Troy is among the best known ancient cities in the world. What sets it apart is its nine superimposed settlement layers: they span more than three thousand years without a break and let you follow, one after another, the civilisations that lived where Anatolia, the Aegean and the Balkans meet.
The earliest layer belongs to the Early Bronze Age, between 3000 and 2500 BC. Occupation continued without interruption, and the sequence closes with the Roman layer, dated between 85 BC and the eighth century AD. The city's position kept the trading and cultural links of its successive rulers with other regions consistently important. Because its stratification runs unbroken, Troy serves as a reference for other archaeological sites in Europe and the Aegean.
Excavation began in 1871 with Heinrich Schliemann, and was carried on by W. Dörpfeld and C. W. Blegen. Work continues at the site today.
When to go
- Climate
- Across Çanakkale as a whole, monthly mean temperatures run from 6.4 °C in January to 25.2 °C in August; the mean stays between 15 and 25 °C in May, June, September and October; rainfall is heaviest in December (105 mm) and lightest in August (11 mm). Long-term means for 1929-2025 from the Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM).
Visiting hours
- Hours
- 08:30 - 17:30, last entry 17:00
Getting there
- Access
- The site is 5 km along the Tevfikiye village turn-off at kilometre 25 of the Çanakkale–İzmir road, and Tevfikiye minibuses run from the city centre.
