Kars

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Kars, in north-eastern Turkey, is the capital and largest city of the Kars province in Eastern Anatolia. The city lies within 70km of the Armenian border, which is closed and is the largest city in range of the Georgia border, which is open.

West towards Erzurum

Option 1

The key to hitch-hiking out of Kars is to get to the bypass (E697 / D965) that runs around the south of the city. From the corner of Erzurum-Kars Karayolu and A.Gaffar Okkan Blv you will have no problem getting a lift.

The problem is getting there however. We stayed with a local and he was able to flag down a bus for us going along Davut Aksu Cd in the centre of town. Its destination was şube şefligi a factory complex on the edge of town.

Option 2

The old road to Erzurum starts right in the city center, you can walk there. It's not a main road any more, so there is only a local traffic, but you can still hitch a ride because after a few kilometres, the road passes very close to the main road (you can see it) and you can just walk 200m over the fields.

East towards Ani

Ani is 45 km due east of Kars and located on the Armenian border (which is closed). You can get a lift by walking out of town and thumbing.

Links

a really useful guide to hitch-hiking in Turkey

a beautiful photo gallery of nearby Ani