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The Yumurtalık Coast, from Ayas to the Lagoon
Cultural

The Yumurtalık Coast, from Ayas to the Lagoon

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Yumurtalık, the coastal town where the people of Adana escape in summer, looks at first like a quiet holiday resort: a short beach, fishing boats, old stone walls rising at the water's edge.

Yumurtalık, Adana
Cultural
Radar Editör
October 19, 2026

About Trip

Yumurtalık, the coastal town where the people of Adana escape in summer, looks at first like a quiet holiday resort: a short beach, fishing boats, old stone walls rising at the water's edge. Yet in the Middle Ages this corner of the Gulf of İskenderun was one of the gateways of trade between East and West, and Marco Polo began his journey to China from here. West of the town stretches a broad delta built from the silt of the Seyhan and Ceyhan rivers, with dunes and lagoons. This trip brings those two faces together: in the morning a walk along the shore among the remains of Ayas, in the afternoon a drive towards the lagoon of the birds and sea turtles.

From Aegeae to Ayas

The history of Yumurtalık cannot be separated from its harbour. English and Turkish Wikipedia report that the port's history goes back at least to 2000 BC and that Hittite pottery of the seventeenth century BC has been found at nearby Zeytinbeli Höyük. In antiquity the city was called Aegeae; Pausanias mentions the name, and it also appears on the city's coins. A small port city in Strabo's time, Aegeae gained importance under Roman rule and became part of the province of Cilicia. Apollonius of Tyana received his early education here when the city was at its cultural height.

The Adana Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism writes that this important port city of ancient Cilicia lived its most brilliant period in the first century BC. According to the Directorate, the city is also known for the remains of a Hellenistic hospital and temple called the Asklepieion; the municipality's guide "100 Places to Visit in Adana" adds that the Temple of Asclepius here was one of the largest in the world.

Marco Polo's harbour

In the Middle Ages, especially in the thirteenth century, the city became the most important Mediterranean port of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia and was known locally as Ayas; in Venetian and other European languages the name became Aiazzo or Laiazzo. English Wikipedia explains that with the fall of Acre and the silting up of the harbour of Tarsus, together with the advantage of good roads running east, Ayas briefly became the principal centre of trade between East and West. The Armenian kings signed many treaties granting trade privileges to Italian city-states; a quarter and trading post belonging to Pisa was even established in the city.

Marco Polo landed at this port in 1271 to begin his journey to China, and according to the sources he described it as a city well suited to trade, writing that spices, silk, gold and wool from the interior were carried here. The Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism states that Marco Polo visited the city twice during his travels to the East. The Battle of Laiazzo of 1294, in which the Genoese fleet defeated the Venetian fleet, was also fought in these waters. In the following decades the city came under Mamluk pressure and fell definitively into their hands in 1347; when Europe's eastern trade moved away from the Mediterranean, the port lost its importance. After the period of the Ramadanids it joined the Ottoman Empire in the sixteenth century. Turkish Wikipedia writes that Ayas was a sub-district of Ceyhan until 1959, when it became a district in its own right.

Getting there

Turkish Wikipedia gives the distance from Yumurtalık to central Adana as 80 kilometres and to the neighbouring district of Ceyhan as 30 kilometres; the municipality's guide also places the remains in the town 80 kilometres away. The drive takes a little over an hour. The Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism writes that the ancient city of Ayas can be reached by vehicles going from central Adana to Yumurtalık. The sights in the town are within walking distance of one another, but because the lagoon lies a good distance from the town, you will need a private car for the second half of the trip. Check departure times with the companies at the Adana bus station before setting off.

A walk along the shore

Start your walk at the Süleyman Tower on the western edge of the town. Turkish Wikipedia writes that the tower stands on the Mediterranean shore about two kilometres from the town centre. According to the municipality's guide, the tower is a watch and defence structure named after Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent because it was built in his reign, in 1536; its name in the Adana Sanjak register is the Armed Ayas Castle. Turkish Wikipedia reports that the pentagonal building has narrow observation windows and was built to give early warning against pirates who might raid the harbour. The guide writes that the tower guarded caravans heading south from Istanbul and kept watch over the Mediterranean, that Piri Reis marked the tower and its location on his maps, and that the building was used for military purposes until the last years of the Ottoman Empire.

Following the shore from the tower towards the town, you reach the remains of Ayas. The Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism lists the surviving monuments of the city as Ayas Castle, the Süleyman Tower and the Marco Polo Pier. The municipality's guide writes that in the Middle Ages two castles were built, one on land and one on the small island in the harbour; the one on the island is called the Maiden's Castle or Sea Castle. According to the guide, research on the halls and rooms inside the castle suggests that it served as a customs control centre, a grain store and a water cistern. Looking at the Sea Castle from the shore, it is not hard to picture the route ships took to come alongside when Ayas was a trading port.

Look closely at the walls of the castle on land. Some of the stones are light-coloured cut blocks, others dark rubble, and pieces of columns have been set between them; the castle is a building rebuilt with the material of the old city. The guide notes that the town has narrow lanes, carved stones and marble columns, as well as an area where archaeological finds are displayed. Part of the remains runs down into the sea; the stones washed by the waves are slippery, so take care when climbing onto the rocks.

Towards the lagoon

In the afternoon head for the delta west of the town. According to the records of the Ramsar Convention, the Yumurtalık Lagoons were designated a Ramsar site on 21 July 2005 and cover an area of 19,853 hectares. The site includes the whole of an alluvial delta formed by several rivers in the eastern Mediterranean and brings together freshwater and coastal habitats such as sand dune vegetation, salt marshes and streamside vegetation. The record also states that the site is one of the key points where birds on the Palaearctic-Africa flyway meet, using it both as a stopover and as a wintering site, and that it is important for fish reproduction.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism's promotional page gives the area as 16,430 hectares and explains that the number of migratory birds is highest in winter, when the lagoons offer shelter while lakes further north freeze over. The difference between the two figures may come from boundaries drawn differently at different times. The Ramsar record notes that two endangered sea turtles, Caretta caretta and Chelonia mydas, live on this coast; English Wikipedia adds that the lagoon is the only known wintering site of the green sea turtle in the Mediterranean. Turkish Wikipedia writes that the area is also a protected habitat for plants of limited natural range such as the Aleppo pine. The municipality's guide stresses that the lagoons of Adana together host large numbers of flamingos.

The protection status of the area has changed several times over the years. English Wikipedia reports that it was declared a first-degree natural site in 1993 and a nature conservation area in 1994, while Turkish Wikipedia says it was made a national park in 2008 and registered again as a nature conservation area in 2023. Whatever its status, this is a sensitive area protected by rules; follow the warning signs on site.

Turkish Wikipedia writes that the lagoon is reached via the Adana-Karataş-Yumurtalık road or the Adana-Ceyhan-Yumurtalık road, while the Ministry's page says the protected area lies about 30 kilometres southwest of Yumurtalık. As you drive in this direction from the town, you will see the fields on either side of the road gradually give way to salt flats, reed beds and dunes.

Season and time of day

The best seasons for the shore and the lagoon are different. The remains in the town can be visited at any time of year, but on summer middays there is little shade on the shore and the town gets crowded; English Wikipedia writes that the resident population rises to forty thousand in summer together with the people of Adana who have holiday homes here. For birdwatching, winter and the migration periods stand out. So the most balanced time for this trip is late autumn, winter and early spring. Early morning or late afternoon is better for seeing birds; in the midday light the birds scatter and the glare of the water makes watching harder.

Practical notes

Take binoculars and a camera with a long lens to the lagoon; watch the birds from a distance instead of approaching them. Do not drive onto the dunes or nesting areas, and do not leave the marked tracks. During the sea turtle nesting season, lighting fires or lamps on the beach and digging in the sand harm the nests. Services may be hard to find around the lagoon; bring water, food and sun protection with you.

Visiting conditions at the remains in the town and around the lagoon may change from time to time; check the current information on the website of the Adana Provincial Directorate of Culture and Tourism and with the nature conservation and national parks units that manage the area. Ending the evening back in the town and watching the sun set behind the Sea Castle is the finest way to close the day.

Sources

Location - The Yumurtalık Coast, from Ayas to the Lagoon

Trip Info
CityYumurtalık, Adana
TypeCultural
DateOctober 19, 2026
SourceRadar Editör
Radar TürkiyeAuthorRadar TürkiyeVisit SourceGet Directions