Butler Istanbul offers you to explore Gölyazı Peninsula and Ulubat Lake
Gölyazı, which ranks tenth among the 30 most beautiful towns in Europe, is only 2 hours and 25 minutes away from Istanbul, 25 minutes away from Bursa.
According to historical information, the settlement in Gölyazı dates back to ancient times. As the source of its name, it is thought that the King of Pergamon Attalos II gave it this name in honor of Queen Apollonis. Located on the shores of the Apollont lake, Apolyont, that is Gölyazı, was the capital of the Apollonian Kingdom during the Roman period. Afterwards, it became a quiet Greek fishing village during the Byzantine and Ottoman periods, and after the population exchange, the Turks settled in the place of the Greeks.
Gölyazı is a town famous for its legends. According to the legend, the Kingdom of Apollonia where Uluabat Lake is today; There was also the Kingdom of Melde where the Odryes Stream is located in the south of the Marmara Sea.
The King of Melde wanted the daughter of the King of Apollonia for his son, but the King of Apollonia, who learned that his daughter did not want this marriage, built a palace on the hill to protect him and hid her here. The King of Melde saw this act as an insult and, in anger at his son’s embarrassment, swore vengeance. He changed the location of the Odryses Stream, allowing it to flow into the territory of the city of Apollonia. His entire city was submerged under water, but the area around the palace where the princess was hiding remained an island surrounded by water. This island is today’s Gölyazı.
Gölyazı is a peninsula connected to Lake Ulubat with its legends told about it, 200-year-old Greek houses, bird species that are valuable enough to be protected, the most romantic “Crying Plane Tree”, many more mysteries and beauties waiting to be discovered.
Uluabat Lake, located 20 kilometers south of the Sea of Marmara and 35 kilometers east of Manyas Bird Sanctuary, is another important bird paradise and Ramsar site in Turkey due to its abundance of fish.
Located on the bird migration route entering Anatolia from the northwest, the lake is a breeding ground and home to bird species such as small cormorant, crested pelican, moustached tern, rustbass, apple-bass, crested macaw, grouse, peregrine heron, and spoonbill. It is one of the most important wetlands of Europe and the Middle East with its bird richness.
Known as the lake with the largest lotus beds in Turkey, Uluabat has white water lilies, foxtail and water hyacinths, wide reeds, reeds, willows and freshwater marshes on its shores.
If you want to see this mysterious town, which has been declared a first degree protected area and became a member of the historical cities union in 2006, we recommend you to add Gölyazı and Ulubat Lake to your program by joining the Green Bursa Premium tour, which Butler Istanbul will specially prepare for you.