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Ulu Cami, Koza Han and the Hanlar district

Twenty domes, a silk caravanserai with tea in the courtyard, and a covered bazaar that still sells things people need — the Ottoman capital in one walk.

Freehalf a dayweekday morning — outside prayer times for the mosque

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Why do it?

Bursa was the first Ottoman capital, and the Hanlar district — inscribed by UNESCO in 2014 together with Cumalıkızık — is where that city still functions. Ulu Cami, built in the 1390s, is the biggest thing here: twenty domes over a single hall, a fountain indoors under an open skylight, and the walls covered in enormous calligraphy, so it feels like walking into a book. Across the street, Koza Han (1491) is the caravanserai where the silk cocoon trade was done for five centuries, and the courtyard is now the city's best tea garden. Around both, the Kapalıçarşı and its side hans still sell towels, knives, fabric and silk to Bursalılar, not to tour groups.

The Smileys Take

This is the first walk we do with every newcomer. Start in Ulu Cami between prayer times (mornings are calmest), sit under the domes for longer than feels reasonable, then cross to Koza Han for a çay in the courtyard — the ritual is the point. Drift through the covered bazaar and into the hans behind it without a plan; Kayhan Çarşısı, a few minutes away, is where İskender kebap was invented. One honesty note: Osmangazi municipality announced a Koza Han restoration in June 2026, then postponed it and the café tables came back — ⚠ VERIFY the courtyard cafés are open before you promise anyone a tea there.

Don't miss

Ulu Cami — the indoor şadırvan under the skylight, and the calligraphy on every pier.
Koza Han courtyard — tea under the plane trees, silk scarves in the shops upstairs.
The Kapalıçarşı and the smaller hans behind it (Emir Han, Fidan Han) — still a working market.
A stop at Kafkas in Heykel, candied Uludağ chestnuts since 1930 — the city's sweet.
Cover shoulders and knees in the mosque; women bring a scarf. Step out for prayer times.