The Aeneas legend and historical context
Aeneas is the son of the Trojan prince Anchises and the goddess Aphrodite. In Homer’s Iliad, he is named the greatest Trojan hero after Hector. According to legend, when Troy falls, Aeneas escapes the burning city with his divine mother’s protection, carrying his father and leading his young son Ascanius by the hand.
With a group of surviving Trojans, he sets out in search of a new homeland. As told in Virgil’s epic Aeneid, his journey begins in Troy and carries him across the Aegean and the Mediterranean, all the way to Italy. At the end of this long sea voyage, Aeneas reaches Latium, where he settles. From his lineage, the foundations of the city of Rome are laid.
In this way, a legend born in Anatolia becomes the founding story of European civilization. Aeneas’s epic journey, which begins in Troy, now comes to life once again as an international cultural route. Certified by the Council of Europe, the Aeneas Cultural Route is the first itinerary to trace the legend across five countries, beginning in Türkiye and following Aeneas’s footsteps. Officially recognized in 2021, the route brings this mythological heritage to today’s travelers through a sequence of archaeological and natural sites.
Troya: The starting point of the legend
Aeneas’s story begins in the ancient city of Troy, near Çanakkale. The world-famous site of Troy, immortalized in the Iliad and the Odyssey, has inspired legends for millennia. It was here that the ten-year Trojan War was fought; tales such as the love of Paris and Helen and the city’s fall through Odysseus’s wooden horse placed Troy at the heart of mythology. On that final night, Aeneas fled the city, gathered the survivors, and set out with his father, his son, and the sacred Palladion for a new beginning. Today, the ancient city of Troy is an open-air archaeological park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, inviting visitors to walk through the birthplace of an enduring legend.
Discover more about this ancient city, brought to life in Homer’s immortal verses, in our article, “Troy: The immortal city.” As the official starting point of the Aeneas Cultural Route, Troy invites visitors to step into one of the greatest stories in history. With a flight to Çanakkale, you can set out to explore these ancient lands where the legend began.
Mount Ida and Antandros: Where mythology meets nature
After leaving Troy, Aeneas and his companions reach the foothills of the mythical Mount Ida, known today as the Kazdağları, near Antandros on the Edremit Gulf. According to legend, it was here that Aeneas built his ships from timber cut in Mount Ida’s dense forests before setting sail in search of a new homeland.
The ancient city of Antandros, located near today’s town of Altınoluk in Balıkesir, is the second major stop along the route and is known as the place where Aeneas began building his fleet. Surrounded by remarkable natural beauty, the region’s pine forests, olive groves, and fragrant plants such as thyme and sage blanket the slopes of Mount Ida.
Assos and the historic villages of its surroundings
Another key stop along the Aeneas Cultural Route, between Troy and Antandros, is the ancient city of Assos. Located within the village boundaries of Behramkale in Çanakkale’s Ayvacık district, Assos is a former harbor city founded in the 10th century BC. Built atop a volcanic hill, the city’s highest point is crowned by the remains of the Temple of Athena, which rises within the acropolis at the summit.
Constructed in the 6th century BC, the Temple of Athena is among the earliest Doric temples of the Archaic period in Anatolia. At sunset, the view from the hilltop stretches across the Edremit Gulf toward the island of Lesbos, offering visitors a truly mesmerizing panorama. Beyond the temple, much of Assos’s four-kilometer-long ancient city walls still stand. With its deep ties to the history of philosophy, Assos holds a place that is as intellectual as it is architectural.
The renowned philosopher Aristotle lived in Assos for a time, founding a school of philosophy there and conducting studies in zoology and biology. As you wander through today’s village of Behramkale, the narrow streets lined with stone houses make these deep traces of history palpable at every turn.
Beyond Behramkale, other villages along the route have preserved their historic character. Yeşilyurt and Adatepe, in particular, attract travelers for their proximity to Assos. Quiet coves near Assos, such as Sivrice Bay, offer ideal settings for those seeking alternative accommodations or camping.
In short, Assos and its surroundings invite you to experience the spirit of the ancient world and the rhythms of traditional Aegean life, together.
Greece: Mythological stops from the Aegean to the Mediterranean
Setting sail from Troy and Antandros, Aeneas and the surviving Trojans first make their way to key stops in the ancient Greek world. Among the foremost of these is the island of Delos, set at the heart of the Aegean Sea. In mythology, Delos is the birthplace of Apollo, god of light, and his twin sister Artemis. It becomes a guiding point on Aeneas’s journey. On this sacred island, his first refuge after leaving Troy, Aeneas listens to Apollo’s prophecy and receives a sign pointing toward the land of his future homeland.
Historically, Delos also rose to prominence from the 7th century BC onward as an international center of religion and trade. Flourishing around the Temple of Apollo, the island later grew wealthy after being declared a free port during the Roman era. Today, Delos is preserved as an uninhabited archaeological park and has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1990. Another major stop in Greece is the island of Crete. Following the prophecy at Delos, Aeneas turns toward Crete, believing it to be the land of his ancestors.
According to legend, because Teucer, the forefather of the Trojans, had once migrated from Crete to the Troad, Aeneas attempted to found a new city here for his people. They named this intended colony “New Pergamon,” in memory of Troy. Yet a plague, believed to have been sent by the gods, soon devastates the people and livestock and destroys the crops.
Forced to abandon Crete after this devastation, Aeneas sets sail once more, heading toward the lands destined for him. After Crete, he enters the Ionian Sea and endures difficult adventures among the islands of western Greece. To explore this geography and the ancient harbors that shaped Aeneas’s journey, you can plan your trip by flying to Athens and following the traces of this legendary voyage.
Albania: Traces of Troy in Epirus
After leaving Greece’s western shores, Aeneas and his companions cross the Adriatic and reach Epirus, in what is now Albania. They are welcomed by the ancient city of Buthrotum, known today as Butrint. In Virgil’s “The Aeneid,” Butrint is a key stop, for after the fall of Troy, some Trojans who migrated west founded a small “New Troy” here. According to legend, Aeneas meets Helenus in Butrint and receives prophecies and counsel about what awaits him in Italy. Seeing Troy’s legacy live on in Epirus, he finds reassurance and gains insight into the final stage of his journey.
From a historical perspective, Butrint developed into a thriving port city and settlement from the 4th century BC onward. Enriched with remains from the ancient Greek and Roman periods, including a theater, an asclepieion, an agora, city gates, and many other structures, the city was later supported by Augustus as a Roman colony.
Continuously inhabited until the Middle Ages, Butrint is now open to visitors as an archaeological national park and has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1992. Blending legend and history, Butrint stands as the jewel of the Aeneas Cultural Route in Albania.
Tunisia: Carthage and the legend of Dido
The only African stop on Aeneas’s legendary journey is the city of Carthage, in present-day Tunisia. When the Trojan hero’s ships are caught in a storm off Sicily and driven south, they reach the Phoenician colony of Carthage. There, Aeneas is welcomed by the city’s legendary queen, Dido.
In Virgil’s epic, a passionate love unfolds between Aeneas and Dido. Their bond embodies, on the one hand, the hopes of those fleeing Troy’s destruction and, on the other, the emotions of a powerful woman striving to build a new kingdom. Yet bound by the will of the gods, Aeneas is ultimately compelled to leave Carthage to fulfill his destiny.
Heartbroken by his sudden departure, Dido meets a tragic end, taking her own life in a fate that has echoed through legend. In mythology, the curse she directs at Aeneas is said to have sown the seeds of the future enmity between Rome and Carthage. Beyond myth, Carthage is also one of the Mediterranean’s most significant historical civilizations. Founded by the Phoenicians in the 9th century BC, the city rose to prominence in the 6th century BC as the capital of a vast trading empire. As Rome’s principal rival in the three great Punic Wars of antiquity, Carthage was ultimately destroyed by the Romans in 146 BC, only to be rebuilt on the same site during the reign of Augustus as Roman Carthage.
Today, the Carthage Archaeological Site is among Tunisia’s most important historical landmarks, with multilayered remains ranging from the ruins on Byrsa Hill to ancient harbors, temples, baths, an amphitheater, and necropolises. Since 1979, the site has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, bringing together traces of Phoenician-Punic, Roman, early Christian, and Islamic periods.
Within the Aeneas Cultural Route, Carthage stands as a symbolic stop along the route of legendary love and cultural encounter. To explore this magnificent African chapter of the route and wander through its layers of history, you can take advantage of flights to Tunis.
Italy: The road to Rome
After a long and perilous sea journey, Aeneas finally sets foot on Italian soil. The Italian leg of the route begins in the town of Castro in the Puglia region, at the heel of the Italian peninsula. Known in antiquity as Castrum Minervae, this coastal settlement is described in the Aeneid as the site of Aeneas’s first landing in Italy.
According to Virgil, as Aeneas and his companions approach by sea, they see a magnificent temple to Pallas Athena gleaming atop a high promontory. Excavations at Castro have since uncovered the remains of a monumental statue of Minerva and altar fragments, confirming the site’s status as an ancient sanctuary.
Aeneas and his companions continue south through Italy and reach Sicily. While passing the land of the giant Polyphemus at the foot of Mount Etna, they rescue a surviving Greek from Odysseus’ crew and escape the Cyclops. Near Trapani in western Sicily, Aeneas’ father, Anchises, passes away, and Aeneas holds a grand funeral in his honor at the foot of Mount Eryx. Today, the monumental Doric temple and theater at Segesta, still standing, rank among the most striking examples of Sicily’s ancient heritage.
After Sicily, Aeneas turns once more toward the western shores of the Italian mainland. In Campania, his most significant stop is Cumae. In this ancient Greek colony near Naples, Aeneas consults the prophetess known as the Sibyl and descends into the underworld, where he confronts both his past and his future.
At last, in the lands of Latium, Aeneas encounters his destiny in its fullest sense. Welcomed by the local king, Latinus, the Trojan hero marries the king’s daughter, Lavinia, uniting the two peoples through kinship. The city he establishes is named Lavinium in her honor. Archaeological findings suggest thirteen altar platforms here, linked to the cult of Aeneas, as well as what is believed to be his tomb.
The final stop, Rome, marks both the end of the route and the beginning of a new legend. According to mythology, Aeneas’s son, Ascanius, goes on to found Alba Longa, and from his lineage, through Romulus, the city of Rome is born. In this way, the story of a hero who fled Troy becomes the foundational myth of Latin and Roman civilization in Italy.
If you would like to see the lands where this great epic reaches its conclusion and the Roman legend is born, you can set out on a journey to the heart of history by flying to Rome.
Ending: From the mythological route to the European cultural route
Thousands of years later, Aeneas’s epic journey has taken on new life today as a tangible cultural route. In 2021, the Aeneas Route was officially certified by the Council of Europe as a “Cultural Route.”
With this recognition, the mythological path from Troy to Rome became one of the 45 cultural thematic routes formally acknowledged across Europe. Spanning five Mediterranean countries – Türkiye, Greece, Albania, Tunisia, and Italy—the Aeneas Cultural Route brings together around 21 key stops. Linking six UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including Troy, Delos, Butrint, Mount Etna, Carthage, and Cilento National Park, the route also encompasses three national park areas, among them Mount Ida, Butrint, and Cilento.
As defined by the Council of Europe, the Aeneas Route celebrates a shared Mediterranean heritage by weaving together mythology, archaeology, and geography. By following, step by step, the legendary events from the Trojan War to the founding of Rome, visitors can explore ancient cities, harbors, temples, and natural landscapes across multiple countries. Brought to life under the leadership of the International Aeneas Route Association, the project was developed through collaboration among numerous institutions, ranging from the Municipality of Edremit to the Lavinium Foundation in Italy. Ultimately, this cultural route, which traces the footsteps of a mythological epic across the Mediterranean, offers travelers the chance to journey deep into history while experiencing the region’s living cultural richness.
Those who follow in Aeneas’s footsteps embark on a singular voyage, uncovering the shared roots of civilizations and the places where legends took shape, from Troy to Rome.
