Türkiye’s Sümela Monastery hosts over 56K tourists in 5 months

ISTANBUL (AA): Sümela Monastery, one of Türkiye’s significant religious tourism routes, hosted 56,111 visitors in approximately five months.

The monastery was built by carving rocks at 300 meters (985 feet) in Karadağ’s Altındere Valley. The restoration and rock reinforcement works began approximately seven years ago and were completed in January.

Commonly known as the “Virgin Mary” among the locals, the monastery has received significant interest from domestic and foreign tourists since its reopening. In the past five months, a total of 56,111 people visited the monastery.

Halil Akyaz, who resides in Germany, stated that they embarked on a Black Sea tour with a group of 10 people, and their first destination was Sümela Monastery. Akyaz visited the monastery for the first time and said: “It’s pretty challenging to climb up, but it’s worth seeing. I recommend it to everyone. It’s beautiful with its waterfalls and forests. I advise those interested in history to come here and see this enthralling past.