Agri Hotels

In the Ottoman Empire era the area was called Şorbulak, and Karakilise (black church) which was then mutated to Karaköse (the black man with no moustache) towards the end of the Ottoman period.Ağrı is named after the nearby majestic Mount Ararat, a 5,165 m (16,945 feet) high stratovolcano, the highest mountain in Turkey. It can be climbed from here and can be seen from parts of Armenia, Iran, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. The nearest town to the mountain is Doğubeyazıt. 46% of the province is mountainous, 29% is plain, 18% is plateau, and 7% high meadow. As well as Ararat there are many other peaks over 3,000m, including Aladağlar and Tendürek. The plains are fertile, being covered in volcanic deposits, and are used for growing grains and grazing. Various tributaries of the Murat River (which later feeds the Euphrates) flow through the area and water these plains. The high meadows are used for grazing. The weather here is very cold (temperatures as low as -52°C (-56°F) in winter) and the mountainsides are mainly bare. There are a number of important passes and routes through the mountains.