Beysehir: what to see, where to stay and how to get around
Beyşehir grew where the lake drains out into a river, and at the end of the 13th century it became the capital of the Eşrefoğlu, a small Turkish dynasty that left the town its great mosque and its bazaar. Three thousand years earlier the Hittites had carved monuments at springs in the hills around. This route starts in the old quarter and drives out to two of them. Half a day; end at the lake shore for sunset.
A short history of Beysehir
Beyşehir lies on Lake Beyşehir, the largest freshwater lake in Turkey. The town flourished at the end of the 13th century as the centre of the Eşrefoğlu principality, which built the Eşrefoğlu Mosque between 1296 and 1299; its ceiling rests on dozens of cedar-wood columns. In 2023 the mosque was added to the World Heritage List together with other wooden mosques in Anatolia. On the lake shore the Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Kayqubad built the summer palace of Kubadabad in the 1230s, where painted tiles have been found.
The ten best sights in Beysehir
1Eşrefoğlu MosqueThe forest of wooden columns inside is the reason to stop in Beyşehir
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2Eşrefoğlu Bridge
The stone bridge and weir where the lake flows out; locals fish here
3Beyşehir Lake National ParkLake shore, islands and sunsets over the water west of town
4Lake BeyşehirTurkey's biggest freshwater lake; best seen from the west shore road
5Kubadabad PalaceFoundations of a Seljuk sultan's lake palace; the tiles are in Konya
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6Kız Kalesi Island
Ruins on a small island off Kubadabad, seen from the shore
7EflatunpınarA Hittite stone monument over a spring pool, 20 minutes north
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8Fasıllar
A giant unfinished Hittite statue lying on a hillside in the village
9KilistraByzantine houses and a church cut into the rock, 45 minutes east
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10Seyyid Harun Tomb
The founder's tomb and mosque in the centre of Seydişehir
Scan with your phone camera to open the map there
What is an audio walk?
Tours in Beysehir →A guide in your headphones: open the walk on our site, walk from stop to stop, and at each one your phone tells its story. No guide, no group, and free. This is the first walk in Beysehir:
Free walking tours in Beysehir
Wooden mosque to Hittite spring
Beyşehir grew where the lake drains out into a river, and at the end of the 13th century it became the capital of the Eşrefoğlu, a small Turkish dynasty that left the town its great mosque and its bazaar. Three thousand years earlier the Hittites had carved monuments at springs in the hills around. This route starts in the old quarter and drives out to two of them. Half a day; end at the lake shore for sunset.
- Eşrefoğlu Mosque · Built in the 1290s by Eşrefoğlu Süleyman Bey, the mosque has a roof carried on dozens of wooden columns. In 2023 it was inscribed by UNESCO with four other wooden-columned mosques of medieval Anatolia.
- İçerişehir · The covered bazaar inside the walls, the bedesten, was also built by Eşrefoğlu Süleyman Bey, so that the mosque's upkeep could be paid from the rent of its shops.
- Eşrefoğlu Bridge · The bridge doubles as a weir controlling the water that leaves the lake down the Çarşamba river, which is sent on to irrigate the Konya plain.
- Fasıllar · The statue lying on the slope is about 7 m long and was never finished. A full-size copy stands in the garden of the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara.
- Eflatunpınar · The Hittites built this stone monument over a sacred spring in the 13th century BC. Its Turkish name means 'Plato's spring' — a later legend tied the place to the Greek philosopher.
- Beyşehir Lake National Park · The lake and its shores were made a national park in 1993. It is one of the main bird lakes of central Anatolia, with herons, cormorants and grebes nesting on its islands.
The sultan's lake palace
In the 1230s the Seljuk sultan Alaeddin Keykubad built himself a summer palace on the west shore of the lake, with the Taurus mountains rising behind it. This loop drives round the south end of the lake to the palace site and on into the forested mountains beyond. About 150 km in the day; the west shore road is the most beautiful drive around Beyşehir.
- Lake Beyşehir · Beyşehir is the largest freshwater lake in Turkey, and with dozens of islands scattered across it, it is sometimes called the lake of islands.
- Gölyaka · The ruins near this village were recognised as Kubadabad, the palace known from Seljuk chronicles, only in 1949.
- Kubadabad Palace · The palace walls were covered in glazed tiles painted with figures — birds, animals, courtiers. The best of them are now in the Karatay Medrese tile museum in Konya.
- Kız Kalesi Island · The name means 'maiden's castle', a name given to many island and hilltop ruins in Turkey through legends of a princess shut away from the world.
- Kızıldağ National Park · Above the west shore the Taurus rises into Dedegöl, whose summit is close to 3,000 m and often keeps snow into early summer.
- Pınargözü Cave · Pınargözü is one of the longest known caves in Turkey, with kilometres of passages mapped by cavers; a stream pours out of its mouth in spring.
Rock churches and gunsmiths
East of the lake the land opens onto the Konya plain, and south it climbs into the Taurus. This loop goes out to a Byzantine village carved in rock on the old road of Paul, then down to the industrial town of Seydişehir and up to a village that makes shotguns. About 220 km; Kilistra is the stop to give an hour to.
- Kilistra · Kilistra lies near the road between Iconium, today's Konya, and Lystra — two towns where, according to the Book of Acts, Paul preached, at Iconium first in the synagogue.
- Seyyid Harun Tomb · Seydişehir, 'the town of the Seyyid', is named after Seyyid Harun Veli, a 14th-century holy man who settled the town; he is buried beside the mosque that carries his name.
- Seydişehir aluminium works · The aluminium plant outside town was built in the 1970s with Soviet help to process bauxite mined in the nearby mountains, and it is still the town's main employer.
- Lake Suğla · Suğla is a shallow lake whose level rises and falls with the water sent to it from Lake Beyşehir; in dry years much of it turns to marsh and pasture.
- Tınaztepe Caves · The caves are in the karst limestone of the Taurus, where rain sinks straight through the rock, which is why the plateau above has almost no streams.
- Huğlu · The village has been making hunting shotguns for generations, and Huğlu guns, made in small workshops and a cooperative, are sold abroad under the village's name.
Getting to Beysehir and getting around
- Beyşehir Bus Station · Buses to Konya, about 1.5 hours east, the nearest airport and train
- Seydişehir Bus Station · The next town south, on the road over the Taurus to the coast
Cheap eats in Beysehir
Beyşehir sits at the edge of Konya province, one of the heartlands of Turkish cooking, so the bread ovens are the centre of the meal: etli ekmek, pide and oven-roasted lamb. The lake adds carp and zander. The quick places are bunched on the streets just south of the mosque and the bridge, and prices are low.
- Öz Boğaziçi Pide · Etli ekmek and pide, about 200-350 lira
- Damak Lokantası · Ready dishes from the counter, about 150-300 lira
- İkizler Restaurant · Kebab and soup in the centre, about 200-400 lira
- Gülüneli Hatay Yemekleri · Dishes from Hatay, about 200-350 lira
- Bey Edem Pastanesi · Baklava and tea, about 100-250 lira
- Antik Kafe · Tea by the old quarter, about 20-50 lira a glass
Museums in Beysehir
- Eşrefoğlu Mosque · The wooden-column mosque; visit between prayers
- Kubadabad Palace · The Seljuk palace site on the west shore
- Eflatunpınar · The Hittite spring monument
- Fasıllar · The unfinished Hittite giant
Nature and day trips near Beysehir
- Beyşehir Lake National Park · Shore, islands and birds
- Kızıldağ National Park · Mountain forest above the lake
- Pınargözü Cave · A spring from a cave mouth
- Dedegöl · The high peak west of the lake
Things to do in Beysehir with kids
- Eflatunpınar · A spring pool with a stone wall of gods
- Beyşehir Lake National Park · Picnic by the water
- Tınaztepe Caves · Lit paths through the caves
- Eşrefoğlu Bridge · Watch the fishermen and the rushing water
Where to eat in Beysehir
- Efsane Balık & Et Lokantası · Lake fish and grills
- Emin Usta Et Mangal · Charcoal grills south of the centre
- Atik Restaurant · Turkish dishes near the river
- İkizler Restaurant · Kebabs and soups in the centre
Frequently asked questions about Beysehir
What is there to see in Beysehir?
The top sights in Beysehir are Eşrefoğlu Mosque, Eşrefoğlu Bridge and Beyşehir Lake National Park. The full list on this page has 10 sights, each with a photo and a short note.
How many days do you need in Beysehir?
Three to four days are enough to see the best of Beysehir without rushing, including at least one walking tour.
Is there a free walking tour in Beysehir?
Yes. sleepntrip has 3 free audio walks in Beysehir, with no guide and no group: your phone tells the story at every stop. The first one: Wooden mosque to Hittite spring.
How do you get to Beysehir and get around?
The main ways are Beyşehir Bus Station and Seydişehir Bus Station. Full details are in the transport section on this page.
Where to stay in Beysehir, and for how much?
sleepntrip shows only rooms in Beysehir that meet nine conditions: a good location, high guest scores, cleanliness, and a price of up to $80 a night for two. Pick your dates and see what is free.
Looking for a hotel in Beysehir for your dates?
Only rooms that meet nine conditions, up to $80 a night.