Mersin is a major Mediterranean port city and provincial capital on Turkey's southern coast, where ancient ruins, dramatic limestone gorges, sea castles and long sandy beaches stretch along the Cilician shore. The province spans from the industrial port to clifftop monasteries, Hellenistic temple cities and the birthplace of the Apostle Paul, making it one of the most historically layered destinations in Turkey.
Mersin province — ancient Cilicia — is one of the longest continuously inhabited regions of Anatolia. The Yumuktepe mound at the edge of modern Mersin city has revealed settlement layers going back 8,000 years. Cilicia became a crossroads of Hittite, Assyrian, Persian, Greek, Seleucid, Armenian, Roman, Byzantine and Arab civilizations. Tarsus was the birthplace of the Apostle Paul and one of the great cities of the Roman Empire. Medieval Crusader and Armenian Cilician kingdoms left castles on every promontory. The coast came under Ottoman rule in 1515 and remained a quiet agricultural backwater until the modern port era began in the 1950s.
Historical timeline
Key moments that shaped Mersin.
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1
Neolithic settlement at Yumuktepe mound (modern Mersin city)
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2
Bronze Age Kizzuwatna Kingdom; Hittite suzerainty over the Cilician plain
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3
Assyrian conquest of Cilicia; Tarsus (Tarzi) mentioned in Assyrian records
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4
Persian satrapy of Cilicia; Tarsus (Tarsos) becomes the satrapal capital
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5
Alexander the Great crosses Cilicia through the Cilician Gates; bathes in the River Cydnus at Tarsus
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6
Seleucid rule; foundation of Seleucia on the Calycadnus (Silifke) as a major Hellenistic city; founding of Olba (Uzuncaburç) and its Zeus temple
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7
Roman general Pompey ends Cilician piracy; Cilicia becomes a Roman province with Tarsus as capital
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8
Paul of Tarsus born; later becomes the Apostle Paul, founding Christian churches across the Mediterranean
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9
Roman golden age; Tarsus flourishes as a center of philosophy and trade; Uzuncaburç (Diocaesarea) temple city built
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10
Byzantine monasticism in Cilicia peaks; Alahan Monastery and cliff churches carved on the Taurus escarpment
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11
Arab raids repeatedly capture and lose the Cilician coast; Byzantine-Arab frontier
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12
Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia (Little Armenia) rules much of the coast; Kızkalesi, Silifke and Mamure castles built or rebuilt
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13
Karamanid and Ramazan dynasties; Mamluk expansion; gradual Ottoman absorption
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14
Ottoman Selim I conquers Cilicia; the region becomes part of the Adana eyalet
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15
Cotton boom attracts European merchants; Mersin grows into a significant Mediterranean trading port
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16
Republic of Turkey established; Mersin becomes part of İçel Province
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17
Mersin port expanded to become Turkey's busiest container terminal; city population grows rapidly
Historical eras
The chapters of Mersin's past.
Neolithic / Bronze Age (6000-1200 BCE)
Classical / Hellenistic (550-30 BCE)
Roman (30 BCE-330 CE)
Byzantine (4th-11th century)
Crusader / Armenian Cilicia (11th-14th century)
Ottoman (1515-1923)
Modern Republic (1923-present)
Historical sites
Places where Mersin's past comes alive.
Yumuktepe Mound
Where: Tece neighborhood, Mersin city
Admission: Adult: Free | Child: Free
Tarsus Roman Road (Kleopatra Kapısı)
Where: Tarsus old town
Admission: Adult: Free | Child: Free
St Paul's Well (Tarsus)
Where: Tarsus old town
Admission: Adult: 30 TRY (~$0.65) | Child: Free under 12
Uzuncaburç (Diocaesarea)
Where: 30 km north of Silifke
Admission: Adult: 120 TRY (~$2.60); Museum Pass valid | Child: Free under 18
Kızkalesi (Corycus Castle)
Where: Kızkalesi, 70 km west of Mersin
Admission: Adult: 120 TRY (~$2.60); Museum Pass valid | Child: Free under 18
Alahan Monastery
Where: Taurus escarpment, north of Mut
Admission: Adult: 60 TRY (~$1.30) | Child: Free under 18
Mamure Kalesi (Anamur Castle)
Where: Anamur, 200 km west of Mersin
Admission: Adult: 60 TRY (~$1.30); Museum Pass valid | Child: Free under 18
Museums
Curated collections that tell Mersin's story.
Mersin Museum (Mersin İl Müzesi)
Hours: Tue-Sun 08:30-17:30; closed Monday
Admission: Adult: 60 TRY (~$1.30); Museum Pass valid | Child: Free under 18
Silifke Museum
Hours: Tue-Sun 08:30-17:30; closed Monday
Admission: Adult: 60 TRY (~$1.30); Museum Pass valid | Child: Free under 18
Historical tours
Guided experiences that bring history to life.