Bursa is located in the northwest of the Anatolian peninsula and southeast of the Marmara Sea. The shores of the Marmara Sea are 135 km away. The most important peak in the province is Uludağ, which is a ski resort and national park. The most significant lakes are Lake Iznik and Lake Uluabat.
Ulu Mosque, the most famous historical building of the city, was constructed between 1396 and 1400 by Yıldırım Bayezit, fully made up of cut stone.
In the Çekirge neighborhood of Bursa, the hotel center of the city, the Çelik Palas, famous for its spa center. The bitter alkaline bicarbonate waters of this hot spring are used in bathing treatments for rheumatism, aching muscles, blood clots, diabetes, gout and disorders of the metabolic system. When drunk, it is good for liver and gall bladder conditions.
Other famous Bursa Spa resorts are the Bademli Bahçe Thermal Springs, the baths of Yeni Kaplıca, Kaynarca and Karamustafapaşa. Their waters are sulphurous and radioactive. Bathing and drinking treatments are recommended for rheumatisms and other muscle diseases but also for chronic infections and peripheral circulation.

The history of the region goes all the way back to the Chalolithic era (5000-3500 BC). Archeological investigations in the area have uncovered remains dating back to this period. Besides copper, the distinctive material of the Chalolithic age, items made of stone, flint and bone have also been found.
The Bithynians had a number of settlements on the slopes of Olympos (Uludağ) in antiquity. The foundations of the city of Prusa were laid by the Bithynian King Zipotes in the 3rd century BC and it was made the seat of administration during the reign of Prusias I between 230-180 BC.
In the 12th century BC the Trallians, a Phrygian tribe, moved into the area. The Roman era begins here with the bequest of the kingdom to Rome by King Nikomedes IV upon his death. After the Roman empire was divided into two in 395 AD, it came under the rule of the Byzantines.