Gobeklitepe Travel Guide

The archaeological site of Gobeklitepe sits on a hilltop in southeastern Turkey, about 15 km northeast of Sanliurfa. Its earliest monumental structures go back to about 9600 BC, so its rings of carved limestone pillars beat Stonehenge by around 6,000 years, and they predate pottery, agriculture and the wheel. UNESCO added the site to its World Heritage List in 2018.

What makes Gobeklitepe special

The site overturned what archaeologists believed about how civilisation began. Before the German archaeologist Klaus Schmidt started digging here in 1995, the usual view was that people settled to farm first and built temples afterwards. At Gobeklitepe it was hunter-gatherers who carved and moved stone pillars as tall as about 5 metres, decorating them with boars, foxes, vultures, snakes and scorpions. On some pillars, arms and hands are carved along the sides, as though they were stylised people. A roofed walkway gives a view down over the main enclosures.

How many days to plan

Allow 1 to 2 hours for the site and its visitor centre. You can do it in one day from Istanbul, with an early flight out and a late one back, as on our private day trip, but two or three days work far better. That gives you time for Karahantepe, the Sanliurfa Archaeology Museum, Urfa's old town and Harran. A third day lets you drive to Mount Nemrut. The compact option is our two-day tour to Nemrut and Gobeklitepe, flights included.

When to go

The best months are in spring, from March to May, and in autumn, from late September to November. Sanliurfa summers are very hot, often over 40°C, and the site sits on an exposed hill. Winter days are mild but can turn cold and wet. If Mount Nemrut is on your plan, snow means that sunrise visits and the road to the summit are generally only practical from around April or May until October.

Flying in from Istanbul

Flights from Istanbul land at Sanliurfa GAP Airport (GNY) after about 1 hour 50 minutes. From the airport it is around 45 minutes to the city centre, and from town another 20 to 30 minutes to the site. By land the distance is more than 1,200 km, which does not work for a short trip.

Things to do

• See the main Gobeklitepe enclosures and their animal-carved pillars.
• Visit Karahantepe, east of Urfa, a related site with carved human heads rising out of the bedrock.
• Go to the Sanliurfa Archaeology Museum to see the Urfa Man statue, about 11,000 years old.
• Walk around the covered bazaar and Balikligol, the sacred carp pools linked to Abraham's story.
• Travel to Harran, near the Syrian border, with its mud-brick houses shaped like beehives.
• Watch sunrise or sunset among the huge stone heads of Mount Nemrut, as on our private tour of Nemrut, Gobeklitepe and Karahantepe.

Where to stay

Base yourself in Sanliurfa. From hotels close to Balikligol and the old town, the bazaar is an easy evening walk. Near Mount Nemrut, most travellers spend a night in Kahta or by the mountain itself.

What to eat

Urfa ranks among Turkey's best cities for food. Order Urfa kebab (minced lamb on a skewer, without heat), lahmacun, cig kofte, isot (the smoky, dark local chilli) and, in the morning, liver kebab. Finish with mirra, a bitter coffee poured into very small cups.

Practical tips

• Dress modestly around the mosques near Balikligol and in the old town of Urfa.
• Take water and a hat; the enclosures are roofed, but the path to them is in the open.
• You can take photos, but visitors must keep to the raised walkway.

Browse every tour to Gobeklitepe.