Kars

Kars is a provincial capital in northeastern Türkiye about 1,750 m above sea level.

Kars Castle stands on a hill above the Kars Stream and is dated to 1153, under the Saltukid ruler Melik İzzeddin. At its southern foot is Kümbet Mosque, built in 932–937 as the Church of the Twelve Apostles under the Bagratid king Abas I. It became a museum in 1964 and has been a mosque since 1993. Taşköprü, a three-arched basalt bridge, dates from 1579 and was rebuilt in the 18th century after a flood. Kars was under Russian rule from 1878 to 1918. The grid-plan streets and basalt buildings of the Yusufpaşa and Ortakapı districts date from those years.

Kars Harakani Airport is 6 km from the centre, with flights from İstanbul and Ankara. The Eastern Express runs daily from Ankara via Kayseri, Sivas and Erzurum. The castle is an uphill walk. January averages about −11 °C, so pack for severe cold in winter.