The fairy chimneys at Yavuzlar were formed as the rock thrown out by the volcanic Yiğit Dağı was worn away over long years by rain and wind. The people of the district call them Vanadokya, and visitors from Türkiye and abroad come in numbers, particularly in summer.
Tunnels and caves metres in length, opened up by the rains of recent years, have also drawn interest in the area. The village of Yavuzlar is about 33 kilometres from the district centre of Başkale.
When to go
- Climate
- Across Van as a whole, monthly mean temperatures run from -3 °C in January to 22.4 °C in July; the mean stays between 15 and 25 °C in June, July, August and September; rainfall is heaviest in April (55 mm) and lightest in August (6 mm). Long-term means for 1939-2025 from the Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM).
