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Kars

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In 1579, Sultan Murad III's regional governor (Lala Mustafa Paşa) built an imposing palace on the southern foreslopes of Kars Castle crag. The structure was ravaged in the 1828 conflict with Russia and left in ruins, which remained little noticed until 2017. Since then, partial reconstruction of the central palace building has been proceeding (very slowly), with possible plans to one day make it a boutique hotel.

The site is to the right of the main access path to Kars Castle, where that route bends.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Ani

    Ani

    26.22 MILES

    The ruins of Ani, 45km east of Kars, are an absolute must-see. Visitors enter through gigantic fortress walls that look like they fell off a crusader…

  • Tigran Honents Church

    Tigran Honents Church

    26.65 MILES

    Appealingly sited overlooking a stretch of river gorge, this 13th-century church appears relatively intact, though the current main door is within what…

  • Kars Castle

    Kars Castle

    0.14 MILES

    Dating from at least 1153, Kars Castle' s hefty, dark-stone walls crown the craggy ridge that dominates the city-centre's northern edge, fronted by a…

  • Ani Cathedral

    Ani Cathedral

    26.36 MILES

    Completed in 1010, the grassy-roofed cathedral is the largest building among the Ani ruins. The building's elegantly finished stone walls are relatively…

  • Manuçehr Camii

    Manuçehr Camii

    26.23 MILES

    Ani's 1072 Manuçehr Camii was built by the Seljuk Turks, using Armenian architects and artisans, creating a stylistic blend in what is considered to have…

  • 'Underground City'

    'Underground City'

    25.82 MILES

    The cliffs and valleys all around the Ani plateau are riddled with hundreds of caves that guides have collectively dubbed Ani's 'Underground City'. Mostly…

  • Kafkaz Cephesi Harp Tarihi Müzesi

    Kafkaz Cephesi Harp Tarihi Müzesi

    1.49 MILES

    This new museum specialising in early 20th-century history is hosted in the heavy arches of an 1803 bastion, a surviving fragment of vast ramparts that…

  • İç Kale

    İç Kale

    26.14 MILES

    Covering the large rocky eminence at the southern point of the Ani plateau, İç Kale is a jumble of tumbled stone, with faint vestiges of ancient palaces…

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Nearby Kars attractions

1. Ulu Camii

0.06 MILES

For a great vantage point to soak up the main sights of historic Kars in a single visual sweep, it's hard to beat the forecourt of this 17th-century…

2. Kümbet Camii

0.12 MILES

Below Kars Castle, the imposing, basalt Kümbet Camii was built as a church between 932 and 937 when Kars was (briefly) capital of the Bagratuni kingdom of…

3. Kars Castle

0.14 MILES

Dating from at least 1153, Kars Castle' s hefty, dark-stone walls crown the craggy ridge that dominates the city-centre's northern edge, fronted by a…

4. Evliya Camii

0.16 MILES

With an especially attractive north facade, the 16th-century 'Mosque of Saints' was built to commemmorate the 11th-century saint Hasan-i Harakani who…

5. Taş Köprü

0.19 MILES

This attractive basalt bridge that spans the Kars River, below the castle, was built in 1719 replacing a 16th-century original that had been destroyed by…

6. Mazlum Ağa Hamam

0.2 MILES

Pushkin is known to have bathed at this rectangular 18th-century basalt hamam in 1829, which stands near the river below Kars Castle. These days you'll…

7. Kars Culture & Art Association

0.36 MILES

The address is an unpromising paint shop ('Yeni Akçay Kol. Şir.'). However, if you can find him in, the shop's owner is local historian Vedat Akçayöz who…

8. Health Directorate Building

0.43 MILES

On this 1907 building, thick paint somewhat mars the facade of floral motifs and mock columns built in typical Kars' Baltic (ie northern Russian) style.