It’s officially heli-skiing season in Türkiye. The 2022 season opened in the Kaçkar Mountains of Türkiye’s Black Sea region. Heli-skiing is off-trail, downhill skiing accessed via a helicopter instead of a ski lift. Türkiye is home to some of the world’s best heli-skiing with deep powder snow and long ski runs, attracting athletes from the United States, Canada, Switzerland, France, Italy and Russia through the end of March.

© Courtesy of Go Türkiye

The Kaçkar Mountains are situated between the Rize and Artvin provinces in northeastern Türkiye, with its highest peak reaching 12,800 feet. There are more than 400 ski runs in the region, ranging 4,000–11,800 feet above sea level, with vertical drops of 2,300–4,000 feet. The mountain range offers prime snow quality with a stable snowpack and varied ski terrain, ideal for heli-skiing.

The area offers various lodging options from boutique hotels to hostels. There are professional ski guides, tourist guides, pilots, massage therapists and interpreters located in Rize to offer additional guidance and assistance. For those who would like to add other activities to their visit, the region is home to cultural points of interest. Visit historic buildings dating back to the Middle Ages. Experience regional culinary traditions with dishes including hamsi (fried or cured Black Sea anchovies), a regional variation of a Turkish breakfast, muhlama (a mixture of cheese, corn flour and butter), turşu kavurması (fried pickles) and mısır ekmeği(cornbread).