Göynük

Göynük is built on a slope, and that is what makes it worth the detour: several hundred Ottoman houses stacked in tiers up the hillside, whitewashed with dark timber framing and red tiled roofs, so that from the opposite ridge the whole town reads as one composition. Many have been restored under a heritage programme and a number take guests. The Zafer Kulesi, a stone clock tower, stands on the high ground above with the best view over the roofs. In the town are the Akşemseddin tomb - the fifteenth-century scholar is buried here and the site draws steady visitors - a fifteenth-century mosque and hamam, and a museum house furnished as a period home. Göynük's other product is its bread and its handloom weaving. It is quiet on weekdays and modestly busy at weekends, and it pairs naturally with Mudurnu and Taraklı as a circuit of Ottoman towns in the same range of hills.

What you actually see

• The tiered houses - whitewashed Ottoman homes up the slope.
• The clock tower - the stone tower on the ridge above.
• The Akşemseddin tomb - the fifteenth-century scholar's türbe.
• The museum house - a period interior in the town.

When to go

April to June and September to November. Weekdays for quiet; the view from the opposite ridge is best in late afternoon light.

Honest expectations

The streets are steep and cobbled throughout. Restoration is partial - handsome facades sit beside neglected ones. Facilities are limited to a few guesthouses and cafés.

Nearby

Mudurnu is a short drive east; Taraklı is west in Sakarya province.