The historical khan, which is among Diyarbakir’s important caravansarys, was built at the time’s Diyarbakir Governor Husrev Pasha in 1527, together with the mosque and madrasah located behind it. Just as how Evliya Celebi had mentioned, Guides Khan, which has quite many rooms, is named as Menzil Khan, in a statues with the date of 20 June 1603.
The reason why it is known as Guides Khan is because the guides, who were taking prospective pilgrims to Hedjaz, had stayed in this khan. Khan has even hosted Ottoman Rulers, who were going to expeditions. The khan was built with yard and two floors. In the middle of the khan, which covers a huge area, it has an almost squared yard with a pool. There is the barn section with single floor, on the avenue side of the khan, in which dark basalt and limestone were used as the main material.
Khan rooms are located behind the porches, set on thick feet on the second floor of the khan, whose entrance is through a geometrically designed door. The section that is nearly 6-7 meters was built as barn for camels and horses to rest in, is used as a closed restaurant today. The restaurant, with 300 people capacity, is a place not only for restaurant’s customers but for native people to eat in as well. The shops on the avenue are touristic as well. On the entrance floor, two parts are functioned as administration bureaus, oriental room, game room, and bar while the other two parts are functioned as rooms.
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