The ecotourism movement initiated by President Çerçioğlu is opening Aydın’s doors to the world.

Aydın Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Özlem Çerçioğlu’s projects and services continue to lead the promotion of the city. The projects brought to life by Mayor Çerçioğlu open the doors of Aydın to tourists from all over the world.

In 2016, the Ecotourism Center was inaugurated in the Serçin neighborhood of Söke district within the Bafa Lake Nature Park with the aim of protecting natural life and revitalizing regional tourism. The Aydın Metropolitan Municipality Ecotourism Center, located in the center of Serçin neighborhood within the Bafa Lake Nature Park, has become a popular destination for local and foreign tourists. It ensures the protection of nature, raises environmental awareness, maintains the continuity of natural life, opens the region to global tourism, and provides economic support to the local population.

Ecotourism activities in the nature park contribute to the protection of biodiversity, support the welfare of local people, reduce negative environmental and socio-cultural factors, increase local ownership and employment opportunities, and bring together people from different living conditions, allowing tourism to flourish in the region throughout the year. In addition to these, ecotourism activities also provide opportunities for economic, ecological, and social development, enabling sustainable growth.

Intense Interest in Free Bicycle and Canoe Tours

The Aydın Metropolitan Municipality Ecotourism Center not only ensures the protection of the region’s nature and wildlife but also contributes to the promotion of the area. Bafa Lake Nature Park, which hosts endemic plants, over three hundred species of birds, historic monasteries and artifacts, as well as local fauna and flora, also offers camping, rock climbing, photography, bird watching, sport fishing, and trekking opportunities; its doors are opened to the world through the Metropolitan Municipality Ecotourism Center.

Local and foreign tourists visiting the Metropolitan Municipality Ecotourism Center can rent bicycles and canoes for free, in addition to benefiting from guided tours to get to know the area better.

“The Ecotourism Center has revitalized the regional economy”

Bahar Kıran, an employee of the Tourism and Promotion Branch of the Cultural and Social Affairs Department of the Metropolitan Municipality, stated that the Ecotourism Center not only supports nature and wildlife but also revitalizes the regional economy. “Our Mayor Özlem has brought the Serçin Ecotourism Center to tourism in 2016, welcoming thousands of local and foreign tourists every year. The primary aim of opening the Ecotourism Center was to develop the local population, and we have achieved this. The Ecotourism Center has also revitalized the regional economy. Thanks to our Mayor Özlem, a restaurant has opened here, and tourists coming to the area are purchasing products from the locals. Every year, thousands of visitors, including photographers, bird watchers, and local and foreign tourists wanting to see the nature park, come to the area. Thus, this place has become a major attraction center for both local and foreign tourists. The Bafa Lake Nature Park in this area is one of the rare places in the world. There are endemic plant species here, and many fish species, especially eel, exist in Bafa Lake. Additionally, hundreds of bird species come to the area every year. The continuity of natural life, especially flamingos and pelicans, attracts the interest of citizens from all over the world.

When you come to the Serçin Ecotourism Center, you are welcomed by our guide. Our guide provides information about the area and helps create a tour route. Additionally, visitors can explore the area with free bicycles and canoes. Citizens coming here leave with admiration for the region’s visual beauty, natural life, the services we offer at the Serçin Ecotourism Center, and the attention of the local people, thanking our Mayor Özlem,” she said.

“It resembled the places we see in documentaries”

Emine Işık, expressing her admiration for Bafa Lake Nature Park, thanked Mayor Çerçioğlu, stating, “We are currently at the Serçin Ecotourism Center. I had heard a lot about this place, but I couldn’t come. There is an incredible nature here, and a lot of value has been placed on natural life. We saw many species of birds and flamingos. I am very pleased in this regard; we were late to see this place. It is very beautiful, and I was very impressed. It is wonderful that nature, history, and all natural life are here waiting for us. We had a free bicycle tour with our guide, who told us where to go, and we rented a canoe for free. I am very happy and liked it a lot. It has been a wonderful endeavor. There are places we see in documentaries; for example, if it were a place abroad, we would be very excited to go there. But there is actually a wonderful place on such a beautiful route, very close to Aydın, with a great nature and wonderful air. This is a place where natural life is protected, and it is beautiful that the Aydın Metropolitan Municipality has taken care of this and given it value again. I thank our Mayor for this, and everything has turned out very nice.”

“We thank Mayor Özlem for providing these opportunities”

Özlem Afşar expressed that she had participated in the bicycle and canoe tour and thanked Mayor Çerçioğlu for establishing the Ecotourism Center. Afşar said, “I came from Aydın to here. Thanks to our guide here, we obtained the bicycles for free and had the opportunity to observe the natural habitat of the flamingos in Bafa Lake Nature Park. We also witnessed that other bird species live here alongside flamingos while discovering this natural area by bicycle. We also obtained canoes for free from the guide and had the chance to open them in Bafa Lake, getting to know the flamingos more closely and seeing the natural structure of the mountains and surrounding areas. I am happy, and I thank Mayor Özlem for providing us with these opportunities.”