Mugla

Mugla is a city in south-western Turkey. Mugla is the center of the District of Mentese and Mugla Province, which stretches along Turkey’s Aegean coast. Mugla’s center is situated inland at an altitude of 660 m and lies at a distance of about 30 km from the nearest seacoast in the Gulf of Gokova to its south-west.

A favourite residence of the emirs of the 14th-century Turkmen Mentese principality, it was annexed to the Ottoman Empire in 1425. It is a local market for the agricultural products of the region and is linked by road with Izmir and Denizli. The surrounding region borders on the Aegean and Mediterranean seas. The coast is extremely irregular, with deeply penetrating gulfs and bays backed by the mountains. Interspersed among the hills and mountains are heavily cultivated small, enclosed basins. The climate is Mediterranean, with heavy winter precipitation. Citrus fruits are grown on the coastal strip and cereals, cotton, and tobacco in the hinterland; vines are grown in the fertile basin below Mugla. Lying in the region of ancient Caria, the area is rich in historical sites. The associated harbour towns of Bodrum (ancient Halicarnassus), Marmaris, and Fethiye are the focus of a growing tourist trade.