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Sumela Monastery Tour from Trabzon: How to Get There and What to See

Sumela Monastery reopened on 25 June 2026. How to get there from Trabzon, what you see on the cliff, practical tips and how to plan it with Uzungöl.

Ayşe ArslanAuthor24 October 20269 min read

Sumela Monastery Tour from Trabzon: How to Get There and What to See

Sumela Monastery, the cliffside monastery 46 km south of Trabzon, reopened to visitors on 25 June 2026 after the first stage of maintenance and safety work, NTV reported, while the wider restoration continues on a planned schedule. It is the single most visited sight on Turkey's Black Sea coast: more than 128,000 people came between January and May 2026, and over 2 million since 2021, according to figures reported by GZT in July. Our private Sumela Monastery tour from Trabzon starts at $120 with entrance tickets included.

Most people planning a Black Sea trip ask the same things: how to get there without a car, how long to allow, whether it is open in the rain and fog of the region, and how to fit it in with Uzungöl. This guide covers those questions, plus what you actually see once you climb up to the monastery.

At a glance
Where	Altındere Valley National Park, Maçka district, about 46 km south of Trabzon
Altitude	About 1,200 m, on the cliff face of Mount Karadağ
Status	Reopened 25 June 2026; restoration continues in stages
Time needed	Half a day for the monastery alone, a full day with Hamsiköy and Zigana
Our tour	Private, from $120, tickets and van included
Best months	May to October; foggy days are common all year

The courtyard and rock-cut buildings of Sumela Monastery under the cliff

Is Sumela Monastery open now?

Yes. After a long series of closures for rockfall protection and restoration, the monastery reopened on 25 June 2026, when the first stage of maintenance and safety work was completed. The comprehensive restoration is continuing on a planned schedule, so some parts of the complex may be closed or under scaffolding when you visit.

The site has a long history of closures. It shut in September 2015 because of the risk of falling rock, reopened in stages, closed again on 1 November 2021 and reopened on 1 May 2022, as reported by Bursa Hakimiyet. Work on the rock face was carried out again in June 2026. If you are planning months ahead, this is the main reason to book with someone who checks the status close to your date, which we do before every tour.

Opening hours change with the season, with shorter days in winter, and the last entry is before closing. We confirm the hours when we set your pickup time.

How to get to Sumela Monastery from Trabzon

There are three realistic ways.

By tour. The simplest option. A van collects you from your Trabzon hotel, the drive to Maçka and up the Altındere Valley takes about an hour, and the driver handles parking and the shuttle arrangements at the bottom of the site. Our private tour adds the Zigana Pass, Hamsiköy and Karaca Cave to make a full day.

By minibus. Minibuses leave central Trabzon for Sumela in the season, and the ride takes about an hour. They run on demand and timetables change, so ask at your hotel the evening before.

By rental car or taxi. The road from Trabzon via Maçka is good. Cars are left at the lower parking area, from where a shuttle or a walk takes you up. A taxi for the day is possible but needs a clear price agreed in advance.

	Our private tour	Minibus	Rental car
From Trabzon	Hotel pickup	Central Trabzon	Your own timing
Guide	Local guide	None	None
Tickets	Included	Pay at the gate	Pay at the gate
Extra stops	Zigana, Hamsiköy, Karaca Cave	No	Your choice
Best for	First visit, families, Gulf and European visitors without a car	Budget travellers	Drivers comfortable on mountain roads
Price	From $120	Low, cash	Car hire and fuel

What you see at Sumela

According to tradition, the monastery was founded in the late 4th century by two monks from Athens, Barnabas and Sophronios, around an icon of the Virgin Mary. What stands today was rebuilt and extended over many centuries, and the complex was abandoned in 1923, at the time of the population exchange between Greece and Turkey.

From the entrance you walk down a stairway into a courtyard pressed against the cliff. The heart of the complex is the rock church, a natural cave turned into a chapel, whose walls inside and out are covered with frescoes painted in several periods: scenes from the life of Christ and the Virgin, saints and prophets. Many faces were damaged in the decades the monastery stood empty, but the colours on the outer wall of the rock church are still strong on a bright day. Around the courtyard are the remains of monks' cells, a library, a kitchen and guest rooms, and an aqueduct that once carried water down the cliff.

The setting is half the reason to come. The monastery hangs above a deep, forested valley, and on many mornings the cloud sits below it. Fog can also hide it completely from the road, then lift within half an hour.

Byzantine frescoes on the walls of the rock church at Sumela Monastery

Once a year, on 15 August, the Feast of the Dormition, an Orthodox liturgy is held at the monastery with government permission. It has drawn pilgrims from Greece, Russia and Georgia in many years since 2010. Expect large crowds and tight access around that date.

Practical tips for the visit

The path from the drop-off point to the monastery includes steep sections and many steps, and the stones are often wet. Wear shoes with grip. Bring a rain jacket even in summer, because the Black Sea mountains get rain on many days a year.

Mornings on weekdays are the quietest. In July and August, and on Turkish public holidays, the queues at the shuttle and the ticket office can be long; news agency DHA reported long queues at the site during a holiday peak. Our guides start early on those days for this reason.

Photography is allowed in the courtyard. Inside the rock church, follow the instructions of the staff, and do not touch the frescoes.

If you hold a Turkish Museum Pass (Müzekart), check whether it covers your visit on the day, as the monastery is a state heritage site. With our tour, tickets are already included.

Hamsiköy village in green hills on the road from Trabzon towards Zigana

Sumela, Uzungöl or both?

Visitors to Trabzon usually want two things: Sumela and Uzungöl, the lake village in the mountains of Çaykara. They are in different directions from Trabzon, so they do not fit comfortably into one day. Our advice is one full day for each.

Day 1: Sumela Monastery with Zigana Pass, Hamsiköy, known across Turkey for its rice pudding, and Karaca Cave.
Day 2: Uzungöl with the Karester and Lustra highlands, from $80.
Day 3: the city, Trabzon's Hagia Sophia, the Atatürk Mansion and tea on Boztepe Hill, on our Trabzon city tour from $75, or a day further east in Rize.

The Uzungöl day is described in detail in our guide to the Uzungöl tour from Trabzon.

Uzungöl lake and village surrounded by forested mountains near Trabzon

What this means for your trip

Sumela is open again, and with the restoration still going on, the safest plan is to keep your Trabzon days flexible and let a local team confirm the status and hours the day before. Give it a full day with the stops on the Zigana road rather than a rushed half day. Combine it with Uzungöl on separate days, and allow three nights in Trabzon for both plus the city.

Flights from Istanbul to Trabzon take under two hours, and our Istanbul and Trabzon package puts the two cities together. If you are coming from the Gulf, Europe or Asia, check entry rules in our story on Turkey visa rules for 2027.

Questions travellers are asking

Is Sumela Monastery open?

Yes, Sumela Monastery reopened to visitors on 25 June 2026 after the first stage of maintenance and safety work on the cliff and paths was finished, although the wider restoration continues on a planned schedule, so some areas of the complex may be closed or under scaffolding during your visit. Hours change with the season.

How do I get to Sumela Monastery from Trabzon?

The easiest way to reach Sumela Monastery from Trabzon is a tour with hotel pickup, which takes about an hour each way through Maçka and the Altındere Valley, while independent travellers can take a minibus from central Trabzon in season or drive a rental car to the lower parking area. Our private tour starts at $120.

How long do you need at Sumela Monastery?

Plan about two to three hours at Sumela Monastery itself, including the shuttle or walk up from the parking area, the climb to the courtyard and time in the rock church, and a full day if you add the Zigana Pass, Hamsiköy village and Karaca Cave on the same route. Weekday mornings are the quietest.

What is the entrance fee for Sumela Monastery?

Sumela Monastery charges an entrance fee in Turkish lira at the gate, which changes from year to year, and parking and the shuttle from the lower car park are paid separately, so check the current price shortly before you go, or book a tour such as ours that includes tickets. Our private tour from Trabzon starts at $120.

Is it hard to walk up to Sumela Monastery?

The walk to Sumela Monastery is short but steep, with uneven paths and many steps that are often wet from rain and fog, so it suits most visitors with normal fitness who take their time, but it can be difficult for people with walking problems or small children in pushchairs. Wear shoes with good grip.

Can you visit Sumela and Uzungöl in one day?

Visiting Sumela and Uzungöl in one day is possible but not recommended, because they lie in different directions from Trabzon and each needs a long drive into the mountains, so you spend most of the day in the car; one full day for each gives you time at both and the stops along the way. Allow three nights in Trabzon.

When is the best time to visit Sumela Monastery?

The best time to visit Sumela Monastery is from May to October, when the roads are clear and the valley is green, ideally on a weekday morning before the crowds, while winter visits are possible but days are shorter and fog, rain and snow on the mountain road are more likely. Avoid 15 August if you dislike crowds.