Shopping in Ayder Plateau: What to Buy and What to Skip

Q: Is there good shopping in Ayder?

For the region's food u2014 the honey, the cheese, the butter, and the tea u2014 yes, the plateau shops and the highland producers are honest and good. For general tourist shopping, the plateau is small; the coast has the fuller range.

By All Over InformationUpdated August 10, 20267 min read

Ayder is a plateau famous for its mountains and its thermal waters, not for its shopping, and there is no Grand Bazaar and no boutique strip. What the plateau and its region offer instead is the shopping of a real highland place: the food of the eastern Black Sea — the honey of the high country, the cheese of the herders, the hazelnuts, the tea, and the local crafts — sold by the people who made them. For the traveler who wants to take something of the region home, the real shopping in Ayder is in the food and the produce, and the best souvenirs are the ones that taste and smell of the high country. This guide covers what is genuinely worth buying in and around Ayder, where to find it, and what to skip.

The Honest Shopping Landscape

Here is the reality: Ayder is a small highland plateau, and the shopping is correspondingly modest. What you will find:

The plateau’s shops and small groceries — selling the daily essentials, the regional food, and the produce of the area.
The highland producers — the herders and the farmers of the surrounding yayla, selling their cheese, butter, and honey directly.
A thin scattering of tourist shops — the souvenirs, the magnets, and the trinkets aimed at the summer crowds.
The regional produce — the eastern Black Sea’s honey, cheese, hazelnuts, and tea, the real shopping of the region.

The smart approach is to treat shopping as a small, incidental pleasure — buy the food of the high country because it is good, not because the itinerary demands a shopping stop.

What Is Genuinely Worth Buying

The highland honey. The honey of the Kaçkar high country — thick, fragrant, and from the flowers of the mountain meadows — is among the best in Turkey. The plateau shops and the highland producers sell it by the jar, and it is the taste of the high country.

The highland cheese. The cheese of the eastern Black Sea hills, made by the herders at the summer pastures, is a regional specialty worth seeking out — sold by weight in the shops and the villages, and at its most direct from the producers.

The butter and the kaymak. The butter and the clotted cream of the highland pastures are the region’s gold — rich, fresh, and unlike the supermarket versions. The highland breakfasts are built on them, and the producers sell them at the yayla.

The hazelnuts. The eastern Black Sea is Turkey’s great hazelnut country, and the hills of the region produce the world’s finest. A bag of the local hazelnuts, in season, is the taste of the region’s hills.

The tea. The eastern Black Sea grows the tea of Turkey, and the region’s tea — bought loose from the tea country toward the coast — is the drink of the region at its source.

The local crafts. The region has a modest craft tradition — the woodwork, the textiles, and the handmade goods of the Black Sea. The tourist shops carry a thin version; the honest local work is worth seeking out.

What to skip: the mass-produced trinkets, the “authentic” antique shops, and anything designed for tourists who will never come back. Ayder rewards discrimination, and the real shopping is in the food.

A traditional house from the Black Sea region in Turkey in Ayder Plateau, Turkey — A traditional house from the Black Sea region in Turkey — photo by Serragok, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Where to Shop

The plateau’s shops. The small shops and groceries of the plateau are the practical base — the daily essentials, the regional food, and the produce, at honest prices.

The highland producers. The yayla meadows and the mountain villages sell their own produce — the cheese, the butter, the honey — directly from the herders and the farmers. These are the region’s most genuine sellers, and the highland shopping is as much about the people as the products.

The roadside stalls. The roads of the region have stalls selling the local produce directly from the growers. These are the most authentic places to buy, and the honey and the hazelnuts at the roadside are the real thing.

Rize and the coast. The regional centers on the coast have the fuller commercial range — the markets, the shops, and the tea country at its source.

The Practical Shopping Guide

Cash is king. The plateau shops, the stalls, and the highland producers are cash operations. Carry lira.
Seasonality rules. The produce is at its best in its own season — the honey all year, the cheese in the summer pasture season, the hazelnuts in the late summer and autumn. Buy what is in season and it will be at its best.
Prices are honest. Ayder is a working highland, and the prices are fair. Haggling is not expected at the shops the way it is in the bazaars of the big cities.
Check the transport. If you are flying home, remember the liquid and customs rules for the honey, the butter, and the produce — pack them for the journey accordingly.
Ask the hotel. The hosts know who sells the best honey, where the highland producers are, and what is in season. A question at breakfast is the best shopping research available.

Christians in the Black Sea region in Ayder Plateau, Turkey — Christians in the Black Sea region — photo by DragonTiger23, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Souvenirs That Are Not Things

It is worth saying the obvious: Ayder’s best purchases are not objects. The jar of honey is lovely, but the real keepsakes are the ones you cannot wrap — the photographs of the plateau in the mist, the memory of the thermal waters steaming into the cold, the highland meadows and the peaks, and the sense of a place that belongs to the mountains. Buy the honey and the cheese, by all means; but do not let the search for souvenirs steal time from the reason you came.

A Suggested Shopping Plan

Day to day: use the plateau’s shops for the daily essentials and the regional food. Buy a jar of honey when you find one you like.
If you visit the highlands: buy the cheese and the butter from the herders and the farmers — the region’s most genuine sellers.
If you drive the region’s roads: stop at the roadside stalls and buy the produce directly from the growers.
If you make the coast trip: buy the tea and the hazelnuts from the regional centers.
On the last day: pick up the small things — the honey, the cheese, the one local craft you actually love — and let the rest of the budget stay unspent.

Traditional fried anchovies from the Black Sea region in Turkey in Ayder Plateau, Turkey — Traditional fried anchovies from the Black Sea region in Turkey — photo by Serragok, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What to Buy at the Highlander’s Table

The highlands are the plateau’s pantry, and the highland places sell the food of the mountains directly. The yayla meadows and the mountain villages offer the region’s real products: the cheese made by the herders at the summer pastures, the butter and the kaymak of the high country, the honey of the mountain flowers, and the simple crafts of the villages. This is shopping at its most authentic — buying from the people who made the food, at the place where it was made, with the meadows and the mountains as the backdrop. Ask what the herders produce, taste before you buy, and take the time to hear the story of the food — the highland shopping is as much about the people as the products, and it is the most memorable buying in the region.

The Seasonality of the Highland Produce

The highland produce follows the rhythm of the pastures, and buying in season is the way to get the best. The summer is the high season of the yayla — the animals at the pastures, the milking and the cheese-making at their height, and the honey and the butter at their freshest. The autumn brings the harvest of the hills — the hazelnuts, the fruit, and the last of the summer produce. And the year-round goods — the honey, the dried and the preserved foods, and the crafts — carry the highland table through the winter. For the traveler, the summer and the early autumn are the richest shopping seasons, when the highland producers are at work and the produce is at its best. Buy what is in season, buy from the people who made it, and the shopping becomes part of the experience of the high country.

Turkey Black Sea region-ka in Ayder Plateau, Turkey — Turkey Black Sea region-ka — photo by IrakliGuna, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Takeaway

Shopping in Ayder is a lesson in proportion. The plateau does not try to sell you things; it quietly offers the honest products of its region — the honey and the cheese of the high country, the butter of the pastures, the hazelnuts and the tea — and lets you take or leave them. Buy the food, buy from the producers, and spend the rest of your budget on the things that cannot be purchased: the days by the thermal waters, the mist over the valley, and the memory of a plateau that belongs to the mountains. That is the real souvenir of Ayder.

Frequently asked questions

Is there good shopping in Ayder?

For the region’s food — the honey, the cheese, the butter, and the tea — yes, the plateau shops and the highland producers are honest and good. For general tourist shopping, the plateau is small; the coast has the fuller range.

What should I buy in Ayder?

The highland honey and cheese, the butter of the pastures, the hazelnuts, and the tea of the region — the taste of the high country, bought at its source.

Are there markets in Ayder?

The plateau itself is small, but the region’s roads have roadside stalls, the highlands have the producers, and the coastal centers have the markets.

Do I need cash for shopping in Ayder?

Yes. The plateau shops, the stalls, and the highland producers are cash operations, so carry lira.

Is there a souvenir shop in Ayder?

A thin scattering of tourist shops exists for the summer trade; the real shopping is in the food and the produce.

Can I bargain in Ayder?

At the roadside stalls, gentle bargaining is traditional; at the shops, prices are fair and haggling is generally not expected.

All Over Information

The All Over Information editorial team researches and writes practical English-language guides to Turkey. Facts are checked against official and local sources before publication, prices are published as dated ranges rather than quotes, and guides are revised when things change. We accept no sponsored posts, paid placements or paid links.