Rize is the heartland of Turkish tea, its steep coastal hills carpeted in the emerald-green terraces that supply almost all of the country's çay. Behind the misty shore rise some of Anatolia's most dramatic mountains, threaded with rushing rivers and dotted with timber highland villages.
This is highland (yayla) country: in summer, families move up to cool plateaus like Ayder and Pokut, and walkers head into the Fırtına Valley and the glaciated peaks of the Kaçkar range — the highest on the Black Sea coast.
Known for: Tea gardens · Ayder plateau · Kaçkar Mountains · Fırtına Valley · Highland (yayla) culture
- Region
- Black Sea
- Famous for
- Turkish tea (çay)
- Best seasons
- Jun–Sep
- Range
- Kaçkar Mountains
Rize on the live map
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What Rize is known for
Rize's identity is tea — visit a hillside plantation, ride the cable car above the city to a tea garden with sea views, and learn how the leaf is grown and brewed. Inland, the Ayder plateau is the region's most popular highland resort, famous for its hot springs and green meadows, while the Fırtına Valley's stone humpback bridges and the cliff-top Zilkale fortress are unforgettable.
- Tea plantations and hillside tea gardens.
- Ayder plateau — meadows, waterfalls and thermal springs.
- Fırtına Valley, its Ottoman bridges and Zilkale castle.
- Trekking in the Kaçkar Mountains and highland yaylas.
Highlands, mist and the Kaçkars
The Kaçkar Mountains rising behind Rize offer some of Turkey's best mountain trekking, with glacial lakes, alpine pastures and a string of yaylas (summer highland settlements) connected by old herders' paths. Plateaus such as Pokut, Sal and Gito are reached by winding roads and reward visitors with sweeping views above the clouds.
The climate is famously wet and green — the mist that gives the Black Sea its character can roll in at any time, so flexible plans and a light raincoat are part of the experience.
Getting around
The nearest airport is in Trabzon, about an hour west along the coast; Rize is also served by frequent buses. The mountain destinations — Ayder, the Fırtına Valley and the high yaylas — are best reached by car or organised tour, as roads are winding and public transport into the highlands is limited.
On the platform
Rize is joining Istanbul Hub as we expand into a Turkey-wide city intelligence platform. This guide is the launch foundation — live transport data, an interactive map and deeper neighborhood content roll out city by city, on the same architecture that powers Istanbul today.