Foca is a district, as well as the center town of that district, in Turkey's Izmir Province.

The town of foca is situated at about 69 km to the northwest of Izmir's city center. The district also has a township with its own municipality named Yenifoca (literally New foca), which is also along the shore and at a distance of 20 km from foca proper. For this reason, foca itself is locally often called as Eskifoca (literally Old foca) in daily parlance. The ancient city of Phocaea is located between the two modern focas.

Additionally, Yenifoca, taken over by the Genoese in 1275 as a dowry, was the more active part of the two focas during the Middle Ages, mainly due to the region's rich alum reserves, which were extensively mined by the Genoese and were preserved well into the Ottoman era.

Eski Foca stretches along two bays; a larger one named Büyükdeniz (literally the Greater Sea) and a smaller cove within that large one, named Küçükdeniz (literally the Smaller Sea), where the medieval castle is also located.

Many parts of the district are under strict environmental protection due to the value of the flora and the fauna, and the beauty of the small bays and coves, especially between Foca and Yenifoca. Therefore, a judicious way to get to know the district would be by boat tours regularly organized in partance of the center town. Because of the protective measures, new constructions are not permitted in many parts of the district and foca is set to preserve its unique characteristic as composed principally of old houses.

The construction project for a 300-boat capacity marina in Foca is recently tendered and started, upon the completion of which the town in expected to open to more active international tourism. Twice-a-day ferry services to Mytilene (Midilli in Turkish) in the nearby Greek island of Lesbos are operated by a private company since May 1, 2007.

Foca is the site of one of three marine protected areas established in Turkey for the preservation of the Mediterranean Monk Seal, a heavily endangered species of sea mammals.

Foa is also the homeport of the Amphibious Marines Brigade (Amfibi Deniz Piyade Tugayı) of the Turkish Navy.

Sea Fishes

Friends of sailors of Foca, who did not leave sailors alone during sailors' struggles against sea for centuries, are sweet seals. Mediterranean seals, whose total number in the world is approximately between 350 and 400, are only living in Turkey, Greece and North - Western African coasts. Some portion of Mediterranean seals are settled in islands surrounding Foca. In spite of increasing tourism and fishing, they are using the caverns, coasts in these islands with the aim of bringing forth juveniles, to bring up their juveniles, to rest and sun themselves. Mediterranean seals, whose name is " Monachus Monachus" in Latin, needs to land, and signs of human on their residential areas annoy them. This specie is one of the 12 mammals who are under the danger of annihilation of its generation on the world.

In order to protect Mediterranean seals living in Foca islands, it is forbidden to approach more than 2 miles to islands between Aslanburnu and Deveboynu Cape, and more than 100 meters to Siren Rocky Places and Orak Island, on where seals are seen.