7 Cittaslow Members in Türkiye You'll Love Visiting

Cittaslow ('slow city') is an international movement, born in Italy in 1999, that certifies smaller towns committed to preserving local character, food traditions, and quality of life against the pressures of rapid urbanization. Türkiye has one of the largest numbers of Cittaslow-certified towns of any country.

Towns that have earned the designation include Seferihisar, the movement's first Turkish member and an olive-growing town on the Aegean coast; Halfeti, partly submerged by a dam and known for its "sunken" minaret rising from the water; Şirince, a hillside village near Ephesus known for its Greek-era stone houses and fruit wines; and Taraklı, an Ottoman-era town of preserved wooden houses near Istanbul.

What unites these towns is a deliberate rejection of fast-paced development: limits on chain businesses, an emphasis on local produce and artisans, and a focus on walkable, human-scale town centers. They offer a very different picture of Türkiye than its major cities — quieter, slower, and often centered on a single local specialty, from olive oil to wine to traditional crafts.

For students who've settled into the pace of a big university city, a weekend in a Cittaslow town is a good way to see another side of the country: small-town Türkiye, still very much alive.