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Sirince Village, Ephesus

Home → Ephesus → Sirince Village, Ephesus

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Rating: 5.0/5 (8128 votes cast)

Secreted high in the inland hills among wild orchards and rolling groves, Sirince Village is a scenic little village dotted with a dollhouse collection of stone and stucco houses. The area was probably settled when Ephesus was abandoned, but what you see today mostly dates from the 19th century. The story goes that a group of freed Greek slaves moved here in the 15th century and called the village Çirkince (Ugliness) to deter others from following. The name was changed to the more honest Sirince (Pleasantness) in the 1920s during the founding of the new republic.

Before Atatürk’s republic, Sirince was a larger town inhabited by Ottoman Greeks. The current villagers, who moved here from Salonica during an exchange of populations in 1924, are ardent fruit farmers who also make and sell an interesting assortment of wines. Flavours range from raspberry and peach to the trendier black mulberry and pomegranate.

Sirince Village is by no means the ‘undiscovered gem’ as usually marketed in other guidebooks. In fact, it’s the village’s widely known reputation for authenticity that has marked the start of its demise. During the day, souvenir shops run the entire length of the main street as vendors try to lure you in using a smattering of catcalls in different languages. Visitors who ignore this and stay the night (at a stiff premium, of course) will be well rewarded with the chance to see the real village after the tour buses have gone.

Sights & Activities

If you’re trying to avoid the crowds then it’s best to visit in the evening when the droves of daytrippers have long retreated from the mountains 3pm is about the busiest time of day. Şirince’s charm lies in its subtleties, so your time is best spent simply ambling around the crooked cobbled lanes and admiring the adorable architecture.

The ruined Church of St John the Baptist ( 8am-8pm summer, 8.30am-6.30pm winter) is of limited interest. Faded frescoes adorn the walls, which date back to Byzantine times. Funds are scarce, so restorations have yet to turn the space into more than a sanctuary for cawing birds.

Sleeping

Sirince is a captive market, and room rates can be ludicrously inflated for what you get.

Shopping

These days almost every house on the village’s main street has been transformed into a storefront selling a variety of local wares, namely fruit wine. Ask to sample your wine of choice before making the purchase it’s not everyone’s cup of tea some of the flavours taste a bit too much like cough syrup. Other shops sell olive oil, soaps and leather goods, usually crafted locally (it’s best to ask). It’s worth stopping by Demetrius of Ephesus (Sirince Köyü 26) , a local artisan who crafted most of the jewellery and trinkets for the movie Troy you’ll know you’re in the right place when you see the photo of Brad Pitt hanging above the cash register.

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Rating: +11978 (from 11978 votes)
Sirince Village, Ephesus , 100% based on 11978 ratings
127 Reviews
  1. Susie.Knoxville
    8:57 am on July 20, 2010

    After our private tour of Ephesus, we asked our guide to take us to Sirince. After a long drive up a mountain with beautiful views, we arrived in Sirince Village. Our guide first took us to a little place for apple tea and then walked us through the oldest part of the village.

    Reply
  2. Aege
    8:14 pm on November 4, 2010

    A great place to for shopping, dining and wine tasting..

    Reply
  3. Jan W
    3:20 pm on December 10, 2010

    go and enjoy lovely…

    Reply
  4. Eugene.girls
    9:35 am on March 17, 2011

    This village( by law) is unchanged. Old wood and stucco houses , cobble stone streets, old Mosques. Plenty of tourist shopping, worth a trip to see..

    Reply
  5. JackieTse
    7:28 pm on April 9, 2011

    It took about 30 min easy drive from port of Kusadasi to Sirince, a peaceful village with friendly people and authentic small restaurants.

    Reply
  6. silverman
    11:47 pm on April 21, 2011

    We have read some very poor reviews of this excellent tourist site. It is a charming hillside village about 20 minutes from Selcuk and Ephesus – OK, it can get a bit busy when the tour buses arrived off the cruise ships from Kusadasi but just settle into one of the small cafes with a tea or coffee.

    Reply
  7. Stephen L
    7:22 am on May 16, 2011

    We were taken here by our tour guide during our day-long tour of Ephesus /Kusadasi. Without the tour arrangement, it would have been difficult to visit this place along with other more popular sights in Ephesus. Apart from the market and the shops, which are interesting by themselves, it was good to explore the streets up the hill and look…

    Reply
  8. Gordon R
    8:43 am on July 20, 2011

    Lovely little village with fabulous views. Bit crowded during the day, but very (too?) peaceful at night

    Reply
  9. Brian D
    12:12 pm on October 16, 2011

    I visited this lovely village when i 've been in Selcuk/Izmir . There is a big wine company, so you can see many winehouse around the village. They make fruit wines there. Friendly people, lovely atmosphere. Nice place to visit. But dangerous road between Selcuk and Sirince. Be careful if u drive.

    Reply
  10. Godguy
    3:35 pm on October 21, 2011

    They have good fruit wines.

    Reply
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ephesus tours

The big tip is to try and go completely private. Many of the large tour companies offer private tour and they are going to charge a significant amount of money for the tour guide. However, many locations offer self-guided tours and therefore you have the ability to supply your own tour guide. Easily Book your guided private Ephesus tours, to see all the treasures of Ephesus Turkey. It's often said that Turkey has more ancient cities and classical ruins than does Greece. Well, it's true, and the Aegean coast holds a great number of sites, including Ephesus, the grandest and best-preserved of them all.

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