Zonguldak Attractions

Western Black Sea region

The Zonguldak mountains 800m/2,620ft high and 50km/32mi long are situated to the northeast of the lower Pontic mountains of Bolu and Akçakoca and extend along the coast from the mouth of the ancient Filyos (Yenice Irmagi). Seams of coal rise to the surface and an important coal-mining industry has grown up in the deep mountain valleys. The absence of work-place safety regulations means that Zonguldak mine counts as one of the most dangerous mines in the world. The last serious mining disaster occurred in March 1992.

Until 1850 Zonguldak was a small village but the coal fields, the steelworks in neighboring Karabük (with a rail link for transporting coal) and Karadeniz Ereglisi and the resulting expansion of the original 1899 harbor have transformed the place into the second-largest town on the Black Sea coast.