A 5-minute read covering how this guide and the companion audio-tour app work. Same content as the ℹ info button on each card — collected here if you'd rather browse it all at once.
This is an independent visitor guide to Göbekli Tepe — the world's oldest known monumental sanctuary, on a limestone ridge about 15 km north-east of Şanlıurfa in Upper Mesopotamia, Türkiye, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2018. It is not affiliated with the excavation, the Şanlıurfa Museum, the German Archaeological Institute (DAI) or UNESCO.
Two parts work together. The website is for reading at home: the four great enclosures (A, B, C and D), the carved T-pillars, the famous Vulture Stone, the story of the discovery, and how to plan a visit. The free companion app is for the site itself: a proximity-triggered offline audio guide that plays the right story as you reach each enclosure along the boardwalk.
Everything on the website is free to read without an account. A free account simply lets you save enclosures and heritage sites to revisit, and keep track of which parts of the site you have explored.
Start with the site for what Göbekli Tepe is and why it matters, then read about the four great enclosures and how it was found. The heritage pages cover the wider Taş Tepeler landscape — Karahan Tepe, Urfa Man and the Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum, where most of the finds are displayed.
On site, the audio guide does the talking. As you follow the elevated boardwalk above the enclosures, the app senses where you are and plays the relevant story automatically — Enclosure D as you reach it, the Vulture Stone as you face it, the meaning of the T-pillars as you stand among them. Because mobile coverage on the ridge can be patchy, the audio works fully offline: download it once over Wi-Fi before you travel.
The companion app is completely free — no charge, no subscription, no ads. It is still in development and is not yet published; you can read about the app and the rest of your trip in the meantime, and plan your visit while you wait.
No. This is an independent visitor guide and a free offline audio-tour companion. It is not affiliated with the excavation, the Şanlıurfa Museum, the German Archaeological Institute (DAI) or UNESCO. Always check opening hours, ticketing and on-site rules with official sources before you travel.
Everything on the website is free to read, and the companion app will be free too — no charge, no subscription, no ads. You can browse the whole guide without an account. A free account simply lets you save enclosures and heritage sites and track which parts of the site you have explored.
As you follow the elevated boardwalk above the enclosures, the app detects which enclosure you are near and plays its story automatically — no fumbling for track numbers. Enclosures A, B, C and D and the Vulture Stone each have their own track, and you can also tap any enclosure to play its story on demand. Bring headphones so you can listen without disturbing other visitors.
Yes. Mobile coverage on the ridge can be patchy, so the audio and maps are fully available offline. Download the guide over Wi-Fi before you set out, then leave your data switched off — it works the same either way.
The companion app is still in development and is coming soon to iOS and Android — the store buttons stay disabled until it is live. The guide and the app are in English. In the meantime you can read the whole site and plan your visit here.
At the site, visitors walk the boardwalk and view the great pillars in place, but the portable finds have been removed for protection and study. Most are displayed at the Şanlıurfa Archaeology Museum, along with material from neighbouring Karahan Tepe and "Urfa Man," the oldest known life-sized human statue. Questions or corrections? Email [email protected].
An independent guide — not affiliated with the excavation, the Şanlıurfa Museum, the DAI or UNESCO.