Things to do in Bingöl
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Bingöl
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Best months, yaylas green then golden, waterfall water into early summer, lakes road open.
Hot in the city, perfect at altitude, festivals at Sülbüs and Karlıova, busy at Ilıcalar.
Cool, empty and golden, good for Floating Islands, Kığı and Palu, Çır dry or nearly so.
Ski season at Hesarek, otherwise snow, road risk and short days across the province.
Hinge month of mud and meltwater, waterfalls rising and mountain roads reopening.
Winter closing in, cold and quiet, check all rural roads locally.
What's on
- Sülbüs Doğa ve Kültür Festivali July, dates announced locally
Nature and culture festival at Yayladere around Sülbüs mountain, the mountain busiest weekend.
- Kanîreş Doğa ve Kültür Festivali Usually late July; check dates
Karlıova nature and culture festival, recently revived, opening with horse races at Toklular village.
- Bingöl horse races Late August to early September
Traditional horse races recorded by GoTürkiye, atmosphere rather than a ticketed product.
Best things to do in Bingöl
Yüzen Adalar
Three vegetated islands drift freely on a deep crater lake, a rare natural monument and the province signature sight.
İsfahan Bey Camii
An early 16th century Akkoyunlu mosque and the only historical building surviving in Bingöl city centre.
Zağ Mağaraları
A multi storey early Christian rock cut refuge above the Murat River, rough and undeveloped and all the better for it.
Buban Peri Bacaları
A small, empty, still forming fairy chimney field in open country, reached by asphalt and best in raking light.
Kığı
The province historic small town, with a citadel, a mosque from 1401 and stone fabric almost no outsider reaches.
33 Şehit Anıtı
A sombre roadside memorial to 33 recruits killed in 1993, essential context for understanding this province.
Kral Kızı Kalesi
A legend layered hilltop ruin above the Murat valley that gives Genç its old name and its best panorama.
Vank Kilisesi
A hilltop church noted for twin lion mouthed gargoyles, a quiet vernacular detail for determined visitors only.
Where to stay in Bingöl
Bingöl city centre
default base, eating choice, services
Restaurants, honey shops, taxis and buses within reach, in a plain modern provincial centre.
Elazığ Muş road, Saray Mahallesi
drivers, comfort, parking
The large full service hotels stand here with pools and parking, a short drive from the centre.
Ilıcalar
thermal stays, walkers, Çır Waterfall
Sleep where the springs are, 20 to 22 km north, quiet and early closing with little dining choice.
Think twice about
- Karlıova
Almost no bookable hotels, very cold snowy winters and serious mountain roads. Visit for the sunrise, sleep in Bingöl.
- Kığı
Vestigial hotel stock and long winding roads. A rewarding day trip, not a first trip base.
- Roadside motels west of Bingöl on the Elazığ highway
A memorial landscape and truck route with no services for a visitor base. Sleep in the city instead.
Best restaurants in Bingöl
Soğukçeşme Kavurma 1965
The kavurma institution serving the province registered Çobantaşı roast by the portion or by the kilo.
Yayla Ocakbaşı
The raters favourite ocakbaşı grill, kebabs and pide cooked over the open hearth in the city centre.
Hanedan Ocakbaşı
A roomy family grill house for kebabs, shish and liver, suited to the way Bingöl eats in parties.
Ciğerci Osman
Charcoal grilled liver skewers in lavaş plus the full kebab board, a southeast breakfast and dinner ritual.
Bingöl Mivan Restaurant
The platform headline table for family dinners and occasion meals, with a broad Turkish kitchen.
Yado Çeşmesi Et Lokantası
The city biggest volume meat lokanta, cheap daily dishes and grills with an honestly middling score.
Dörtyol Ocakbaşı
The central walk in cheap grill by the Dörtyol junction, open long hours for a no ceremony kebab.
Kavurmacı Aydın Usta
A single dish kavurma specialist with a small happy crowd, the connoisseur alternative to the big institution.
Outdoor things to do in Bingöl
Bingöl Hesarek Kayak Merkezi
A small, friendly, uncrowded ski hill with a long season, a chairlift and a hotel on the slopes.
Çır Şelalesi
A seasonal waterfall pouring through a great rock above Ilıcalar, spectacular with spring snowmelt and dry by autumn.
Kale Tepesi
A very high viewpoint above Karlıova famous across Turkey for a full, multi range sunrise in clear mountain air.
Ilıcalar
The Kös thermal springs town, where a simple hot soak is the most local afternoon in the province.
Sülbüs Dağı
A sacred profile mountain and the province best trekking country, past the Pargasur waterfalls with a guide.
Gerindal Gölü
A heart shaped high crater lake on a summer yayla, paired on treks with nearby Metan lake toward Palu.
Palu Kalesi
A Urartian fortress hollowed into rock above the Murat, the deep history day trip Bingöl itself cannot give.
Best hotels in Bingöl
Binkap Resort Otel
The province top address, a comfortable full service hotel with hammam, sauna, gym and parking on the Muş road.
Grand Berti Hotel
The other large full service hotel, with pool and hammam, best booked away from the highway side.
Atlı Otel Bingöl
The city best scored central hotel and its value star, a clean friendly base for days out in the province.
Bingöl Üniversitesi Termal Kaplıca Tesisleri
Sleep at the Ilıcalar springs in the university thermal facility, best for one or two water focused nights.
Binkap Termal Hotel
The wooden thermal alternative at Ilıcalar, chosen for its spa water and a bed upstairs in the springs town.
Büyük Bingöl Otel
The honest cheap central bed for a single transit night, worn and priced accordingly.
Is Bingöl expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | TRY 1,800 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | TRY 4,500 a person |
| Splurge | TRY 12,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Bingöl Hesarek Kayak Merkezi: a few days ahead
- Ilıcalar: a few days ahead
- Sülbüs Dağı: a few days ahead
- Binkap Resort Otel: a few days ahead
- Grand Berti Hotel: a few days ahead
- Bingöl Üniversitesi Termal Kaplıca Tesisleri: a few days ahead
- Binkap Termal Hotel: a few days ahead
- Book the Hesarek slope hotel ahead for ski weekends and school holidays.
- Book Ilıcalar thermal hotels ahead for Eid holidays and summer weekends.
- Book thin BGG flights with the hotels, not after.
Is Bingöl safe?
- Expect ID checkpoints on intercity roads, carry your passport and never photograph military sites or personnel.
- Check your government's current advice in the week you travel; the position on Bingöl has changed before and can change again.
- Bingöl sits at a major fault junction, know your room exit as anywhere in Eastern Anatolia. Emergency number 112.
Bingöl travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Very cheap unlabelled Bingöl honey at highway stalls is the main trap, buy in centre shops and taste first.
- Buban is a small empty site, not Cappadocia, despite every listicle comparison.
- Kalkanlı, Kübik and Çiçektepe caves are inventory entries with no verified visitor access.
Getting around Bingöl: public transport and more
- You need a car or a hotel booked driver by the day, agreed in advance.
- Bingöl Airport BGG has thin domestic services, Elazığ is the workhorse hub at about 120 km.
- Village roads to Çır, Gerindal, Zağ and Vank are best in daylight with an offline map.
Who Bingöl suits
| Solo travellers | OK |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Good |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | Good |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Bingöl your trip
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