Kilistra, Turkey is practically unknown to foreign tourists. Yet it is rich with history and is definitely worth a visit. It’s like a mini Cappadocia trip with a little Christian history wrapped up into one visit. We stopped here on our way back to Konya from ancient Lystra.
Kilistra is not Lystra
Before telling about this city, I must state this first because the two get confused. Even on official websites that describe Kilistra, Biblical events that happened only in Lystra are described as happening there. The sounds of the cities are close to one another, even their proximity. But they are not the same. I wrote about the ancient Lystra that is connected to the Timothy and the apostle Paul in another post.
How to get there
The best way to access this ancient city is by car. This would enable you to explore much more of this place. Even when travelling to the city, you will see dwelling caves even 5 miles before you reach your destination. Though the city is spread over a vast area, there is one main area to visit here.
When we arrived, we saw that the city has a modern village built on top of it. The name of the community is Gokyurt (but we call it yogurt). Buried beneath the town is no doubt a treasure trove of archaeology. The local residents still make use of the small caves in it’s vicinity for storage, and unfortunately garbage. They were very friendly to us and were happy to provide directions to the best spots.
The history of Kilistra
500 BC – Darius the Great builds a road to link his summer capital at Persepolis (now in Iran) to the city of Sardis (now Izmir, Turkey). It runs through the location of Kilistra and is named “The Royal Road”.
200 BC – The town begins significant Hellenistic settlement due to it’s favorable location right on the royal road as well as the ability to make well defended homes.
47 CE – Paul likely travels through this city on at least one of his missionary journeys. Experts are assuming this because the road leads right from Lystra to Antioch of Pisidia. Christianity gets an early start in this city, but there is no way to confirm that Paul visited the city.
50 CE (circa) – Thecla, an early Christian who knew the Apostle Paul personally, flees to Kilistra. There she escapes persecution in Iconium. Second century extant Christian writings relate her friendship with the apostle Paul, but nothing can be confirmed. At any rate, the mention of Kilistra this early as a safe haven for Christians indicates that Christianity reached the city very early. It was apparently very tolerant.
What is there
As of 2020, Kilistra is not very developed for tourists. It was difficult to find the place due to the lack of signage. The city also spans over quite a distance. But there is one area that gets all the attention. It is located here. Below is a picture of that spot.
There is a living agricultural community around the site. There is farm equipment everywhere and local Turkish residents working in the fields. The feeling when we arrive is that we are almost invading. There’s no formal entrance, you just have to walk around and discover.
The Royal Road
The Royal Road was famously built by Dairius the Great. Couriers could swiftly carry messages throughout the Persian empire for him. Of this road, Greek historian Herodotus wrote, “There is nothing in the world that travels faster than these Persian couriers.”
We admired all the people that probably traveled on this road.
Facilities for tourists
It’s worth noting that there are no washroom facilities or provisions for tourists. You are on your own. As for accommodations, there is a village mansion that can hold small groups, but you won’t find it on any commercial website. Besides this, there are no hotels. Accommodations are more suitable in nearby Konya.
Lastly, we hit some heavy traffic on the way out of this rural neighborhood. Enjoy!
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