Many tourists arriving in Izmir miss the delights of the city itself as they head to the traditional resorts. Generally considered as an industrial city, Izmir has a history stretching back over 3,000 years as the city of Smyrna.
If you’ve hired a car from the airport, visit the picturesque old quarter of Basmane with its colourful buildings and Ottoman architecture. Izmir also has a good beach of its own – unusual for a city, and the facilities there are good. In the evenings you’ll find plenty of good restaurants in the city.
Izmir Mini Guide
Izmir is the third biggest city in Turkey and is a great place to go exploring in your hire car.
Surrounded by the Gulf of Izmir this is a rapidly growing urban area so we make sure we have a well stocked fleet of cars available.
Izmir is a city of contrasts and you can see beautiful old Turkish architecture side by side with dazzling new modern buildings. The city has a fascinating history stretching all the way back to the year three thousand BC when the Trojans first founded it. Alexander the Great arrived in Izmir in 334 BC.
Remains of the Roman civilisation can be seen at Agora. The city is well connected by public transport including train and boat but both these modes of transport are rather slower than having a car.
These can be collected from nearby Adnan Menderes Airport which deals with lots of European flights including local airline Iz Air. Once you get into the city it is a good idea to park and walk as there is quite a lot to see.
That will allow you to see the sights of Izmir including the clock tower at Konak Square. There is also a very cool old elevator which was built by a Jewish business man many years ago to allow the residents of Izmir to get to the top of a hill.
But the main draw in this part of the world are the beaches and there are plenty of them. Try the Konak Pier for good views. As the third largest city in Turkey,
car hire Izmir Airport is very popular and provides an alternative to renting from one of our downtown locations. You are advised to book ahead as prices increase and availability can get stretched the nearer to time of pick up you book.
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