Diyarbakır is the largest city in southeast Turkey, on the Tigris River, famous for its UNESCO-listed black basalt city walls and Hevsel Gardens, Ulu Cami, the caravanserai of Hasan Paşa Han and a rich Kurdish and Anatolian food culture. The old walled city of Sur is the heart of any visit.
Top attractions
The most popular and significant attractions in Diyarbakır.
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1
Diyarbakır City Walls (Diyarbakır Surları)
About 5.8 km of black basalt fortification wall with more than 60 surviving towers, four main gates and some 63 inscriptions, rebuilt by Romans, Abbasids, Seljuks, Artuqids and Ottomans. Part of the UNESCO-listed Diyarbakır Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape (2015); walkable on top only in some sections.
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2
Hevsel Gardens (Hevsel Bahçeleri)
Irrigated market gardens between the walls and the Tigris that have fed the city since antiquity, listed with the walls as a UNESCO cultural landscape. Best seen from the wall viewpoints, the Ten-Eyed Bridge cafes and the paths near the river; stray dogs are reported on the approach roads, so daytime visits in a group are advisable.
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3
İçkale (Inner Castle) and Amida Mound
The citadel of Diyarbakır, built over the Amida Mound, where excavators report about 8,000 years of settlement. The compound holds the Archaeology Museum, the Artuqid palace excavations, the Hz. Süleyman mosque with the tombs of the Companions, a Byzantine church and cliff-top views over the Tigris.
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4
Diyarbakır Archaeology Museum (Diyarbakır Arkeoloji Müzesi)
State archaeology museum founded in 1934 and housed in former military and government buildings of the Inner Castle. Holds more than 11,000 displayed objects spanning around 26 civilisations, from Paleolithic tools to Roman sculpture and Ottoman arms.
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5
Ulu Cami (Grand Mosque of Diyarbakır)
Seljuk-era Friday mosque dated to 1091-92, one of the oldest and largest mosques in Anatolia, with a colonnaded courtyard of reused Roman and Byzantine columns and an ablution fountain. Active place of worship at the heart of Sur.
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6
Dört Ayaklı Minare (Four-Legged Minaret) and Şeyh Mutahhar Mosque
Minaret of the early 16th-century Şeyh Mutahhar (Kasım Padişah) Mosque, standing on four basalt pillars so that visitors can walk beneath it.
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7
Surp Giragos Armenian Church
Reputedly the largest Armenian church in the Middle East. Damaged and expropriated in 2015-16, it was restored and reopened in 2022; services are held on major feast days, so interior access depends on the church foundation.
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8
Mar Petyun Chaldean Church
Chaldean Catholic church on the same lane as Surp Giragos, kept for the small remaining Chaldean community. Visits are possible around services.
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9
Meryem Ana Church (Syriac Orthodox)
Active Syriac Orthodox church serving the city's Syriac Christian community. Visitors are admitted outside services when a caretaker is present.
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10
Hasan Paşa Hanı (Hasanpaşa Han)
Ottoman caravanserai built 1572-75 by governor Hasan Paşa, with a two-storey courtyard in striped black basalt and white limestone. Today its arcades hold breakfast cafes, tea rooms and craft shops.
Attractions by category
Explore by your interests.
Landmarks
Diyarbakır City Walls
About 5.8 km of black basalt fortification wall with more than 60 surviving towers, four main gates and some 63 inscriptions, rebuilt by Romans, Abbasids, Seljuks, Artuqids and Ottomans
Ulu Cami
Seljuk-era Friday mosque dated to 1091-92, one of the oldest and largest mosques in Anatolia, with a colonnaded courtyard of reused Roman and Byzantine columns and an ablution fountain
Dört Ayaklı Minare
Minaret of the early 16th-century Şeyh Mutahhar (Kasım Padişah) Mosque, standing on four basalt pillars so that visitors can walk beneath it
Surp Giragos Armenian Church
Reputedly the largest Armenian church in the Middle East
Mar Petyun Chaldean Church
Chaldean Catholic church on the same lane as Surp Giragos, kept for the small remaining Chaldean community
Meryem Ana Church
Active Syriac Orthodox church serving the city's Syriac Christian community
Nebi Camii
16th-century Ottoman mosque with banded black and white stonework, on the Dağkapı side of Sur
Kurşunlu Camii
Early 16th-century Ottoman mosque with a lead-covered (kurşunlu) dome, built after the Ottoman conquest of Diyarbakır
Mardin Kapı
Southern gate of the walls and one of four main gates, with an Abbasid-era foundation and Seljuk and Ottoman repairs
Keçi Burcu
Wall tower near Mardin Kapı with views over Hevsel Gardens and the Tigris plain, a convenient place to start a short walk on the southern wall
Yedi Kardeş Burcu
Artuqid tower of 1208-09 with carved calligraphic inscriptions and animal and mythological reliefs set into the basalt
Ulu Beden Burcu
Artuqid tower of 1208-09 with inscriptions, animal motifs and muqarnas, one of the best-preserved decorated towers of the walls
On Gözlü Köprü
Ten-arched basalt bridge over the Tigris traditionally dated to 1065 under the Marwanids (about 178 m long), with tea gardens on both banks and views back to the walls
Parks_and_nature
Hevsel Gardens
Irrigated market gardens between the walls and the Tigris that have fed the city since antiquity, listed with the walls as a UNESCO cultural landscape
Historic_districts_and_markets
İçkale
The citadel of Diyarbakır, built over the Amida Mound, where excavators report about 8,000 years of settlement
Hasan Paşa Hanı
Ottoman caravanserai built 1572-75 by governor Hasan Paşa, with a two-storey courtyard in striped black basalt and white limestone
Deliller Hanı
Early 16th-century caravanserai near Mardin Kapı, restored and used for lodging and dining
Dağkapı Bazaar Lanes
Dense market streets between Dağkapı square and Ulu Cami selling spices, dried fruit, copperware, textiles and local sweets, with ciğer (liver) breakfast stalls near Dağkapı
Museums
Diyarbakır Archaeology Museum
State archaeology museum founded in 1934 and housed in former military and government buildings of the Inner Castle
Cemil Paşa Konağı
Early 20th-century stone mansion of the Cemilpaşazade family, restored and opened in 2014-15 as the city museum with period rooms and local history displays
Cahit Sıtkı Tarancı House Museum
Birthplace of the poet Cahit Sıtkı Tarancı (1910-1956), preserved as a ministry house museum showing a traditional Diyarbakır household
Ziya Gökalp House Museum
House of 1808 where the sociologist and thinker Ziya Gökalp was born; bought by the ministry in 1953 and opened as a museum on 23 March 1956
Culture
Dengbêj Evi
Cultural house opened in 2007 by the Diyarbakır Metropolitan Municipality where dengbêjs, the oral bards of Kurdish tradition, sing epics and laments for visitors over tea
Practical information
What you need to know before you go.
- Hours
- Ministry museums are closed one weekday (usually Monday) and open about 08:30-19:00 in summer and 08:30-17:00 in winter; mosques open outside the five prayer times; walls, Hevsel Gardens and the Ten-Eyed Bridge are open access
- Fees
- Ministry museums charge foreign visitors in euros (about EUR 3, roughly 170 TRY or ~$3.50, at the Cahit Sıtkı Tarancı museum); mosques, walls, gardens and bridge are free
- Best Times
- April-May and October-November; summers regularly pass 38°C, so sightsee before 10:00 and after 17:00
- Booking
- No advance booking is needed; a Müzekart (annual national museum pass) is worth buying only for several state museums
- Contact
- Diyarbakır Museum Directorate: +90 412 223 8958, diyarbakirmuzesi@ktb.gov.tr
Tips for visiting attractions
Make the most of your sightseeing time.
Walk Sur in one long morning: Dağkapı, Nebi Camii, Ulu Cami, Hasan Paşa Hanı, the Ziya Gökalp and Tarancı houses, Dört Ayaklı Minare and Surp Giragos, then take a taxi to Mardin Kapı.
Wear closed shoes: basalt paving is polished and slippery, and wall steps are uneven.
Cover shoulders and knees for mosques and carry a scarf; avoid Friday midday prayer.
Keep small cash (50-100 TRY notes, about $1-2) for tea gardens and market stalls.
Church interiors open irregularly; view exteriors freely and confirm interior access on the day.
Restoration changes access to İçkale and wall sections; ask at the Archaeology Museum ticket desk before walking the ramparts.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best things to do in Diyarbakır city?
Walk the UNESCO-listed basalt walls, visit Ulu Cami and Hasan Paşa Hanı, see the Dört Ayaklı Minare and Surp Giragos, tour the İçkale Archaeology Museum, and watch the sunset at the Ten-Eyed Bridge and Hevsel Gardens.
How much do museums in Diyarbakır cost?
Foreign visitors pay a euro-based ministry tariff; the Cahit Sıtkı Tarancı museum lists EUR 3 (about 170 TRY, ~$3.50). Mosques, walls and gardens are free.
When is the best season to visit?
Spring (April-May) and autumn (October-November). Summer midday heat is severe.
Can visitors enter Surp Giragos Church?
It reopened in 2022 after restoration, but interior access depends on services and arrangements, so view the exterior and confirm timing locally.