# Diyarbakır City Walls Diyarbakır's ancient basalt walls form one of the world's longest intact fortification circuits, enclosing a historic city at the edge of the Mesopotamian plain. The city walls of Diyarbakır are among the most remarkable surviving examples of ancient fortification in the Middle East. Built from the dark basalt that dominates the landscape around the city, the walls stretch roughly five to six kilometres in a circuit around the old city, enclosing a historic urban fabric that has been continuously inhabited for millennia. The stone gives the walls — and much of the city itself — a distinctive dark character that has earned Diyarbakır the local name *Kara Şehir*, the Black City. ## Roman Origins and Later Additions The core of the current walls dates to the late Roman period, when Emperor Constantius II undertook major reconstruction in the fourth century AD. The layout, with its towers and gates, reflects Roman military engineering principles adapted to the local terrain. Over the following centuries, Byzantine, Artuqid, and Ottoman builders added towers, modified gates, and reinforced sections in response to sieges and changing military needs. The result is a layered structure in which Roman foundations carry the marks of many subsequent interventions. ## Towers and Gates More than eighty towers rise from the walls at irregular intervals, varying in shape — some square, some round, some with multiple faces. The gates cut through the walls at key points, their names reflecting the roads they once controlled: the road toward Şanlıurfa, the road toward Mardin, and others that connected the city to the wider region's trading and pilgrimage routes. Several towers stand notably tall, giving the walls a dramatic profile against the flat ground of the upper Mesopotamian plain that stretches away to the south. ## Walking the Walls Today A walk along the top of the walls — possible in certain restored sections — offers broad views over the old city within, with its mosque domes, minarets, and the quieter rhythms of neighbourhoods that predate the modern city's expansion. To the south, the Tigris River marks a green line through the surrounding steppe. The walls function as a boundary between this historic core and the larger city that has grown up beyond them, making them a daily presence for Diyarbakır's residents rather than merely a monument. Also part of: UNESCO World Heritage in Türkiye ## Tours that visit Diyarbakır City Walls - Eastern Anatolia & Ancient Kingdoms — https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/eastern-anatolia-ancient-kingdoms/index.md (page: https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/eastern-anatolia-ancient-kingdoms/) - From Mesopotamia to the Caucasus — https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/from-mesopotamia-to-the-caucasus/index.md (page: https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/from-mesopotamia-to-the-caucasus/) - Mesopotamia & Southeastern Turkey — https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/mesopotamia-southeastern-turkey/index.md (page: https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/mesopotamia-southeastern-turkey/) - The Ultimate Eastern Turkey Expedition — https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/ultimate-eastern-turkey-expedition/index.md (page: https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/ultimate-eastern-turkey-expedition/) - The Ultimate Journey Across Turkey — https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/ultimate-journey-across-turkey/index.md (page: https://www.smallvoyage.com/tours/ultimate-journey-across-turkey/95/2026-10-30/) ## Before you book you should know ### Is this trip right for you? Our groups are capped at eight travellers, which is about a third of what the industry calls a small group. Eight people share one vehicle, one table at dinner and one guide's attention, and the day can change on the road without anybody being left behind. If you are looking for a coach, a fixed script and a microphone, this is not that. Most days involve real walking, often on ground that was laid two thousand years before walking shoes: marble worn smooth, cobbles, uneven steps and long site paths with little shade. Bring shoes you can spend a morning in. Some days move between regions and are largely a drive, with stops along the way. Summers are hot — well over 35°C inland — and winters are colder than most people expect, so layers, a hat and sunscreen earn their place in the bag whatever the month. How demanding a particular trip is, is written on the trip itself: the physical rating in the header, and the day-by-day itinerary above. ### Rooms, and travelling on your own Trip prices are per person, sharing a twin room. Each traveller picks their own room while booking, so a party can mix the three: - **Twin share** — two single beds, shared with someone you are travelling with or with a traveller of the same gender. - **Travelling as a couple** — one double room. - **Individual room** — a room of your own, for a single supplement on top of the trip price. Availability is limited, and the supplement for a given date is shown next to the option when you book. Solo travellers are welcome on every departure, and most of our groups have one or two aboard. ### Accommodation The hotels named in an itinerary are a guideline rather than a guarantee. Where one is full, or has dropped below the standard we booked it for, we substitute a property of a similar standard in the same area — we would rather change the hotel than the trip. Check-in is usually mid-afternoon. If you arrive early we will ask for the room, but no hotel can promise one before its own check-in time; luggage can normally be left at reception in the meantime. If you want the room from the night before, ask us and we will add the extra night to your booking. ### Passports, visas and insurance Entry requirements depend on your nationality and change without much notice, so the only reliable source is the official one: the government of the country you are travelling to, and your own foreign ministry's travel advice. Check both before you book a flight. Many countries ask for a passport valid for at least six months beyond your travel dates, and for blank pages. It is worth looking at yours now rather than at the airport. We ask every traveller to carry travel insurance covering medical treatment and repatriation, and we would strongly encourage cover for cancellation and for your luggage as well. ### Your departure is guaranteed — the day can change Once a departure is on the calendar it runs. We do not cancel a trip for want of a minimum number of bookings, so a booked date is one you can plan flights and leave around. What can move is the shape of a day. Museums and archaeological sites change their hours, roads close, weather turns, a local holiday lands in the middle of the week. Where that happens your guide reorders the day, or swaps a stop for one of the same weight, and tells you why. Changes to a booked itinerary are covered by our Booking Terms & Conditions. --- Full page: https://www.smallvoyage.com/destination/diyarbakir-city-walls/