Bursa is located at the northwest of Turkey, and it comes at the fourth stage in terms of population in Turkey. According to the statistics of 2015, Bursa is the most preferred city to live in in Turkey, and Bursa was ranked 48th in the world for the best cities suitable for living in terms of cheap living expenses, abundance of entertainment and beautiful places, and abundance of work opportunities. The population of it, according to 2017 statistics, is 2,900,000. The city of Bursa attracts huge numbers of tourists annually, and it is 90 minutes away from Istanbul by ship. However, in this article, we will explain the most important advantages of Bursa in terms of religion, economy and aesthetic point of view.
Many civilizations passed through Bursa, such as the Ottoman, Roman, Seljuk, and Byzantine civilizations. The nucleus of the city of Bursa was built on the banks of the River Gelombos, at a site believed to date back to the sixth century BC. It is also believed that it was attributed to a Bethian king named Prusa (Prussias) in the second century BC. Then Bursa became under the Roman rule and its region was called "Roman province" named after Bithynia and its capital was Nicomedia (Izmit). Then it was occupied by the Byzantines, and Bursa flourished during their reign, where its mineral baths and palace gained a wide fame. At the end of the eleventh century, Bursa was occupied by the Seljuks, and then by the Byzantine and Crusader invasions until it was conquered by Sultan Uran Ghazi in the year 1326 AD, and it became the first capital of the Ottoman Empire containing many important historical monuments and attractions, like the Great Mosque, the Green Mosque, the Green Mausoleum, and many other Islamic landmarks. As for Christian monuments, Bursa is famous for the "Aznabq" region, which is the most important of the eight Christian pilgrimage sites in all of Turkey.
Bursa has been known since the ancient times as an important commercial city as it is located on the passage of the ancient Silk Road, where it was famous for raising silkworms and was distinguished, during the period of Ottoman reign, by producing royal silk. Since then, Bursa has acquired local and international fame for production of silk. However, at the present time Bursa still ranks first among the Turkish cities for silk production. Since the establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923, Bursa became one of the most important industrial centers in Turkey, as it contributed to the Turkish economy and supported it to a large extent, in addition to the contribution in foreign currency inflows as a result of exports. There are 13 industrial zones in Bursa offering many leading sectors such as: cars, silk, dairy, food preservation, and agriculture. Among the most famous factories, for example in the field of cars we have: Fiat, Renault, and Carson, as well as auto compounding factories such as Bosch, Maco, Valio, Johnson Controls, Delphi, Zorlu Electrical, and Porosan Industrial Parts. In the food industries we have: Coca-Cola and Pepsi factories, in addition to many local and international brands that Bursa hosts.
In Turkey, Bursa is famous for the name of “the green city,” as it is bordered on the north by the Marmara Sea and contains many natural waterfalls and picturesque natural areas, where tourists from all over the world come to visit annually, and that is reasonably due to the beauty of nature and the history fragrant in it. In Bursa, there are green mountain, which rises 2500 meters above sea level, and the famous cable car in addition to the mountains covered with snow all over the year including the summer. Tourists come to Bursa to ski, as Uludag Mountain is one of the most famous mountains in Turkey to enjoy skiing. However, Bursa is also famous for its cafes and centers in the natural areas that provide free barbecue service amidst the picturesque nature through providing all barbecue tools for visitors. Bursa is also famous for waterfalls and natural springs such as Oylat springs, which are located in the middle of the Oylat forest, and contain therapeutic water. The fame of these springs dates back to a historical story, where a princess in the Byzantine era was suffering from severe illness, until they brought her to Oylat springs, and she was fully recovered. However, since that time, the springs became popular and tourists flock to visit every year.
Here, we recommend some areas in Bursa that you should visit.
When skiing is mentioned, Bursa Mountain comes the first to remember in Turkey, as it is considered the largest mountain in the Marmara Sea region. Trips are always organized from different cities to practice skiing and enjoy the wonderful view of the area.
Bursa cable car "Teleferik”:
The Bursa cable car is the largest cable car in the world, and visitors consider it as a unique experience. The cable car journey starts from the city and continues up to the hill of Uludag Mountain.
Where the water flows from the Uludag Mountain, and it complete a view of the utmost beauty and creativity, where there are many trees and natural beauty to stroll by. Furthermore, this area is famous for grill trout cooked in butter and wood fire in many restaurants around the area. On both sides of the waterfall there are rural restaurants surrounded by trees, where the visitor can enjoy the nature and the sound of the waterfalls while having a cup of tea, as calm and relaxation surround the entire area.
The famous Ottoman explorer "Evliya Çelebi" considered this mosque as the Ayasofya of Bursa. Building it was ordered by the Ottoman Sultan Yıldırım Bayazid, and its construction was completed in 1398 AD, as the size of the mosque is 2,215 square meters. The mosque also features 20 domes arranged in four rows, in each row there are five domes supported by 12 columns. Some of the mosque’s walls are more than two meters thick with five-story stone blocks.
Building it was ordered by the son of Sultan Yildirim Bayezid, Sultan Mehmed in 1421, and it is adjacent to the famous historical Green Mosque in Bursa, where the aim was to prove to the enemies that the Ottoman Empire is still strong and can make civilizations.
It is one of the most famous areas in Bursa, where the tramway passes through. It is located in the most central areas of the city close to the historical areas such as Ulucamii, Kapalıçarşı, Altıparmak. This street is also famous for restaurants that offer the most famous meals in Bursa, which are the Alexander meat meal and the Bayda with kofta meal.
It is one of the most famous places in Bursa to gather, and it is a commercial mall under the ground topped by the famous pyramid triangle.
This 600-year-old pine tree is the oldest tree in Turkey, where it lived during the period of Ottoman reign and still living until now. The length of the tree is 35 meters and the thickness of the tree branches is 3-4 meters, where the size of each branch is the size of an ordinary tree.
