Artvin

Understand

Artvin is 30 km from the coast at a junction of routes through the mountains. For over 1000 years it's had a castle, better for hiding in than defence as passing armies had little difficulty capturing the town. It was part of the Kingdom of Georgia in medieval times, but once Trabzon fell to the Ottomans in 1460 the mountain towns soon succumbed. When the Ottoman Empire crumbled in the 19th century Artvin was ceded back and forth to Russia, before re-joining Turkey in the peace treaties after World War I.

The mountains draw the rain and snow, so above Artvin is surprising lush pasture suitable for dairy farming.

Get in

Artvin is at a road junction. D010 runs almost the length of the Black Sea coast, until at Hopa it climbs inland to Artvin. (Stay on the coast road to cross into Georgia.) It continues west through the mountains to join D965 to Kars. D950 forks from D010 at Artvin to run south to Erzurum and Diyarbakır.

Buses run twice a day from Istanbul, taking 21 hours via Samsun, Trabzon, Rize and Hopa. Three run from Ankara, taking 15 hours. Bus lines are Luks and Flixbus.

is at the highway junction one km west of the foot of town, and then it's a long climb to accommodation.

Get around

You need a vehicle. The distances, gradients and sun are daunting to all but the toughest cyclists.

See

thumb | 300px | Town centre or Çarşı (Market) Mosque is at Çağal Sk 2. The minaret, pulpit and sermon stand are from the original structure of 1861, the rest is a re-build of 1958. is on Kültür Sk 5 by the university. Also called Çayağzı or Salih Bey Mosque, it was built in 1792 AD / AH 1207. perches on a crag northwest edge of town. Also called Livana Castle, it was built in 937 AD and reinforced during the Ottoman era. In 2025 there's no access and the path is overgrown.

Do

Genya is the mountain just south of town, the most accessible hiking area. Mountain sports include kayaking in spring and skiing / snowboarding in winter, in the hills southwest beyond Balcıoğlu. Contact the organisers on Sa or Su on +90 530 542 0608. Kafkasör is a Caucasian Bullfighting Fiesta in July. The bulls fight each other. The main events are in Çamlık southwest of Artvin.