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Municipality in Bitlis, Turkey
Photo: EvgenyGenkin, CC BY 2.5 via Wikimedia Commons
Tatvan is a town in Eastern Anatolia, on the western shore of Lake Van. It had a population of 82,000 in 2022, with another 17,000 in its associated villages.
Good inexpensive place, spacious rooms, rooftop breakfast buffet with lake views.
Mixed reviews for this lakeside hotel.
Clean and welcoming.
By train
Vangölü Ekspresi runs twice a week from Ankara to Tatvan, scheduled to take 26 hours but often long delayed. There are couchettes and a sleeping car and a buffet with breakfast and snacks.
By boat
A ferry crosses the lake between Tatvan and Van, three per day at irregular times. The 90 km crossing takes four hours.
By road
Highway D300 is of a good standard, mostly dual-carriageway, and connects westward to Bitlis (20 km) and eastwards to Van (100 km).
By bus
Buses run daily from Istanbul, taking 23 hours via Ankara, Kayseri, Malatya, Elazığ, Muş and Bitlis, and continuing to Van.
The town is small enough to walk. You need wheels to reach the crater lake.
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