Stand on Salim Street in the late afternoon and the city opens up around you: traffic, tea sellers, the mountains of Goizha and Azmar rising at the edge of the rooftops. Sulaymaniyah is a place where the day is built from museums, parks and long meals rather than from a single monument, and where the surrounding mountains are always part of the view.
This guide suits a traveller who has a day or two, wants to understand the city's modern history and Kurdish culture, and is happy to move between the centre and the hills on the edge of town. It covers the museums, galleries and parks named in the source material, plus the theme park above the city, and finishes with a one-day plan that strings them together.
Top things to do in Sulaymaniyah
1. Sulaymaniyah Museum
On Salim Street, this is the second biggest museum after the national museum in Baghdad, and it holds Mesopotamian, Kurdish and ancient Persian artifacts dating back to 1792–1750 BC. The museum opened in the Shorsh district in 1961 and moved to its current building on Salim Street in 1980; its main exhibition hall was renovated with financial assistance of UNESCO, and its collection includes artifacts looted from the Baghdad museum during the Iraq invasion and bought by the museum to help recover and return them.
Give it a proper block of time rather than a quick pass, and pair it with the rest of Salim Street afterwards. If you want to understand what you are looking at before you see the other sights, start your trip here.
2. Amna Suraka Museum
Kurdish for "Red Intelligence Museum", this is housed in a former Ba'ath intelligence headquarters and prison, and it draws particular attention to the Ba'ath regime's brutal treatment of local Kurds. Visitors are guided through the prisons and interrogation rooms, and the museum features many Soviet-era armored fighting vehicles.
This is the most sobering stop in the city, so leave room around it rather than squeezing it between lighter sights. The guided route through the prison buildings is the core of the visit.
3. Azadi Park
A few minutes walk from the bazaar, Azadi Park is huge and has a giant mast with the Kurdish flag fluttering over it. From here you get views of Azmar mountain, and the park holds small olive groves, playgrounds and artificial lakes.
Come in the late afternoon, when the park fills with young couples and families, and combine it with a walk through the bazaar nearby. It is an easy place to end a day of sightseeing.
4. Chavy Land
Despite the unfortunate name, this is an impressive theme park with various rides, a cable car to the mountain top and an aqua park. The top of the mountain has a restaurant, and there are many cafés in the park. Entry costs IQD3000, with rides costing extra; entry plus a ride on the cable car costs IQD6000. It is also often shown as Chavi Land.
The cable car is the reason to come even if you skip the rides, since it takes you up to the restaurant and the view. Budget for the entry fee plus whatever rides you choose, and treat it as a half-day rather than a quick stop.
5. Kurd's Heritage Museum
The Kurd's Heritage Museum is listed among the city's museums and is the place to go for Kurdish cultural material. It works well as a complement to the Sulaymaniyah Museum, which covers the older archaeological ground.
Check locally before you set out, as opening arrangements for smaller museums can change, and pair it with the galleries on Kawa Street if you are making an art and culture day of it.
6. Zamwa Gallery
On Kawa Street, Zamwa Gallery is open year-round and displays the works of the artists of the city. It is run by Rostam Aghala, a well-known modern Kurdish artist.
Because it is open year-round, it is a reliable stop if you are in the city outside the main season. Combine it with Aram Gallery, which is another place for artistic activities in the same vein.
7. Aram Gallery
Aram Gallery is another place for artistic activities in the city. It started the night cinema project, where people can go to watch Kurdish and foreign films.
If a screening is on during your visit, this is one of the better ways to spend an evening in the city. Otherwise, drop in as part of the same walk as Zamwa Gallery.
8. The mountain views from outside the city
Sulaymaniyah has a great view from outside, above the mountains around it: Goizha, Azmar, Piramagrwn and Baranan. The city is in the phase of transition from a usual city to a tourism city in every sense of the word.
Build one viewpoint into your day rather than trying to reach all of them. The views are best treated as the frame around the city's sights, not as a separate expedition.
If you only have one day
Morning: Start at the Sulaymaniyah Museum on Salim Street, where the Mesopotamian, Kurdish and ancient Persian artifacts give you the long history before you see anything else. Follow it with the Kurd's Heritage Museum for the Kurdish cultural side.
Afternoon: Move to Amna Suraka Museum and take the guided route through the former Ba'ath intelligence headquarters, prisons and interrogation rooms. Afterwards, walk to Azadi Park, a few minutes from the bazaar, to decompress among the olive groves and artificial lakes with Azmar mountain in view.
Evening: Head up to Chavy Land for the cable car to the mountain top and dinner at the restaurant there, or stay in the centre for Zamwa Gallery and Aram Gallery on Kawa Street, where the night cinema project shows Kurdish and foreign films.
Frequently asked questions
How many museums can I visit in Sulaymaniyah?
The source material names the Sulaymaniyah Museum, the Amna Suraka Museum and the Kurd's Heritage Museum. The Sulaymaniyah Museum is the second biggest museum after the national museum in Baghdad.
Is there anything to do in the evening?
Yes. Aram Gallery started the night cinema project, where people can go to watch Kurdish and foreign films. Chavy Land also has a restaurant at the top of the mountain and many cafés in the park.
What does it cost to visit Chavy Land?
Entry costs IQD3000, with rides costing extra. Entry and a ride on the cable car will cost IQD6000.
Where can I see the mountains around the city?
The city is surrounded by the Azmar, Goizha and Qaiwan Mountains in the northeast, Baranan Mountain in the south and the Tasluja Hills in the west. Azadi Park gives you views of Azmar mountain, and Chavy Land's cable car takes you to the mountain top.
With the museums, the parks and the mountains mapped out above, you have enough to start shaping your own days in Sulaymaniyah.