Foça: Culture, Cuisine and Coastal Landscapes

Foça offers a variety of starting points for planning your trip: architectural history surrounding the castle and mosques, traditional cuisine, and a coastal landscape of coves and rocks. If you are looking for a hotel in Foça, you can consider whether you would like to focus your stay on cultural heritage, regional dishes or activities on the water. Some of the places described are in Foça itself, while others are in the nearby area.

Castle, Mosques and Architectural History

Foça Castle preserves sections known as Kale Surları and Beş Kapılar. They were renovated during the Byzantine, Genoese and Ottoman periods. Beş Kapılar formerly served as a boathouse and is now used as an open-air theater. The faithfully restored theater hosts festivals, concerts, theater performances and international cinema days throughout the year. If you would like to attend an event, check its date in advance.

The Fatih Mosque is located inside the castle, on Eski-Adliye Street. The Kayalar Mosque is also inside the castle and features late Ottoman architecture; its date of construction and builder are unknown. The Hafız-Süleyman-Ağa Mescidi, also popularly known as the Süleyman-Ağa Mescidi, was built in 1548 by Hamzaoğlu Mustafa, the castle commander of Foça. Two Ottoman-era hamams have also survived to this day in the Atatürk district.

Foça's traditional houses are mainly classified as tower houses, houses in closed rows, and detached single-family houses. The Kybele Open-Air Temple is also part of the area's architectural and cultural history: it dates to 580 BC. Statues and reliefs of the goddess Kybele were housed in five niches of different sizes.

Nearby, about 10 km from Foça, Taş Ev stands beside the road. The partly hewn rock tomb was built under Persian influence in the Lycian-Lydian tradition and dates to the 4th century BC. It offers another archaeological point of interest, distinct from the buildings within the castle.

Cuisine and Coastal Landscapes

Traditional Foça cuisine includes grilled sardines, fish with yogurt, stuffed squid, stuffed fish, fish soup, Balık Paçası, lamb with artichokes, and stuffed artichokes prepared with olive oil. Wild herbs that grow in Foça and the surrounding area are used to make salads, meze and fillings for börek. These include Arapsaçı, fennel, Tarakotu or İğnelik, Turpotu, radika, nettle and mallow. These dishes and herbs offer different insights into the regional food culture.

The Foça Special Environmental Protection Area was designated to protect Foça's natural and historical values and is known for the Mediterranean monk seal. In 1991, the Foça Municipality was selected by the national seal committee established in Turkey as a pilot region for the protection of this species. The nearby Siren Kayalıkları are volcanic rocks whose present-day form was shaped by centuries of erosion. Protected Mediterranean monk seals may be seen there, but sightings are not guaranteed.

Sazlıca Plajı is located in a sheltered inner cove with calm water and a sandy beach. There is a diving center in the cove. The beach is suitable for visitors with tents and caravans, as well as for barbecuing and picnicking. The coastal landscape therefore offers both a described swimming spot and a place for diving activities and stays with your own equipment.

Boat Trips and Getting There

Day trips by boat to the surrounding islands are offered in Foça; alternatively, you can rent a private boat. If a boat trip is important to your plans, check departure times in advance. This way, you can plan this activity separately from visits to historical sites and time on the coast.

From İzmir, Foça Castle in the center of Eski Foça can be reached by taking the İZBAN to Hatundere station, then the ESHOT bus on the Foça–Hatundere route. Check current schedules before you travel.

Discover more destinations: Yenifoca, Alaçatı, Çesme, Tire, Cumhuriyet Mahallesi, Mordoğan, Kaynaklar Cumhuriyet Mh., Kemalpasa

For the main travel overview: Izmir.