Tarsus lies on the Cilician plain between Mersin and Adana, modern and industrial at first glance but very old underneath. Hittites, Persians, Romans, Arabs, Byzantines, Armenians, Crusaders, and Ottomans all passed through or ruled here, because the city controlled routes between the Mediterranean coast and the passes inland.
Its best-known son is St Paul, and the well associated with him still draws Christian pilgrims. But Tarsus is not only a biblical footnote. The old centre has Ottoman houses, Roman road remains, the Grand Mosque, and the surviving Cleopatra Gate, traditionally linked to Cleopatra's arrival to meet Mark Antony.
The sights are close enough to cover on foot, which makes Tarsus a very workable day trip from Adana or Mersin. It is also more atmospheric than its plain setting suggests: the interest is in the layers, not in a single showpiece ruin.