The Western Black Sea Region is a rising value in tourism with its unique nature, historical and cultural values. The region stands out especially in domestic tourism, as it can offer different types of tourism together and is close to metropolises such as Istanbul and Ankara and densely populated settlements. The 139 km long Black Sea coast, stretching from Zonguldak to Bartın, has a significant tourism potential with its natural texture, 64 percent of which consists of forests and shrubs, its history dating back 6,500 years, historical and cultural treasures from various civilizations, natural beauties and climatic characteristics. It is possible to find many themes of tourism in the region defined by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism within the Western Black Sea Coastal Corridor.
Zonguldak
Zonguldak is home to natural sites such as the "Natural Old Yew Stand", which contains the world's oldest known yew tree, which is estimated to be 4,119 years old, Gümeli Forests and plateau, untouched bays and blue flag beaches along the 80 km coastline parallel to the Black Sea, Harmankaya Waterfalls Nature Park consisting of hiking trails in nature, Kayalıdere Waterfalls and Süzek Adventure Trail for adventure enthusiasts. Zonguldak has important tourism values with its areas.
In addition to these values, caving activities in Zonguldak, which is also very rich in caves, were first started in 1988 by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and seven caves were registered as cultural assets. In 1994, with the initiatives of the Provincial Directorate of Tourism, geological surveys of a total of nineteen caves were carried out, and among these, Gökgöl Cave was opened to visitors for tourism purposes and is highly appreciated with its award-winning visitor center. Çayır Cave, which is the water source of the ancient city of Tios and the beginning of the historical Roman waterway, is one of the important caves in the province with its bat ecosystem. Sofular Cave, with its formations containing 700 thousand years of climate records, serves as a source for researchers working on climate change.
Karabük
The province with the most forest area in Turkey relative to its surface area is Karabük, with 74 percent. 87 percent of Karabük's Yenice district is covered with forest and has the largest block forest in Turkey. The facilities located in the areas called Şeker Kanyon and Ihlamur Teras include daily and accommodation units in the forest, an adventure track, a museum and a restaurant. Tracks suitable for sports such as trekking and cycling have been created in Yenice, and national and international cycling events are organized.
In 2019, Keltepe Ski Center was built between Yenice and Karabük Center and opened to winter tourism. The ski center has an 870 m long chair lift with 64 chairs, a 670 m long teleski and a 100 m long baby lift station. The facility has five different tracks and a training track.
The plateaus and ponds located within the borders of Yenice, Eflani and Ovacık offer important opportunities in terms of nature and sports tourism. The ponds and ecotourism opportunities in Eflani and the rock tombs in Ovacık are among the important tourism riches of the province. It is envisaged to offer different opportunities to nature lovers with the daily and accommodation facilities planned to be built in Baklabostan Nature Park in Karabük Center.
bartin
Bartın, which has a deep-rooted history, touristic values, forests, natural beauties, archaeological, ethnographic and folkloric values, has a history and cultural heritage of 5,000 years. It offers the opportunity to experience nature and sports tourism with its waterfalls, endless forests, centuries-old plane trees, caves, geological formations and plateaus.
Küre Mountains National Park, one of the most important natural areas of the Western Black Sea Region and located within the provincial borders of Bartın and Kastamonu, is very valuable in terms of nature tourism. The district centers administratively surrounding the park are Ulus, Kurucaşile and Amasra, which belong to Bartın, and Azdavay, Pınarbaşı and Cide, which belong to Kastamonu. KDMP, which received "National Park" status in 2000 due to its values, has also brought to the fore the concept of "buffer zone", which is used to secure the biological diversity intended to be protected. In addition, KDMP is the first area in Turkey accepted by PAN Parks, which takes its name from the abbreviation of Protected Area Network, which is a network based on mutual balance and harmony between extraordinary natural beauties and tourism. Work continues to include Küre Mountains National Park in the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Program.
It stands out in tourism with its 59 km coastline, dozens of bays where blue and green coexist, blue flag and fine sand beaches, unique geographical and historical structure and handicrafts. Amasra, with its fresh fish and famous salad, and Bartın, with its delicious dishes, are also very rich in terms of gastronomy.
