Tranquil town Kemaliye hosts 10 times the population of the district in the summer months

The capital of adrenaline nature sports, where nature and history complement each other, the impressive town of Kemaliye in Erzincan, formerly known as ‘Eğin’, hosts visitors up to 10 times the population of the town in the summer months. Kemaliye, a part of the cittaslow network, which means ‘slow city’, has been included due to its historical and cultural richness dating back to the 3rd millennium BC, as well as its natural beauty, hosting many civilizations throughout history such as Roman, Byzantine, Ilkhanate, Akkoyunlu, Seljuk, and Ottoman empires right next to the world-famous Dark Canyon dating back to the 3rd millennium BC. The name ‘Eğin’, meaning ‘beautiful garden like paradise’ in history, was changed to Kemaliye by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk from his own name as a source of inspiration due to the support of the town residents during the War of Independence. Located 194 kilometers away from Erzincan; Kemaliye, surrounded by Tunceli to the east, Sivas to the west, Malatya and Elazığ to the south, attracts a large number of visitors especially in the summer months. The town with a population of 5,000 is visited by nearly 50,000 tourists, both local and foreign, during the summer months. With its approximately 35 kilometers in length and a height difference of up to a thousand meters between the riverbed and the valley edge, the Dark Canyon, which is among the top 5 deepest canyons in the world, the 7-kilometer-long Stone Road with exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic significance, consisting of 38 tunnels of various sizes and built by carving through tough rocks, listed under the category of ‘Dangerous Roads’ globally, the Dilli Valley located 4-5 kilometers away from the town center containing significant information in terms of Turkish cultural history, and many other natural beauties, historical and cultural riches, Kemaliye is emphasized as one of the must-see places in Erzincan. Kemaliye, the capital of adrenaline nature sports, has recently started to host TV series and commercial film shootings. Kemaliye is the most famous of the nine districts of Erzincan, described as the pearl of Erzincan. In Kemaliye, the world’s toughest road and the second largest canyon in the world after the Grand Canyon in America are located. In a first for Turkey, the base jump leaps that take place in Kemaliye Dark Canyon, mesmerizing adrenaline enthusiasts, have been held annually without interruption between 2009 and 2024 with the participation of athletes from all over the world on an international scale.