Tekirdağ

There are signs of human settlement here right back to the dawn of the Stone Ages. The first recorded settlement of "Byzanthe" was founded by Thracians in what is now Barbaros, a village 9 km to the southwest. The seed of the modern city was a colony of Greeks from Samos in 550 BC, who called it "Rhaidestos". When the Roman Empire divided, Tekirdağ became part of the Byzantine portion, and equally Byzantine was the evolution of its name. In 14th century it was captured by the Ottomans, who called it "Rodosçuk". In the 19th century it became "Tekfurdağı" meaning "Byzantine lord" but by the 20th century this had mutated into Tekirdağ which means "tabby mountain" and refers to the range to the southwest. The old name persists in some other languages, eg "Rodostó" in Hungarian. The Hungarian connection was important in the 18th century, with exiles such as Francis II Rákóczi and Kelemen Mikes settling here, but that emigre community has long disappeared.

Tekirdağ has grown into a large industrial town, based on the agriculture of its hinterland, which has become dotted with industrial units as businesses move out of congested Istanbul. It's too far out (and public transport is insufficient) for it to be part of Istanbul's commuter belt, but it's certainly within the weekend-escape zone and gets busy in summer. It's the capital of Tekirdağ Province, with its other main towns described elsewhere (insofar as they have any interest to travelers): Çerkezköy, Çorlu, Ergene, Hayrabolu, Kapaklı, Malkara, Marmara Ereğlisi, Muratlı, Saray and Şarköy. Süleymanpaşa is the district containing Tekirdağ itself.

The climate is typical of the west Marmara region: Mediterranean but with colder winters. Summers are very warm, and usually dry, nevertheless with occasional downpours. Spring and autumn are ideal times to visit, and in autumn the sea is warm and usually calm. Midsummer breezes can stir up heavy surf. Winters are cool to chilly with frequent rain and occasional snow.

The TIC is in the park near the ferry pier. It wasn't open in 2021.

Walk for anywhere downtown.

Dolmuş: public buses run by the city council are white with blue and green stripes. They ply from the old otogar to outlying residential areas — some via city centre, so this is the only occasion you might have to use them. Privately-run minibuses share the same colour pattern with the buses and you're most likely to use them to Barbaros and Kumbağ, or to Değirmenaltı, which may be badged as Route 1.

All dolmuşes run on a fixed route, every 10 min daytime dropping to 30 min late evening, with the last around midnight. They mostly start from Yazar Mehmet Serezli Cd below Rüstem Paşa Mosque, but don't otherwise have fixed stops, holler to get off or wave to flag one down. The flat fare in town is 3 TL.

Taxis are available from many stands around the city.

• 🌍 Archaeology and Ethnography Museum (Arkeoloji ve Etnografya Müzesi), Vali Konağı Cd 1 (foot of Hüseyin Pehlivan Cd), ☏ +90 282 261 20 82, tekirdagmuzesi@kultur.gov.tr. Daily 08:00-17:00. Housed in the governor's mansion built 1928, this exhibits findings from Perinthos and numerous tumulii in the region. Admire the mummy of Thracian king Kersepleptes, found (along with his regalia) in a tumulus 12 km away. Upstairs is ethnography, with a "traditional Tekirdağ room". The garden of the museum has many ancient sarcophagi and gravestones of the city's once numerous Greeks, Armenians and Latins. Free. (updated Nov 2023)
• 🌍 Rákóczi Museum (Rakoçi Müzesi), Vali Konağı Cd, ☏ +90 282 263 85 77. Tu-Sa 09:00-12:00, 13:00-17:00. Francis II Rákóczi (1676–1735) was a Hungarian nobleman who led a failed rebellion against the Hapsburg empire. He fled to Poland (where he was smart enough to decline the offer of the crown), then rattled around England and France before settling in Ottoman Turkey. He spent his last 18 years in this house in Tekirdağ and a colony of other Hungarian emigres settled around him – best known is Kelemen Mikes (1690–1761). The house has been restored, not to that period but to 1906 when drawings of the interior were made. The Szekely Gate in front of the house commemorates his fellow exiles, of whom few other traces remain in the city. Rákóczi is buried in Košice, Slovakia, where a copy of this house has been erected. 5 TL. (updated Sep 2021)
• Traditional Ottoman houses have been ruthlessly bulldozed from most of the city and replaced by drab concrete blocks. Several survive – some renovated, but many sadly tumbledown – in the streets between the Archaeology and Rakoczi museums, with another scattering on the hill by the old otogar.
• 🌍 Tekirdağ Photography Museum (Tekirdağ Eski Fotoğrafları Müzesi), Sefa Sk (100 m west of the Archaeological Museum). M-F 08:00-17:00. Exhibits a collection of old Tekirdağ photographs donated by a member of the Greek family resident in this house before the local Greeks left for Greece in exchange for the Turks of Greece under a 1920s agreement between Greece and Turkey – many of the photos present scenes from the predating period. 
• İbrahim Balaban Painting Museum (İbrahim Balaban Resim Müzesi), Sefa Sk (70 m up the street from the Photography Museum). M-F 08:00-17:00. A small museum exhibiting several paintings of İbrahim Balaban (1921–2019), whose works combine social realism with abstract figures. 
• 🌍 Rüstem Paşa Mosque was built by the renowned Sinan in 1553. Not one of his greatest (see Edirne and Istanbul), but he set the bar high.
• Ertuğrul Bazaar by the mosque is a 1980s reconstruction. The courtyard is a pleasant place to sit.
• Eski Mosque means "old mosque" but it's a rebuild of 1830 after the old-old mosque burned down. It's 200 m west along the street from Rüstem Paşa Mosque.
• 🌍 Namık Kemal House (Namık Kemal Evi), Namık Kemal Cd 11, ☏ +90 505 255 67 74. M-Sa 09:00-12:00, 13:00-17:00. Namık Kemal (1840–1888) was a writer and political agitator, which got him exiled from Turkey three times: to Paris, then to Famagusta, finally to Chios where he died. The house museum is a replica of his birthplace. 10 TL. (updated Aug 2023)
• Barış ve Özgürlük Parkı means "Peace & Freedom Park" and it's populated by statues of those who wrote and did plenty but didn't enjoy much of those desiderata, such as Namık Kemal, Francis II Rakoczi and Kelemen Mikes – this last is a striking Hungarian wood carving. The park is by the marina, 300 m south of the old otogar. There's a funfair, see below.
• 🌍 Kumbağ is the small town at the south end of the beach strip straggling out from the city. The beach is sandy and there's accommodation and eating places. Further south the road winds into the hills towards Uçmakdere and eventually Şarköy.

• Dal Lunapark is a funfair by the Barış & Özgürlük park at the east end of the promenade. Not the biggest or scariest rides, but it will amuse children with its ferris wheel, rollercoaster, gondola and the like. It's open daily in summer 11:00-00:00.
• Windsurfing: the local beaches are exposed to the onshore breeze in summer, so the waves get up and it's a good area to windsurf. Try Kumbağ beach strip to the south.
• Hiking in Mt Ganos south of Kumbağ has trails of all grades, including a 20 km trek to Uçmakdere.
• Paragliding on Mt Ganos generally launches from Nişantepe (600 m elevation) to land on the beach at Ayvasıl. You'll need to be self-sufficient with kit. Contact the Tekirdağ Paragliding Club (TEYAK) for the availability of tandem flights.

• ATMs are found outside several banks on Hükümet Cd, the downtown high street - this is also the place to find money exchange kiosks. In Kumbağ they're likewise on the main drag Belediye Cd.
• Tekira is the main city-centre mall at 304 Hükümet Cd. Carrefour is open daily 09:00-23:00.
• Maxi Alışveriş is the edge-of-town mall east at the junction with D110 bypass, so it's the better one for passing traffic. Migros is open daily 10:00-22:00.
• Rugs and carpets are handmade at Karacakılavuz (say "ka-ra-DJA-ka-lah-vooz") 20 km northwest of Tekirdağ. This village was settled by Yörük, nomadic people from Anatolia, after the Ottoman conquest of Thrace in the 14th century. The villagers still weave patterns handed down from nomadic times. Their outlet shop in the village is open M-Sa 08:00-18:00. See also Çorlu 40 km north for its outlet stores and factory sale shops.

Alkolsüz posted outside a restaurant means "alcohol-free." Any restaurant without a sign usually does serve alcohol.

• Cezve Cafe, Eski Bedesten Sokak 32 (off Hüseyin Pehlivan Cd above Archaeology Museum), ☏ +90 282 263 00 00. Daily 10:00-02:00. Pleasant cafe in a renovated historical 3-storey wooden building. (updated Sep 2021)
• Deniz Aile Çay Bahçesi, Atatürk Blv 21 (By harbour). Relaxing place for coffee or grilled fish. (updated Sep 2021)
• Rumeli İskelesi, Limani (pier end). Cafe at the end of the ferry pier, you're paying for the view. (updated Sep 2021)
• Özcanlar Çarşı Şube (Bazaar branch), Hüseyin Pehlivan Cd 5 (on street above Archaeology Museum), ☏ +90 282 261 29 76, info@meshurozcanlarkofte.com. Daily 08:00-20:00. Long-established favourite restaurant for meatballs. (updated Sep 2021)
• Özcanlar Sahil Şube (Beach branch), Atatürk Blv (near Park), ☏ +90 282 263 40 88. Daily 07:00-01:00. Another branch of the meatball chain; they have outlets elsewhere in Turkey. (updated Sep 2021)
• Arda Cunda Meze ve Balik Evi, Atatürk Blv (facing ferry pier), ☏ +90 535 552 86 01. Daily 10:00-02:00. Good fish and meze. Visitors might want to go for the set menu, as prices mysteriously escalate for foreigners. (updated Sep 2021)
• 🌍 İlhan Restaurant, Atatürk Blv 55, ☏ +90 282 261 15 07. Tu-Su 15:00-23:30. Popular fish restaurant on the sea-front, but very limited menu. (updated Sep 2021)
• Local specialties: Tekirdağ köftesi is the local style of meat-balls, made of fatless meat and mildly spiced. It's shaped into a cylinder and grilled.

Desserts: Höşmerim (or peynir helvası) is made of cereals with cheese dissolved into it - best served with ice-cream on top. Hayrabolu tatlısı takes its name from the nearby town of Hayrabolu; variants of it under different names (such as Kemalpaşa) are common across western Turkey. It's a spongy, soft cookie doused in syrup, and served with tahini and ground nuts on top, 25-35 TL/piece (Jul 2023).

• Bars by the park and marina include Look Pub & Shot, Moon and Bermuda Club. On Şükran Sokuk in the centre are 44 Beydağı and Best Of The Kemal Babanın Yeri.
• Rakı, Turkey's national drink, was traditionally made in Tekirdağ. The factory (owned by Mey, part of Diageo) closed in 2017 and production moved to Alaşehir 140 km east of Izmir, but you won't go short of rakı here.
• Wine: the best-known vineyards are southwest in the hills of Şarköy District: Barbare and Umurbey are the closest. Barel, in Karaevli, is one of several nearby to the east.

You probably only need to book ahead in peak season July-Aug. For small apart-hotels or flats, look for kiralık signs, meaning "for rent". Many places close down in winter.

As of Sept 2021, the city has 4G from all Turkish carriers. 5G has not rolled out in Turkey.

Wifi is widely available in cafes and public places.

Like any big city there are rough, down-at-heel quarters, such as the northern district of Aydoğdu. These are well away from the coast and downtown, and visitors have no reason to go there.

Don't swim within 5 km of the commercial harbours west of the centre. Bilge water is the main problem, and marine waste has been another. In July 2021 the national government announced vigorous measures against what they referred to as deniz salyası but most call deniz sümük - "sea snot".

National emergency number is 112.

As a city which is slightly off-the-beaten path, you will encounter less English-speaking people. This is not to mean that nobody in Tekirdağ can speak English, but you may have to look for a little more than the usual in more tourism-oriented towns of western and southern Turkey. And you can also take it on the bright side: you will never come across with a tout in Tekirdağ.

• Honorary Consulate of Hungary (Macaristan Fahri Konsolosluğu), Orduevi Caddesi 21, Günaydın Apartmanı (off Anı Kıyı Cd), ☏ +90 282 263 03 13, fax: +90 282 261 35 60. M-F 09:00-17:00. This also serves Kırklareli and Edirne, but contact Istanbul consulate for visa / passport enquiries. (updated Aug 2021)

• Marmara Ereğlisi is a coastal town 40 km east of Tekirdağ, on the highway to Istanbul. This is the site of ancient Perinthos, with a few scrappy remnants.
• Şarköy District is the coastal strip and wine-growing area extending from Şarköy town through Mürefte to Uçmakdere. With your own transport you can follow the twisting hill road from Kumbağ to Uçmakdere, a well-preserved village from pre-1923 when this area had a majority Greek population.
• Marmara Island is visible out to sea and has a car ferry from Tekirdağ.
• Istanbul to Izmir is an itinerary that swings through town, to continue south by road down the Gallipoli peninsula or by ferry to Erdek.