Front War History Museum focuses on the battles on the Caucasus Front. The interactive museum presents historical documents and recreated scenes from soldiers’ daily lives under the wartime conditions of the time. Documents and reconstructed scenes offer different ways into the same historical subject. If you are interested in military history, you can focus here on the battles and the daily lives of soldiers at the time.

Architectural history and protected status

The Fethiye Mosque in Ortakapı has a history of several different uses. The Russians built it as a church in the Baltic style in the late 19th century. After the early years of the Republic, the building was used as a sports hall; in 1985, it was converted into a mosque. This sequence makes the change from its original purpose to its later functions the building’s central historical theme.

The tomb of Ebul Hasan Harakani and the Evliya Mosque complex belong to the General Directorate of Foundations. On May 9, 1990, the relevant Cultural and Natural Heritage Preservation Board listed them as worthy of protection under Decision No. 227 and placed them under protection. For these two sites, the protection decision is the main point of interest, while the Fethiye Mosque is particularly notable for the sequence of its uses. In the wider destination of Kars, Kars Kalesi includes a mosque, a tomb, barracks, an arsenal and a cistern; three large gates are located in the outer walls of the complex.

Discover more destinations: Kağızman, Dağpınar, Yenice, Yukarıdamlapınar, Çolaklı, Sarıkamış, Akyaka, Selim

Return to the main travel overview: Kars.