Uzungol is a valley famous for its lake, not for its shopping, and there is no Grand Bazaar and no boutique strip. What the valley and its region offer instead is the shopping of a real place: the food of the eastern Black Sea — the hazelnuts, the honey, the cheese, and the tea — the local crafts, and the honest produce of the green hills. For the traveler who wants to take something of the region home, the real shopping in Uzungol is in the food and the produce, and the best souvenirs are the ones that taste and smell of the eastern Black Sea. This guide covers what is genuinely worth buying in and around Uzungol, where to find it, and what to skip.
The Honest Shopping Landscape
Here is the reality: Uzungol is a small valley village, and the shopping is correspondingly modest. What you will find:
- The village shops and small groceries — selling the daily essentials, the regional food, and the produce of the area.
- The roadside stalls — along the valley and the region’s roads, selling the local produce directly from the growers.
- 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 hazelnuts, honey, cheese, 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 region because it is good, not because the itinerary demands a shopping stop.
What Is Genuinely Worth Buying
The hazelnuts. The eastern Black Sea is Turkey’s great hazelnut country, and Uzungol sits at its heart. The hazelnuts — fresh, roasted, or ground — are the region’s signature product, and buying them in the valley is buying the real harvest, from the place where the world’s hazelnuts largely grow.
The honey. The highland honey of the region — thick, fragrant, and from the flowers of the mountain meadows — is among the best in Turkey. The valley shops and the highland producers sell it by the jar, and it is the taste of the high country.
The local cheese. The cheese of the eastern Black Sea hills, made by the highland herders, is a regional specialty worth seeking out — sold by weight in the shops and the villages.
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.
The produce. The fruit and the vegetables of the green valleys, the corn products, and the region’s pantry are the honest shopping of the place.
What to skip: the mass-produced trinkets, the “authentic” antique shops, and anything designed for tourists who will never come back. Uzungol rewards discrimination, and the real shopping is in the food.
Where to Shop
The village shops. The small shops and groceries of the valley are the practical base — the daily essentials, the regional food, and the produce, at honest prices.
The roadside stalls. The roads of the region — in the valley and toward the coast — have stalls selling the local produce directly from the growers. These are the most authentic places to buy, and the hazelnuts and the honey at the roadside are the real thing.
The highland places. The yayla meadows and the mountain villages sell their own produce — the cheese, the honey, the butter — directly from the herders and the farmers. These are the region’s most genuine sellers.
Trabzon. The regional capital on the coast, about two hours away, has the fuller commercial range — the markets, the shops, and the working-city shopping that the valley cannot offer.
The Practical Shopping Guide
- Cash is king. The village shops, the stalls, and the highland places are cash operations. Carry lira.
- Seasonality rules. The produce is at its best in its own season — the hazelnuts in the late summer and autumn, the honey all year, the tea in the warmer months. Buy what is in season and it will be at its best.
- Prices are honest. Uzungol is a working valley, 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 and the produce — pack them for the journey accordingly.
- Ask the hotel. The hosts know who sells the best honey, where the roadside stalls are, and which highland place sells the cheese. A question at breakfast is the best shopping research available.
Souvenirs That Are Not Things
It is worth saying the obvious: Uzungol’s best purchases are not objects. The bag of hazelnuts is lovely, but the real keepsakes are the ones you cannot wrap — the photographs of the lake in the mist, the memory of the highland meadows, the trout dinner over the water, and the sense of a valley that belongs to the mountains. Buy the hazelnuts and the honey, 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 valley’s shops for the daily essentials and the regional food. Buy a jar of honey or a bag of hazelnuts when you find them.
- If you drive the region’s roads: stop at the roadside stalls and buy the produce directly from the growers.
- If you visit the highlands: buy the cheese and the honey from the herders and the farmers — the region’s most genuine sellers.
- If you make the Trabzon trip: use the city’s markets and shops for anything more substantial.
- On the last day: pick up the small things — the hazelnuts, the honey, the tea — and let the rest of the budget stay unspent.
What to Buy at the Highland Places
The highlands are the valley’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 Hazelnut Country
One thing deserves its own note: the eastern Black Sea is Turkey’s great hazelnut country, and Uzungol sits at the heart of it. The hazel groves cover the hills around the valley, and the hazelnuts — fresh, roasted, or ground into the local preparations — are the region’s signature product. Buying hazelnuts in Uzungol is not a tourist transaction; it is buying the region’s real harvest, from the place where the world’s hazelnuts largely grow. A bag of the local hazelnuts, bought in season from the roadside stalls or the village shops, is the taste of the eastern Black Sea hills — and the souvenir that every food-loving traveler should take home from this region.
The Takeaway
Shopping in Uzungol is a lesson in proportion. The valley does not try to sell you things; it quietly offers the honest products of its region — the hazelnuts and the honey of the high country, the cheese of the herders, the tea of the region — and lets you take or leave them. Buy the food, stop at the roadside stalls, and spend the rest of your budget on the things that cannot be purchased: the days by the lake, the highland meadows, and the memory of a valley that belongs to the mountains. That is the real souvenir of Uzungol.
Frequently asked questions
Is there good shopping in Uzungol?
For the region’s food — the hazelnuts, the honey, the cheese, and the tea — yes, the valley shops and the roadside stalls are honest and good. For general tourist shopping, the valley is small; Trabzon has the fuller range.
What should I buy in Uzungol?
The eastern Black Sea’s hazelnuts, honey, and cheese, and the tea of the region — the taste of the high country, bought at its source.
Are there markets in Uzungol?
The valley itself is small, but the region’s roads have roadside stalls, and Trabzon has the full markets. Ask your hotel for the current spots.
Do I need cash for shopping in Uzungol?
Yes. The village shops, the stalls, and the highland places are cash operations, so carry lira.
Is there a souvenir shop in Uzungol?
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 Uzungol?
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.
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