Ordu, a green, hillside city strung along Turkiye's Black Sea coast, is best explored with a rental car, and the drive begins right at Ordu-Giresun Airport, known by its code OGU, which sits on an artificial island built entirely on land reclaimed from the sea and connected to the mainland by a causeway. Picking up a car here immediately puts you on the coastal highway, and within minutes you can be heading either east toward Giresun and Trabzon or west toward Samsun, since the airport was purposefully built roughly midway between Ordu and Giresun to serve both cities.
Turkiye drives on the right, and the Black Sea Coastal Road (part of the D010 route) is the backbone of regional travel, running along the shoreline with sweeping sea views on one side and steep, terraced hillsides covered in hazelnut orchards on the other, since this region produces a large share of the world's hazelnuts. Trabzon lies roughly an hour and a half to two hours east of Ordu by car, while Giresun is a much shorter hop, often well under an hour. Inland from the coastal highway, roads climb quickly into forested hills and highland plateaus (yaylalar), and these routes can be narrow and winding, so a little extra time should be budgeted for any detour away from the coast.
International and local rental counters near the terminal typically offer compact and mid-size cars well suited to the coastal highway, plus higher-clearance options for anyone planning to explore the hill villages or highland routes above the city. Coastal driving is generally straightforward and well signed, while mountain roads reward a cautious pace, particularly after rain. For visitors wanting to combine sea, tea gardens, and hazelnut country in one trip, a rental car from OGU is by far the most flexible way to see the Ordu region properly and to set your own pace along this scenic stretch of coast.