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İzmir's Urban Forests and Recreation Areas

Most people know İzmir by the lawns of the Kordon and the blue of the gulf. Yet the places where residents catch their breath at the weekend usually lie a little inland, in the districts where people actually live.

Radar TürkiyeRadar Türkiye15 Ekim 2026
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İzmir's Urban Forests and Recreation Areas

Most people know İzmir by the lawns of the Kordon and the blue of the gulf. Yet the places where residents catch their breath at the weekend usually lie a little inland, in the districts where people actually live. A forest grown on a headland at the edge of Balçova where rubble was once dumped, a large park in Bornova that hosts open-air concerts, an urban forest covered in Turkish red pine on a mountain slope, a valley bearing the name of Homer, and a green space in Buca that began life as the garden of a Levantine family. This article walks through these five places one by one and, drawing on sources, sums up how each was created, what you will find there today and on which day it makes most sense to visit each of them. We do not give fees or opening hours; these details change, so check the latest notice from the operating institution before you go.

From rubble site to forest, İnciraltı

İnciraltı Kent Ormanı, the İnciraltı Urban Forest, lies in Balçova's Bahçelerarası neighbourhood on the southern shore of the gulf. The site of the forest was once known as Yenikale Burnu, and rubble was dumped here until 1999. Afforestation began at the end of 2004 and was completed in June 2006, turning the old dumping ground into an urban forest inside the city. The area covers 622 decares in total, and according to the count on Wikipedia it holds more than twenty thousand trees. The list of species is long, because this is not a natural forest but a carefully planted collection. Acacia, maple, pine, plane, ash, mulberry, Judas tree, linden, oleaster, Canadian poplar, magnolia, palm, cypress, oriental sweetgum and willow are only some of them.

To the west of the forest lies Çakalburnu Lagoon, and many bird species live in its reed beds. This neighbour makes İnciraltı more than a picnic ground; you can walk through the trees and a few minutes later reach a shore where you watch flamingos. Inside the forest there are rest areas, walking trails and cycle paths. Next to it there is a car park, a district bus terminal and a caravan park. The coastal cycle path that starts in Konak also brings you all the way here, and Birdingplaces, a website for birdwatchers, notes that the lagoon can also be reached by the bus line called İnciraltı. Since 2017 the İzmir Youth Festival has been held in the forest every year during the week of 19 May.

There is an important note about the forest today. In 2026 the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality began a comprehensive renovation of the area. To protect the natural fabric and keep the area clean, lighting barbecues has been banned in the zone that served as a picnic ground for many years. Entry to the area is also no longer allowed after midnight. Worn earth surfaces are being paved with interlocking stones, old gazebos, fountains and children's play sets are being renewed, and new benches and seating areas are being added. New tree and plant species will also be planted to strengthen the green cover. It is worth checking before you go which sections are closed for the works.

Bornova's big park, Aşık Veysel

The Aşık Veysel Recreation Area is in Bornova and takes its name from the folk poet. Construction of the park began in 2008, it opened on 25 September 2010, and it covers a total area of 231 decares. At the centre of the park is an artificial pond of 1,500 square metres, surrounded by walking paths and a cycle path one and a half kilometres long. The area has basketball and tennis courts, a mini football pitch, children's play areas and rest terraces. A semi-Olympic swimming pool, which opened in 2021, and a 12,000 square metre Ice Sports Hall are also inside the park.

What makes the park special in İzmir's cultural calendar is its open-air theatre. Wikipedia describes it as the city's largest amphitheatre. In the summer of 2026 a renovation carried out by İzmir Kültür AŞ and the public works teams renewed all 5,200 seats of the theatre, repaired the stage roof and added new trees around the stage. According to a statement from the operating institution, a programme of 85 concert nights was prepared for that summer, and if the weather allowed, events were planned to continue until the end of November. In the same season food and drink points were set up in the area for the first time, the canteen and toilets were overhauled, and books from İzmir Kent Kitaplığı were offered to readers around the theatre. Free wireless internet is also available throughout the park. If you are coming for a concert night, walk around the rest of the park before sunset; the view from the steps of the amphitheatre towards the pond and the wooded area is the scene that sums up the park best.

İzmir Kent Ormanı at the foot of the mountain

Bornova's second large green space is not inside the town but on the slope just above it. With an area of 1,226 hectares, İzmir Kent Ormanı, the İzmir Urban Forest, is far larger than the forest at İnciraltı and lies about four kilometres from the district centre. Turkish red pine is widespread here. Mediterranean plants such as juniper, bay laurel, heather, myrtle, Turkey oak and oleander also fill the forest floor. Animals recorded in the forest include vultures, sparrowhawks, eagles, partridges, squirrels, hares and foxes. For visitors there is a viewing tower, viewing terraces, children's play areas, and cycle and walking paths. İnciraltı is the choice for those who want to walk on level ground, while İzmir Kent Ormanı suits those who want to climb a little and see the city from above.

The valley that bears Homer's name

The Homeros Vadisi, or Homer Valley, in Bornova was opened as a recreation area by the İzmir Metropolitan Municipality in May 2008, and new additions were made to it in 2010. The valley is seven kilometres long. It takes its name from the old link drawn between the poet and the cave inside it. The ancient geographer Pausanias noted that at the source of the Meles River of the Smyrnaeans there was a cave where Homer was said to have written his poems. Local people have identified the cave in Bornova with that cave for generations. Exactly where the epics were written, however, is not known, and other places such as the island of Chios also claim the poet. The researcher Altan Altın, who has written a book on the subject, argues that a frieze dated to the 3rd century BC showing the apotheosis of Homer depicts the cave in Bornova in striking detail. The archaeologist Mehmet Akif Erdem adds that coins bearing an image of Homer found in excavations show that the ancient people of Smyrna regarded the poet as one of their own. Bornova keeps this link alive in other ways too; a book fair dedicated to Homer is held in the district, and a statue of Hector, the hero of the Trojan War, stands in a local park. On the walls of the cave there are Greek inscriptions carved by visitors, but how old they are is not clear. According to a 2026 report by Euronews, the district municipality plans to restore the cave and open it to visitors. The cave sits on a hill overlooking slopes covered in olive groves; when you come to walk in the valley, do not forget comfortable shoes and water.

A Levantine garden in Buca, Hasanağa

The first name of the Hasanağa Bahçesi in Buca was the Aliotti Garden. The garden belonged to the Aliotti family, Levantines of Italian origin who owned vast tracts of land in the region; it was densely wooded and contained a small zoo with exotic animals. According to Kültür Envanteri, an elegant mansion stood in the middle of the garden, which burned down in the early 1930s and has not survived. The rocky outcrop near the mansion, decorated with pools and fountains, is however still standing today. The property was sold in the mid 1920s, in 1925 or 1926 depending on the source, to Hasan Ağa of Sarıgöl, one of the notables of Ödemiş. Hasan Ağa kept the garden open to the public, and over time it came to be known as the Hasan Ağa Garden. According to an article in Yeni Asır, a Latin European approach dominates the overall layout of the garden. The same article relates that over the years a cafeteria, a library, a wedding hall, a scout centre and an artificial waterfall were added, and that the many tree species created a texture reminiscent of a small piece of the Black Sea landscape. The walls around the park were demolished in 2003, opening the garden to the street. Today the area of about 96 decares holds more than two thousand trees. In 1986 an ice skating hall was built in the park, and in 2006 it was converted into a gymnastics hall. After a renovation completed in 2013, the area has a 1,400 metre tartan track, a cycle path, sports courts, a skate park and play areas. Standing under the old trees in the middle of a track full of Buca residents out for a run means seeing both eras of the garden at once.

Which place, and when

If you want a day on level ground, by the sea and on a bicycle, choose İnciraltı; you can combine the forest and the lagoon in a single walk. If you like climbing and seeing the city from above, head for the viewpoints of İzmir Kent Ormanı; in the summer months it is more comfortable to go up there in the cool morning hours. It makes sense to plan Aşık Veysel together with the concert calendar, but those who want a quiet walk should choose weekday mornings. Because Hasanağa Bahçesi is in the middle of Buca, it suits a short evening walk. For the Homer Valley, bring walking shoes and set aside half a day. Wherever you go, take your rubbish back with you and follow the rules specific to each area, such as the barbecue ban at İnciraltı. All of these places are for shared use, and the visitor who comes the next morning deserves the same cleanliness.

Sources

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