CLIMATE Turkey is located at the south of the medium climate zone, and is effected by the Mediterranean climate, which is subtropical with dry summers. Mediterranean The coastline along this region has a Mediterranean climate, in which the summers are hot and dry, and winters warm and wet. Burdur and Isparta provinces, behind the Taurus Mountains to the west, are the transitional regions between the Mediterranean and terrestrial climate. The waters here are warm for most of the year, and it is possible to swim between May to October. Aegean The coastal region has a Mediterranean climate, which grows more extreme when moving further inland, to a terrestrial climate. The Aegean Sea is warm enough to swim between June and October. Marmara The winter season is extremely cold, with frequent frost and snow, with less threat of drought in the summer than the Mediterranean. With colder water, it is only possible to swim between June and August, and possibly September. Black Sea The Black Sea climate, which is wet all year round, is separated into three types. The Eastern Black Sea Region (Trabzon and Rize) it is the wettest with warm summers and warm winters; the Central area (Ordu) is relatively dry, and is more similar to a Mediterranean climate; and the western region (Zonguldak and Sinop) is dryer still. Swimming in the Black Sea is comfortable between late June to mid August. Central Anatolia The winters are cold, and summers are slightly hotter than the Mediterranean. The wettest seasons are spring and autumn. Eastern Anatolia A severe terrestrial climate is encountered here, with long and harsh winters with heavy snowfall. The summers are not as hot as in the south-east. Southeastern Anatolia The steppe climate dominates, with extreme seasons: Summers are hot and extremely dry, with droughts often suffered. In winter, the temperature plummets to well below freezing, with heavy snowfall.