Ilgaz Guide

When we turn our way to the Western Black Sea Region, we encounter Ilgaz, located within the provincial borders of Çankırı and Kastamonu. It is known that Fatih Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror used the Devrez Valley in Ilgaz to take Sinop and Murat IV used the Devrez Valley in Ilgaz to reach the east during the Baghdad Expedition. Even Evliya Çelebi passed through this road in his Seyahatname. The famous geographer Strobon also refers to Mount Ilgaz as Mount Olgassys and describes it as extraordinarily difficult to climb. In its history dating back to 1300 B.C., Ilgaz has been a part of the Ottoman lands since 1459 and has gone down in history as a settlement that was a gateway to transfer all kinds of needs to Ankara from the Inebolu-Kastamonu-Çankırı line during the War of Independence. It is said that the word “il-el”, which comes from the name of the country in Turkish, was combined with the Gas of the “Gasks” who lived in the region in 1300 BC and came to the present day as Ilgaz and became the name of the city, and in another discourse, it is said that the name of the city derives from “Olgassys”.The vegetation consisting of larch, yellow pine, fir dominant tree species developing from the foothills of Ilgaz Mountain to its peaks is supported by a rich sub-forest community. What distinguishes the ski areas of Ilgaz from other ski resorts is that the ski resort is located in a National Park. Declared a National Park in 1976, Ilgaz is 1088 hectares in size. In this park, it is possible to come across various wild animal species such as roe deer, deer, wild boars, bears and foxes and rich vegetation.Ilgaz Mountain is an important resource for winter sports at the national level, especially in the Western Black Sea Region. Ilgaz Mountain ski resort serves with mechanical facilities consisting of a 900-meter-long double chairlift, a 2 km-long chairlift and a 250-meter-long baby lift.

For accommodation suggestions, you can check our Ilgaz Hotels page.