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Gobeklitepe, one of Türkiye's most visited archaeological sites, is expanding its access road and walking routes to handle growing visitor numbers, ease congestion and allow tourists to explore a wider part of the UNESCO World Heritage site.
Located near the rural Orencik neighborhood, around 18 kilometers (11.18 miles) from Sanliurfa city center, Gobeklitepe draws approximately 1 million visitors each year.
Authorities are now carrying out a series of upgrades to increase the site's capacity and improve the visitor experience.
Work is underway to turn the previously single-lane road serving both arriving and departing traffic into a divided roadway.
Walking paths around the archaeological site have also been widened and adapted for visitors with disabilities, while the overall walking route has been extended to roughly twice its previous length.
The improvements are intended to spread visitors out across the site rather than allowing crowds to build up around a limited number of viewing areas.
Sanliurfa Provincial Culture and Tourism Director Aydin Aslan said interest in Gobeklitepe had risen rapidly after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared 2019 the "Year of Gobeklitepe."
Aslan said new routes had been laid out to make use of the site's elevated position and give visitors views across the Harran Plain, while also helping them take in more of the surrounding natural landscape.
Previously, visitors generally walked to the area beneath the main protective roof before turning back. The expanded route will take them through a broader section of the site.
"Visitors will both spend more time here and the crowds will not build up at certain points," Aslan said.
Mehmet Kamil Turkmen, head of the Sanliurfa Tourism Development Association, said the investments would contribute both to the site's capacity and to the wider tourism sector.
He said completing the new routes and opening structures in the rear section would create a larger circular walking path, allowing visitors to see areas that had not previously been included in the standard tour.
Turkmen added that widening the access road was an appropriate step and said the upgrades were expected to increase not only the number of tourists arriving in Sanliurfa, but also the amount of time they spend at Gobeklitepe and in the city.
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