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Balıklıgöl pool with the arcade and dome of the Rızvaniye Mosque in Şanlıurfa 4 more photos
Photo: Anadolu / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0, resized

Culture · Şanlıurfa · Eyyübiye

Balıklıgöl (Pool of Abraham)

Balıklıgöl

Two long pools full of sacred carp at the foot of Şanlıurfa's castle hill, framed by mosques and arcades — the city's pilgrimage heart, linked to the story of Abraham.

  • Open space No opening hours, no ticket
  • Ticket Free
  • Visit ~45 min–1.5 h

Directions See it on the Şanlıurfa map

Build a day-by-day plan with closing-day warnings and ticket totals.

What to see

Tradition holds that Abraham was thrown into a fire here and that the flames turned to water and the logs to fish; the carp are never caught. Around the pools stand the Rızvaniye and Halil-ür Rahman mosques, the cave where the prophet is said to have been born, and shaded tea gardens.

An hour is enough for the pools and the cave; add time to climb the castle hill for the view, and to walk into the old covered bazaars a few minutes away.

Evenings are lively and cooler in summer. Dress modestly for the mosques and the birth cave, which have separate entrances for men and women.

Getting there

In the old centre of Şanlıurfa, below the castle; city buses and dolmuş minibuses stop on the main avenue nearby.

Transport lines are general directions, not checked against the operator's timetable.

Open in OpenStreetMap See it on the Şanlıurfa map

Watch

  • Şanlıurfa, Balıklıgöl - 8K 360 VR Video - Virtual Reality 360 Trip

    vr360trip · Watch on YouTube (new tab) ↗

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Nearby

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Eat & drink nearby

Restaurants

Cafés

Bakeries

Listings from ilçemde, our sister directory; ratings from the map service shown. We don't rank by payment. Nearer places come first (within 300 m, then 700 m), then ratings weighted by how many reviews they have. Opening hours can change; “Open now” uses Istanbul time.

Also in this area

Straight-line distances.

Where to stay nearby

ilçemde shows no Ministry-licensed count for Eyyübiye (old Şanlıurfa); its page still lists hotels and guesthouses in the district.

Hotels and guesthouses in Eyyübiye ↗

How we rank: Nearby Ministry-licensed places first (matched to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism list), then other places by distance band (within 5 km, 15 km, 40 km; straight line) and public map ratings and review counts. A licensed place never jumps ahead of a closer band. Places more than 25 km away in another town are shown only when there are few options nearby. No business pays to be listed. A high score from a handful of reviews counts for less than a slightly lower score from hundreds. Ratings and counts come from ilçemde's data (source shown on each card, checked 1 Oct 2026); read the reviews themselves on the map services.

Accommodation lists open on ilçemde, our sister directory of Turkish businesses (new tab). We do not take bookings or commissions.

Pharmacies on duty tonight in Eyyübiye ↗ The list changes every day; on-duty pharmacies stay open when the others are closed.

About this page

Location: Wikidata Q805908 (P625). Ticket, hours and closing days: only from the operator's own pages; anything we could not confirm there is marked “Not verified”. Last checked 30 Sep 2026.