Balıkesir Province in the context of "Bursa Province"

Balıkesir (Turkish pronunciation: [baˈlɯcesiɾ]) is a city in the Marmara region of Turkey. It is the seat of Balıkesir Province, which is also a metropolitan municipality. As of 2022, the population of Balıkesir Province is 1,257,590, of which 314,958 in the city proper (the urban part of the districts Altıeylül and Karesi). Between 1341 and 1922, it was the capital of Karasi.

Cunda Island, also called Alibey Island, (Turkish: Cunda Adası, Alibey Adası), Greek Moschonisi (Greek: Μοσχονήσι or Μοσχόνησος), is the largest of the Ayvalık Islands archipelago in Turkey, which was historically called the Εκατόνησα (Hekatonisa) or Μοσχονήσια (Moschonisia) archipelago in Greek. It lies in the Edremit Gulf on Turkey's northwestern coast, off the coast of Ayvalık in Balıkesir Province, Turkey, with an area of 26.8 square kilometres (10 sq mi). It is located 16 kilometres (10 miles) east of Lesbos, Greece.

İzmir Province (Turkish: İzmir ili) is a province and metropolitan municipality of Turkey in western Anatolia, situated along the Aegean coast. Its capital is the city of İzmir, which is in itself composed of the province's central 11 districts out of 30 in total. To the west, it is surrounded by the Aegean Sea, and it encloses the Gulf of Izmir. Its area is 11,891 square kilometres (4,591 square miles), and its population is 4,462,056 (2022). Neighboring provinces are Balıkesir to the north, Manisa to the east, and Aydın to the south. The traffic code of the province is 35.

Major rivers of the province include the Küçük Menderes river, Koca Çay (with Güzelhisar dam), and Bakırçay.

Altıeylül is a municipality and district of Balıkesir Province, Turkey. Its area is 956 km, and its population is 183,736 (2022).

The district was established in 2012, when Balıkesir Province was declared a metropolitan municipality as a part of the 2013 Turkish local government reorganisation (Law no. 6360). Altıeylül was created out of the former Balıkesir central district, along with Karesi. The name Altıeylül means "6 September", which was the date of recovery of Balıkesir during the Turkish War of Independence in 1922.

Karesi is a municipality and district of Balıkesir Province, Turkey. Its area is 695 km, and its population is 187,362 (2022).

The district was established in 2012, when Balıkesir Province was declared a metropolitan municipality as a part of the 2013 Turkish local government reorganisation (Law no. 6360). Karesi was created out of the former Balıkesir central district, along with Altıeylül. The name Karesi refers to a short-lived -14th-century Turkmen beylik around Balıkesir.

Marmara Island (Turkish: Marmara Adası) is a Turkish island in the Sea of Marmara. With an area of 126.1 km (48.7 sq mi), it is the largest island in the Sea of Marmara and the second-largest island of Turkey - after Gökçeada (formerly Turkish: İmroz; Greek: Ίμβρος Imvros). It is the center of Marmara District in Balıkesir Province. Ships and ferries provide transportation from Istanbul, and motorboats from Tekirdağ and Erdek. Marmara Island has a lot of historical artifacts. The town of Marmaraon the island's south-western coast takes its name from the quarried marble (Ancient Greek: μάρμαρος, romanized: marmaros) for which the town is famous and which gives the island, the sea and the whole region their names.

Marmara Island is notable for its diverse natural and cultural attributes. Located near Istanbul, it features clean waters, pebble and sandy beaches, and ideal trekking routes. The island experiences two distinct climate régimes: Mediterranean on the south and Black Sea on the north side. It is renowned for having the highest mountain peak in the Marmara Sea and is home to Turkey's richest concentration of flora for its land size. Marmara Island is also unique in its support of wild-horse populations and is renowned for its ancient marble quarries.Additionally, it is the birthplace of the enigmatic ancient poet Aristeas (c. 7th century BC) and is known for producing Turkey's most exquisitely flavored sage tea. The island is the only one in Turkey to offer a combination of high mountains, lowlands suitable for agriculture, streams, waterfalls, olive-cultivation, tourism, and mining.

Ayvalık Islands (Turkish: Ayvalık Adaları, Latin: Hecatonnesi, Ancient Greek: Ἑκατόννησοι, romanized: Hekatonesoi), are the group of islands around Ayvalık district of Turkey in Balıkesir Province in the Northeastern Aegean Sea. There are 22 islands and numerous rocks in the group, with Cunda Island, now a peninsula, being the largest. People live only on Cunda and Lale Islands. Cunda and Lale islands are linked to Ayvalık on the mainland, by a causeway enabling transportation by car. Cunda also has a ferry link from the main town, Alibey, to Ayvalık during the summer.

A Greek Orthodox metropolis was established, based in Cunda island, for some months in 1922.

The Edremit gulf (Turkish: Edremit körfezi) is an Aegean gulf in Turkey's Balıkesir Province. It is named after Edremit, a district of Balıkesir Province which is situated close to the tip of the gulf. Biga Peninsula is to the north. The southern coast belongs to the ilçe of Ayvalık, while the western entrance is enclosed with the northern part of the Greek island of Lesbos.

In ancient history there were many settlements lying close to the north coast of the gulf; Hamaxitus, Polymedium, Assos, Lamponeia, Antandrus and Adramyttion, were some of these.