Getting There
By Car -- It is inadvisable (and next to impossible) to rely on the ferry/dolmus from Çanakkale to tour the battlefields, an expanse of approximately 28 square miles. To drive to the battlefields from Istanbul, take the E6 highway (toll road) toward Edirne. Exit Gelibolu for the hourly (daily) car ferry to Lapseki (take the coastal road south 30km/19 miles to Çanakkale) or continue through to Eceabat, with hourly car ferry service between 7am and midnight (then every other hour) direct to Çanakkale (both ferries 12YTL/$10/£4.80; 20 min).
Visitor Information
Visitors to the park should stop at one of the two information centers at the start of their visit. The Kabatepe Visitors Center (tel. 0286/814-1297), called Kabatepe Tanitma Merkezi in Turkish, is 24km (15 miles) northwest of Eceabat, on a cliff overlooking Anzac Cove and the village of Kabatepe. This location -- above Brighton Beach where the Anzac troops were supposed to land -- is where you should begin your visit. The information center and memorial grounds claim the plateau that was the objective of the failed operation. The commanding hilltop was heavily fortified with Turkish artillery, but today remains eerily silent, with a few notable monuments and spectacular views of the cliffs.
There's also a visitor center at Çamburnu (tel. 0286/814-1128), located about 1km ([bf[2/3 mile) south of Eceabat. Both have small museums (admission 2YTL/$1.75/80p; daily 9am-1pm and 2-6pm) housing examples of the battlefield's detritus along with uniforms and old photographs. Your time is better spent outside. Visits to the battlefields are free.
