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Milas, once the capital
of the ancient Kingdom of Caria,
is a pleasant Aegean town
which boasts a miniature replica
of the grand, original Mausoleum, one
of the Seven
Wonders of the World.
King Mausolus was king of Caria
(377-353 BC), perhaps its greatest
king. He ordered a splendid, gigantic
tomb built for himself in Halicarnassus (Bodrum).
Today little remains of the tomb, but
the marble Gümüskesen temple
in Milas is thought to be a small-scale
replica of the Mausoleum, the
grand tomb that gave its name to all
grand tombs since.
Perhaps more important for today's
visitors, Milas is a noted carpet-making
center and has a fairly busy airport which
serves Bodrum as
well (map).
If you come to buy Turkish carpets,
have a look at the Gümüskesen,
and also the Baltali Kapi (Gate
with Axe), a Roman gate in the city
walls. Also visit some of the town's
14th-century mosques, built when Milas
was capital of the Mentese emirate.
These include the Great Mosque (Ulu
Cami, 1378), the Mosque of Orhan
Bey (1330), and the Firuz Bey (1394).
Up in the hills north of Milas is
the ancient city of Labranda,
reached by a poor road.
Most people stop for a few hours (and
lunch) in Milas as they travel to or
from Bodrum or Marmaris,
though Milas does have a few serviceable
small hotels. Minibus services
to Milas are frequent from Söke,
southeast of Kusadasi.
Distances & Travel Times
Bodrum: 63
km (39 miles) SW, 1 hour
Ephesus
(Selcuk): 120 km (75 miles)
N, 2.25 hours
Euromos
(Selimiye): 12 km (8 miles)
NW, 15 minutes
Izmir: 200
km (124 miles) N, 3.25 hours
Kapikiri (Herakleia): 41 km
(26 miles) NW, 50 minutes
Kusadasi: 102
km (63 miles) NW, 2 hours
Labranda: 20 km (12 miles)
N, 45 minutes
Marmaris: 112
km (70 miles) NW, 2.25 hours
Milas-Bodrum
Airport: 30 km (19
miles) SE, 35 minutes
Söke: 82 km (51 miles)
NW, 1.75 hours
Aegean
Turkey
Mediterranean
Coast
Where
to Go
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