This region has always been at the crossroads of different civilizations. The Hittites located the capital for their empire at Hattusa. Anatolia was a center of Christianity from the first century, and it has some of the earliest churches. After the Hellenistic Greeks, Romans and Byzantines, Anatolia came under control of the Seljuk Turks, Mongols, and then the Ottoman Empire. Today, Ankara, the capital of modern Turkey, is here in Anatolia.

Tip: Traveling through Anatolia with kids, a parent writes, "You really have to drive or take buses to these places - a car and driver gives you a lot more flexibility."