Bursa - Uludağ

Uludag, 36km south of Bursa, is one of the country’s favourite winter sports centres and as well as skiing, its richness of flora and fauna has made it into a National Park and summer activities like trekking and camping are also popular. Uludag was previously known as Olympos Misios in ancient times, and is known in mythology as the place where the gods watched the Trojan war. Plans have been confirmed for a development project, which will offer a huge increase in accommodation and skiing facilities. Its geographical conditions mean that Uludag Ski Resort can also offer heli-skiing, snow boarding, ice-skating and snow biking.

Arrival: Uludag National Park can be reached both by highway and cable car. The Ski resort is 40 minutes away from Bursa by road and 60 minutes from the airport. Travelling by private vehicle, the Cekirge road is the easiest. Drivers must keep wheel chains, wedges and heavy ropes during winter, which are available for hire or sale along the roadside. There are also minibuses going to the top of Uludag which leave every hour during the winter, and takes around 90 minutes from Bursa.

There are four sections of the cable-car route to reach Uludag, two between Bursa and Kadi plateau (1235m) and two between Kadi and Sari Alan (1621m). Each line has a cabin that can fit 30 people, although it is prohibited to carry ski equipment, and depart the district of Teleferik every 20 minutes. The journey, which stops at Kadi and then changes car, takes around 25 minutes. From the Sari Alan, there is a minibus service travelling the last 7km to the hotel area. In the summer season, there is a chairlift from Sari Alan to Coban Kaya (1750m)

Geography: Uludag is the highest mountain in Western Anatolia, with its peak at Kara Tepe (2543m). It is covered in forests, and the region has a partially temperate climate with a dominant wind direction of south-west/south. The altitude of the skiing area is between 1750 – 2543m, and the best season is from late December to late March. The snow at the beginning of the season is powdery, getting increasingly slushy towards the end.

Facilities: There are 27 hotels, 15 of which are privately owned, with a total of over 3000 beds. The area also has shopping halls, restaurants, cafes and bars, entertainment and health centres.

Ski equipment, rental and instructors are all available here. There are eight chair-lifts, seven T-bars and 13 different ski runs.

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