Kâhta

Kâhta is a large district of Adıyaman Province of Turkey. Population 63,216 (as of 2010). The mayor is İbrahim Yusuf Turanlı (AKP).

Mount Nemrut-Nemrut Dağı

Karakuş hill

Kahta castle

Severan bridge

Kâhta is a small town in attractive countryside at the foot of Nemrut Dağı and has a thriving business providing food, accommodation (and nowadays internet cafes) and transport (in the form of shared taxis or minibuses) to people visiting the mountain. Most businesses in the town are named after Zeus, Nimrod or other figures from mythology. The food found here includes grilled carp and trout.

Despite a growing tourism industry, this area is still classified as a developing rural region. The winters are especially cold and hard in these mountains. People are poor, families of 6-7 children are common, school books are provided by the government, and winter school uniforms are expensive. Since the 1970s in the face of these conditions many families from Kâhta have migrated to the cities of western Turkey.

Places of interest

• Nemrut Dağı or Mount Nemrut - now a national park, famous for the antique statuary on the summit, dating back to the Commagene Kingdom.
• Karakuş hill, with a large statue of an eagle.
• Kâhta castle
• Severan Bridge, a Roman bridge.