Lake Van

Lake Van is Türkiye’s largest lake. Its average depth is 171 metres and its deepest point is 451 metres. The water is soda-rich and alkaline; sources give its pH as between ⁦9.7⁩ and ⁦9.8⁩.

The shoreline is 430 kilometres long, of which 245 kilometres lie within Bitlis. Tatvan Kaymakamlığı (Tatvan District Governor’s Office) describes the lake as “the world’s largest soda lake”; this is the source’s own wording.

The four islands in the eastern part of the lake — Akdamar, Çarpanak, Adır and Kuş — were designated archaeological sites in 1990.

Getting there: head towards İskele from the city to reach the shore; the shores at Edremit and Gevaş are reached by car.