Erzurum

Last update October 2, 2026

Erzurum is situated on Turkey’s eastern plateau and is one of the oldest cities in Anatolia, and it is in the winter that it really displays its features. The Palandöken Ski Center, which is only fifteen minutes’ distance from the city centre, has runs exceeding 3,000 metres and offers skiers from Ankara and Istanbul the benefit of fresh, dry mountain air as they seek out real altitude rather than just a weekend outing. Both beginners and more experienced skiers can find suitable slopes there and since the base is close to the city you can ski in the morning and then walk along the historic streets in the afternoon.

It is this history that distinguishes Erzurum from being just an ordinary ski town. The Çifte Minareli Medrese, with its twin minarets standing above the Seljuk stonework, is situated in the city centre and appears particularly impressive when seen against the snow. If you walk a few streets to the Yakutiye Medresesi, another school from the Seljuk period that has been turned into a museum, and the Erzurum Citadel, you will have a view of the rooftops extending towards the mountains beyond. The Rüstem Pasha Caravanserai, which is now a shopping arcade, still has the basic features of its original function as a resting place for traders travelling along the old trade routes.

Lake Tortum and its waterfall are within easy reach of anyone who has a car, and the route out takes you through real rural Anatolia, far removed from the normal tourist route. The inhabitants of the area are famous for their friendly attitude towards tourists, and in the Three Tombs region, where everyday life has changed very little over the generations, you get a feeling for the area that the ski slopes and the madrasas alone cannot give.

If you want to ski, visit between December and March, or go in the summer if you prefer to see the plateau and lake country around the city without the snow. Whatever option you choose, spend more than just a day as a ski trip stopover in Erzurum; it is one of the very few places in Turkey where Seljuk architecture and alpine scenery are both within a fifteen-minute drive of each other, and that combination is well worth the extra day that most itineraries omit.