Things to Do in Karatay: 5 Places to Visit

Places to Visit in Karatay

• 3 Historic
• 2 Museum

1 🖼️ Museum

Mevlâna Museum and Tomb

The museum and tomb in Karatay district draw large numbers of domestic and foreign tourists.

View on map

i Photo: HALUK COMERTEL (CC BY 3.0) · Source

2 🏛️ Historic

Karatay Madrasa (Museum of Tile Works)

Built in 1251 by the Seljuk vizier Celâleddin Karatay, the madrasa houses some of the finest examples of Seljuk tilework. Its dome is covered with star-shaped and geometric tiles.

View on map

i Photo: Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Source

3 🏛️ Historic

İnce Minareli Madrasa (Museum of Stone and Wood Works)

Built in 1264 by the Seljuk vizier Sahip Ata Fahreddin Ali, the madrasa is one of the masterpieces of Seljuk architecture, with rich stone decoration on its portal. Its slender minaret was shortened after being struck by lightning.

View on map

i Photo: Christian Mathis (CC BY-SA 3.0) · Source

4 🏛️ Historic

Alâeddin Hill and Mosque

The Alâeddin Mosque, on the mound at the centre of Konya, was completed in 1221 during the reign of the Seljuk Sultan Keykubad I. The tombs of Seljuk sultans are also located here.

View on map

5 🖼️ Museum

Mevlâna Museum

The museum, which operates within the Mevlâna Lodge (Dergâh), is located in the Karatay district of Konya.

View on map

While you are in Karatay, you can also see the highlights of Konya province. These places are in other districts.

• Mevlana Museum and Mausoleum — The mausoleum and dervish lodge of Mevlânâ Celâleddîn-i Rûmî, a museum since 1926. With the tomb known as the Green Dome, the semahane (whirling hall), the dervish cells and manuscripts of the Masnavi, it is one of the most visited museums in Türkiye.
• Çatalhöyük — A Neolithic city in Çumra, inhabited for about two thousand years from around 7400 BC. With its adjoining houses entered through the roof, its wall paintings and its figurines, it is one of the first urban settlements in human history.
• İnce Minareli Madrasa — A darülhadis (hadith school) built in 1264 by the vizier Sahip Ata, with Kölük bin Abdullah as its architect; it is famous for its richly carved portal.
• Alaeddin Hill and Mosque — On the hill in the city centre, the Alaeddin Mosque, which houses the tombs of the Seljuk sultans, and the remains of the Kılıçarslan II Pavilion; this is the oldest settled area of the city.
• Sille — A village 8 km north-west of the city where Greeks and Turks lived together for centuries; it is known for the Aya Eleni Church, which goes back to the 4th century, its rock-cut chapels and its stone houses.
• Eşrefoğlu Mosque (Beyşehir) — A mosque with 42 wooden columns in Beyşehir, built in 1296–1299 by Eşrefoğlu Süleyman Bey; it is the largest of Anatolia's wooden-columned mosques and was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2023 as part of the "Medieval Anatolian Wooden Hypostyle Mosques".

Practical Information for Visiting Karatay

Suggested time

2-3 days

Best time to visit

Spring and autumn (April-June, September-December)

Places to visit

5 places

• 🫓

  Etli Ekmek (meat flatbread)

  Konya's etli ekmek, a thin dough spread with a mixture of minced meat, onion and pepper and baked in a stone oven, is famous for its length of nearly one metre. It is a protected geographical indication of Konya.

• 🍖

  Fırın Kebabı (oven-baked lamb)

  Prepared by slow-cooking lamb in a clay oven, fırın kebabı is one of Konya's most famous dishes. The meat is cooked until it falls apart in the mouth.

• 🥣

  Bamya Çorbası (okra soup)

  A traditional soup made with dried okra and meat stock, bamya çorbası is an essential part of Konya's cuisine.

• 🍮

  Höşmerim (cheese and flour dessert)

  A traditional dessert made with cheese, flour and sugar, roasted in butter and served warm. It is one of Konya's best-known desserts.

Culture, Local Products and Economy of Karatay

• 🌀

  Mevlâna and the Mevlevi Order

  Karatay is where Mevlâna Celâleddin Rûmî lived and where the Mevlevi order was founded. Sema ceremonies and the Şeb-i Arus commemorations, held every December, keep the tradition alive.

• 🏛️

  Legacy of the Seljuk Capital

  Konya was the capital of the Anatolian Seljuk State and, in the 12th and 13th centuries, one of the most important cultural and scientific centres of the Islamic world. Karatay is the district where the architectural legacy of this period is most concentrated.

Local Products

• Konya Etli Ekmeği (meat flatbread) — Konya etli ekmeği, a protected geographical indication, is baked in traditional stone ovens and is known throughout Türkiye.
• Mevlâna Şekeri (Mevlâna sugar candy) — A traditional Konya confection, offered to visitors to the Mevlâna Museum as a symbolic treat.

Economy

Karatay is the historic central district of Konya. Trade, services and tourism are its main sources of income. The Mevlâna Museum attracts more than 3 million visitors a year. The Karatay Organised Industrial Zone is home to machinery, automotive parts and food industries.

How to Get to Karatay

Karatay is the central district of Konya. Konya Airport is 15 km away. Ankara can be reached in 1 hour 45 minutes by high-speed train (YHT). The intercity bus terminal is within the district boundaries.

Get directions on Google Maps Getting to Konya

Karatay: Frequently Asked Questions

Continue Your Trip

• 🍽️ What to Eat in Karatay Famous dishes and local products →
• 🗺️ Things to Do in Konya The province's 15 best places and all its districts →

Other Districts of Konya

• Ahırlı 3 places Ahırlı Plateau, Ahırlı Central Mosque and Çarşamba Stream
• Akören 6 places Akören Mound (Höyük), Dinorna and Gavurlar Hammam
• Akşehir 7 places Nasreddin Hoca Tomb and Museum, Akşehir Lake and Taş Medrese
• Altınekin 2 places Zıvarık Caravanserai and Altınekin steppe
• Beyşehir 7 places Beyşehir Lake, Eşrefoğlu Mosque and Kubadabad Palace Ruins
• Bozkır 10 places Zengibar Castle, Bozkır Dam and Bozkır Grand Mosque
• Cihanbeyli 5 places Tuz Gölü (Cihanbeyli Shore), Cihanbeyli Höyükleri (Mounds) and Cihanbeyli Grand Mosque (Ulu Camii)
• Çeltik 4 places Honamlı Yörük Settlement, Gökpınar Picnic Area and Çeltik Grand Mosque
• Çumra 5 places Çatalhöyük, Çumra Plain and Çumra Grand Mosque
• Derbent 2 places Derbent Boğazı (Derbent Pass) and Derbent Dam
• Derebucak 3 places Derebucak Plateau, Derebucak Canyon and Derebucak Çamlık Caves National Park
• Doğanhisar 7 places Doğanhisar Castle, Doğanhisar Grand Mosque and Grand Mosque
• Emirgazi 5 places Kötü Dağ, Eski Kışla and Emrullah Gazi Tomb
• Ereğli 5 places İvriz Dam, İvriz Rock Relief and Ereğli Museum
• Güneysınır 4 places Güneysınır Grand Mosque, Karagüney Plateau and Bardas Village Historic Buildings
• Hadim 8 places Hadim Castle, Göksu Valley and Hadim Grand Mosque (Ulu Camii)
• Halkapınar 5 places İvriz Rock Relief, İvriz Waterfall and Eskihisar Mound
• Hüyük 5 places Shores of Lake Beyşehir, Acem Nasuh Mosque and Hüyük Mound
• Ilgın 6 places Yalburt, Lageina and Ilgın Thermal Springs (Ilgın Kaplıcaları)
• Kadınhanı 5 places Kadın Hanı Caravanserai, Kadınhanı Grand Mosque and Kadınhanı Mounds
• Karapınar 7 places Meke Lake, Acı Lake and Meke Lake (Meke Salt Flat)
• Kulu 6 places Düden Lake, Gökgöl Lake and Samsam Lake
• Meram 7 places Meram Vineyards, Sille Village and Aya Eleni Church
• Sarayönü 4 places Sarayönü Seljuk Palace Ruins, Sarayönü Grand Mosque and Sarayini Underground City
• Selçuklu 10 places Time Museum, Konya Tropical Butterfly Garden and Konya Science Centre
• Seydişehir 4 places Tınaztepe Cave, Suğla Lake and Vasada Ancient City
• Taşkent 3 places Taşkent Cave (İnönü Cave), Balcılar Canyon and Taşkent Grand Mosque
• Tuzlukçu 3 places Subatan Lake, Tuzlukçu Grand Mosque and Lake Tuz Views
• Yalıhüyük 4 places Gölcük Plateau, Historic Structures of Sarayköy and Yalıhüyük Mosque
• Yunak 8 places Yunak Castle Ruins, Yunak Grand Mosque and Yunak Mounds