If you like chickpeas (garbanzos), you’ll like Çorum.
The Central Anatolian city of Çorum (CHOH-room, alt. 801 meters/2628 feet, pop. 200,000), 242 km (150 miles) northeast of Ankara, is a farming center, a place to buy, sell and eat chickpeas (leblebi) and perhaps to spend the night if you’ve been visiting the Hittitearcheological sites at Boğazkale and Alacahöyük.
For example, if you’ve left Ankara in a rental car and stopped at Boğazkale on your way to the Black Sea coast and an itinerary through Eastern Turkey, Çorum makes a logical stopping-place. Although there are a few simple lodgings at Boğazkale, there are fancier ones, and more of them, at Çorum.
However, if you can make it from Bogazkale to Amasya, that would be better. Amasya is a far more interesting city, and well placed for the next stage of your journey, which may be to Samsun and Giresun on the Black Sea coast.
Çorum is served by frequent buses from Ankara and Samsun (stopping at Sungurlu), with less frequent service to Amasya. A few minibuses run between Çorum and Alacahöyük daily, but there is no public transport connection between Alacahöyük and Boğazkale (36 km, 22 miles). You must travel via Sungurlu.
Distances & Travel Times
Alacahöyük: 50 km (31 miles) S, 50 minutes
Amasya: 95 km (59 miles) E, 1.5 hours
Ankara: 242 km (150 miles) SW, 4 hours
Boğazkale: 86 km (53 miles) S, 1.75 hours
Giresun: 385 km (239 miles) NE, 7 hours
Samsun: 176 km (109 miles) NE, 2.75 hours
Sungurlu: 70 km (43 miles) SW, 1.25 hours
Yozgat: 100 km (62 miles) S, 1.5 hours
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