Ä°zmir (information about Ä°zmir)
A total of 1 million 36 thousand tourists came to İzmir in 2021.[77] There are tour operators, hotels and car rental companies concentrated especially in Alsancak and Çeşme districts. Çeşme is one of the few centers of the country in terms of domestic and foreign tourism. Ildırı (Erythrai), the first ancient settlement of the peninsula, is located in Çeşme. Cesme's most visited historical monument II. The castle built by Bayezid is used as a museum today. The two-storey caravanserai, built by Suleiman the Magnificent in 1529, is one of the typical Ottoman period caravanserais. Alaçatı, which is a neighborhood of Çeşme and famous for its historical stone houses and beaches suitable for windsurfing due to the fact that it gets wind 360 days a year, is also one of the important holiday resorts of İzmir with its 704 square kilometers of entertainment venues and hotels. İzmir Ephesus Ancient City, which is located three kilometers southwest of Selçuk district of İzmir and is on the UNESCO World Heritage List, is within the borders of Selçuk district. The Ancient City of Ephesus is visited by an average of 1.5 million tourists annually. Foça is one of the habitats of the Mediterranean monk seal, whose numbers are gradually decreasing. In addition, Mediterranean seals have become an important symbol of the festivals held in the city every year in summer. Since 2015, the Artichoke Festival, in which Urla cuisine is promoted, has been held in Urla every year in spring.[78]
