Osmaniye, inland from the head of the Guff of Iskenderun, is the turn off for two more ancient sites. The road to Karatepe takes you to the ancient Roman city of Castabala, where a colonnaded street, theatre, baths and a fortress on the hill evoke a bygone era. At the Karatepe National Park, (the neo-Hittite site), the remains of the summer residence of King Asitawada, tablets bearing Hittite and Phoenician inscriptions and an open air museum with fine bas reliefs reveal the importance and astonishing aesthetic of this pre historic civilisation.

Further back in history, Alexander the Great defeated Darius III and the Persian army in 333 B.C. at the Plain of Issos (Dortyol). Today this area is covered with large citrus groves which supply Turkey with oranges, tangerines and lemons.