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50km southwest of Edremit Bay, near the port of Ayvalik, the coastline curves
around a number of bays with pine woods and olive fields, an area
of much-frequented beaches and beautiful holiday accommodation. There are
also more than 20 islands around Ayvalik, the largest of which,
Cunda Island (named after a Turkish general after the War of Liberation) was
already settled in antiquity and has experienced a golden age under the
Romans. Until 1923, Ayvalik was a purely
Christian community. Even today the neo-classical facades of Ayvalik's old houses and the alleys of the Old Town give Ayvalik a distinguished
atmosphere.
Ayvalik grew up
 between the 16th and 17th centuries, becoming a kind of
sanctuary for its Christian population. In 1773
Ottoman Muslims were actually
restricted from living in Ayvalik. Starting of the 19th century the town had achieved a peak of
prosperity. However in 1821, the Kydonians captured two Turkish ships, as a
result of which they found themselves expelled. Unfortunately they set the town into fire
as they went. Sultan Mahmut II, in 1827, allowed some 19,000 Greeks to
return back without restoring their earlier privileges. Ayvalik
quickly resumed its role as an important port again. At the time it had 5 consulates. Its citizens are said to have been
accomplished smugglers.
About a hundred
years later the inhabitants found themselves forced to leave again, this
time as a part of the population exchange following the Greek
occupation (1919-23).
 The Greeks left behind a many
churches which the Muslims put to use some of them as mosques. The Taksiyarhis
Church, a 19th century building with a lovely interior, to the north of Ayvalik, is well worth visiting.
The Sarimsakli and
Altinova beaches of Ayvalik constitues the longest sandy beaches of
Turkey which extends to Dikili town (Izmir) towards the south of
Ayvalik. Ayvalik, with a population of 30,000 villagers, is famous
for its high quality olive and olive oil production.
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