Across Turkey by train: riding the Mesopotamia Express

At 11.30am in Diyarbakır's train station, we see women wearing big sunglasses and headscarves, posing for photos near old-fashioned clocks with the TCDD emblem. A young man with a light beard sits on a bench, holding a heart-shaped balloon on a string that moves gently in the hot 38C weather. Red flags decorate the platform above, while loud whistles mix with traditional Turkish music as the Mesopotamia Express arrives.

Traveling 653 miles (1,051km) from Ankara, the capital of Turkey, to Diyarbakır, a city with a Kurdish majority located near the borders of Syria and Iraq, the Mesopotamia Express was introduced in April. It runs once a month in both directions for three months. I am on board for its last journey of 2024, and the TCDD has announced that it will resume service in 2025.

Spending more time in select cities and providing only private two-bed cabins, the Mesopotamia Express offers a more comfortable and scenic journey compared to the Güney Kurtalan Express. The Güney Kurtalan Express follows the same route but makes 52 brief stops between Ankara and Diyarbakır. My cabin on the Mesopotamia Express cost 8,000 lira (£194), while a subsidized seat on the Güney Kurtalan Express is priced at £8.50.

The Van Gölü Express, which operates between Ankara and Tatvan, a city located by Lake Van (Turkey's largest lake), also introduced a two-tier model in April. This "touristic" service is said to be a part of Turkey's efforts to attract tourists to destinations beyond popular cities like Istanbul and Antalya.

The Doğu Express, which travels between Ankara and Kars near the borders of Armenia and Georgia, played a key role in changing people's view of Turkish night trains from simply being practical to being enjoyable. When vloggers started sharing the stunning mountain views along the Doğu Express route, more travelers started booking tickets to experience the journey alongside locals living in rural areas. This trend began even before the "official" tourism-focused version of the train was introduced in 2019.

I wanted to find out if the new services were worth it, so I decided to book a ticket for the Mesopotamia Express, which travels west from Diyarbakır. This city is known for its historical center filled with antique shops and grill restaurants emitting delicious smoke. Some cafes have been set up next to parts of the ancient city walls, while others are abandoned due to past conflicts between Turkish forces and Kurdish militants in the 2010s.

After hearing about it from artist Erkan Özgen, I drove 20 minutes to a residential neighborhood west of the old town. In this area, surrounded by tall apartment buildings, the Rıdvan Kuday Gallery has recently opened to display Kurdish art. When I arrived, young artists were hanging up fresh prints to dry on washing lines, giggling as they worked. Delicate ceramic shoe sculptures by Sinan Kaplan adorned the gallery's white walls, while vibrant portraits by Bedran Tekin showed residents against a backdrop of black-and-white building ruins. The gallery offered a modern twist in the ancient city, standing out even more with its powerful air conditioning cooling the space to an icy temperature.

The air conditioning in my train compartment isn't very strong, but it's a nice bonus of paying for a premium ticket. I also have my own sink, outlet, door key, a refrigerator that doesn't work, and some juice and chocolate to enjoy. I head to the dining car and there I meet Hayriye and Seher, two women from Ankara with a violin and guitar. As the train begins to move at noon, they start to tune their instruments while the train staff place plates of doner meat around us. The passengers show their gratitude for their peaceful performance of the classical Turkish song Fikrimin İnce Gülü.

At 4pm, we arrive at the small Yolçatı station where we make our first of two lengthy stops. A group of buses takes us through the nearby town of Elâzığ and up twisty roads to a dusty, sun-drenched peak. Here lies the ancient town of Harput. A man wearing a red baseball cap guides us past the partially ruined Harput Castle and into the Harput Great Mosque. Violinist Hayriye, utilizing Google Translate, explains that this mosque, constructed around 1157, is known for its leaning stone tower. A large, crooked tree next to the mosque also captures our attention. We learn that this tree is famous for appearing as if it is bowing down in reverence.

Marveling at the curved tree turns out to be a great way to start a conversation. A man traveling with his two kids asks me to join them for adana kebab at a nearby restaurant. A train staff member, wearing a wine-red vest and a TCDD pin, starts calling me "Tolstoy" once he learns that I work as a journalist. The atmosphere feels like a school field trip as we board the coach back to the train, and I find myself joining in with the passengers as we enthusiastically sing Turkish pop music. I may be the only non-Turkish person on the trip, but I happily clap and sing along with them.

Following a peaceful night without any snoring, we reach Kayseri at 9 am. Originally scheduled for a three-hour stop, we only have two hours due to the train being behind schedule. Despite plans to visit Kayseri's Grand Mosque and Seljuk Civilisation Museum during our stop, there simply isn't enough time. Instead, the musicians and I opt for a restaurant close to the station and enjoy sandwiches made with Kayseri's famous pastirma, a cured beef delicacy known for its rich, dark purple color.

I like this break more than the guided tour at Harput by bus. Sitting on stools outside a restaurant in Kayseri, then back in the dining car, travelers share bread, sweet nuts, and moist towelettes, while I shock many with stories of adding milk to tea. Before reaching Ankara at 7pm, I gather a lengthy list of suggested eateries to try, even though they are all kebab places.

Is the Mesopotamia Express a good value for the money? I really enjoyed it, especially when listening to the music in the dining car. With extended stops that let you explore four cities in two days (or three cities on the east-bound route: Ankara, Malatya, and Diyarbakır), it's a convenient choice if you're short on time - as long as the train is on time. Even though it's technically a tourist service, I felt a strong sense of direction and excitement as we journeyed towards the capital.

If you are okay with uncomfortable open-plan seating that may be tough on your back, you can consider taking the regular Güney Kurtalan Express instead of the Mesopotamia Express. This will allow you to visit the same cities along the route, save money on hotel expenses, and still have a similar experience. The Mesopotamia Express is not available until 2024, but the Güney Kurtalan Express operates year-round, running five times a week in each direction.

However, whether it is considered a tourist attraction or not, a poor choice for a night train in eastern Turkey is hard to find. I am now considering buying tickets for the Van Gölü Express to add to my collection.

The Mesopotamia Express is set to come back in 2025. A cabin for two people costs 9,000 Turkish lira (£218) from Ankara to Diyarbakır one-way and £194 in the other direction. You can buy train tickets on Turkey's state rail network's (TCDD) website and app (available on Apple's App Store and Google Play) or through English-speaking agencies like Amber Travel. Accommodation in Diyarbakır is available at Radisson Blu Hotel, Diyarbakır, starting at £115 for a room with breakfast included. In Ankara, you can stay at Crowne Plaza Ankara, with rooms starting at £125 including breakfast.