Patara 18 km. With a length of the longest beach of Turkey. Patara Beach near Kas district of Antalya, the British Sunday Times newspaper once again by “the most beautiful beaches in the world” was shown. Kas and Fethiye town between the left, the current name Gelemiş Village, the ancient Patara city `s beaches, extinct with the danger facing the Caretta caretta called sea turtles and the most important spawning area as one of the World Wildlife Foundation, prepared by the project are protected. Of unspoiled nature lovers interested in the structure of Patara, all the world’s children, “Santa Claus” is familiar with the name `s birth place of St. Nikolaus. Focus of the remaining works from antiquity, as well as 22 kilometers of Patara `s the most narrow section 280, the 1500-meter wide section of the beach, the longest beach in Turkey are regarded as.

“I do not have a single pebble stone,” Patara “special environmental protection area” has been declared, some sections of the beach entrances, Caretta caretta breeding area, because it is blocked. Access to the beach in the evening is strictly prohibited and not allowed to light in the region.

Kaputas is a mountain gorge with a small shingle cove beach under a bridge crossing the gorge, with a steep set of steps up/down to the beach,and a steep drop off into the clear blue sea. It’s a 10 minute dolmus [bus] ride from the hill village of Kalkan, a harbour town with colourful restaurants and terraced bars overlooking the not particularly attractive marina.
2.5 hrs from Dalaman Airport.

Kemer is a made-to-order resort carved from Turkey’s pristine pine-shaded Mediterranean coast 35km (22 miles) southwest of Antalya (map).

Though not as large or elaborate as Mexico’s Cancún, the principle at Kemer (keh-MEHR, pop. 25,000) is the same: pick a favorable seaside location with little habitation and build a modern resort town of white concrete buildings in it.

With virtually nothing to offer in the way of quaint old buildings, photogenic winding streets or archeological ruins, people come to Kemer for sun and sea.

The beaches are mostly of large pebbles and stones, although the ones near the yacht marina and Yörük Parki (an anthropological park with a Turkish nomad theme) are of sand.

Kemer can be a base for exploring nearby sites like Olimpos, Phaselis, Termessos, Perge and Aspendos, but Antalya is more centrally located and, overall, has more to offer.

Alanya was favored as a seaside resort by the Seljuk Turks 800 years ago, just as it is for the thousands of British and European visitors who pack its hundreds of hotels and villas today.

For the Seljuks, the attraction was the mild climate, the good harbor, and its relative closeness to Konya, the Seljuk capital (maps).

For today’s visitors it’s the l-o-n-g stretches of sand beach, the warm waters of Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, and the deep history of the town.

Alanya has grown incredibly during the past decade, and now boasts a population of more than 250,000, which must double during the summer tourist season.

Many visitors fly into Antalya airport on inexpensive package vacations, then bus to Alanya. Lots of new hotels have been built to cater to the package trade.

While you’re here, visit the vast Seljuk fortress which dominates the town from its promontory; the tall, octagonal Seljuk Kizilkule (Red Tower); and the Tersane (shipyard).

The dank atmosphere of Damlatas Cave, said to be beneficial to asthma sufferers, but with hordes of tourists exhaling hot carbon dio into the humid, already-stuffy atmosphere, I have my doubts….

But of course Alanya’s big attraction is its beaches, l-o-n-g swaths of sand to west (several kilometers) and east (many kilometers).

Side was once idyllic, a traditional Turkish Mediterranean village amid marble Roman ruins on 2 km (1.2 miles) of unspoiled beach just an hour (65 km, 40 miles) east of Antalya or west of Alanya .

Tourism arrived with a vengeance in the 1980s, however, and although Side is still nice, it is now crowded in warm weather.

Both Turks and foreigners come for the perfect white sand beaches, the seaside restaurants and bars, the variety of lodgings (from cheap little pensions to luxury hotels), and the impressive Hellenistic and Roman ruins.

The best times to enjoy Side are late April, May, early June and October. If you must come in high summer, avoid weekends, when half of Ankara roars down to Side for a swim.

Car, bus and minibus are the ways to get here. Buses and minibuses come from Antalya and Alanya. The nearest airport is Antalya’s, 55 km (34 miles) west of Side.

Distances & Travel Times

Alanya: 63 km (39 miles) E, 1 hour

Anamur: 198 km (123 miles) SE, 3.75 hours

Ankara: 615 km (382 miles) NE, 9 hours

Antalya: 65 km (40 miles) W, 1 hour

Aspendos: 37 km (23 miles) NW, 40 minutes

Istanbul: 790 km (491 miles) NW, 13 hours

Konya: 300 km (186 miles) NE, 5 hours

Olimpos: 145 km (90 miles) SW, 3 hours

Perge: 58 km (36 miles) W, 1 hour

Selge (Altinkaya): 83 km (52 miles) N, 2 hours

The neighboring hamlets of Olimpos and Çirali, on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast southwest of Antaly, are known for a pristine little beach, a pine forest full of tumbledown marble temples, tree house-hotels, and the Chimera, natural flames springing from the rock that have burned ceaselessly for millennia.

Located 80 km (50 miles) southwest of Antalya on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast not far from Phaselis , Olimpos and Çirali are set 7 km (4 miles) off the highway among pines, citrus orchards and farmers’ fields. A little stream flows through a rocky gorge and reaches the Mediterranean at a beautiful beach.

The hamlets of Olimpos and Çirali are side by side behind Olimpos Beach, and you can walk along the beach from one to the other in 15 minutes, but the narrow roads that reach them from the highway are entirely different.

“Discovered” by backpackers on a budget, Olimpos became popular early on for its tree-house camps and pensions, the most famous of which is the renowned Kadir’s Tree House (but Bayram’s is also well-regarded).

Tree houses offer a variety of comfort levels, and where else can you live in a tree with an Internet connection? But be advised, there are no banks or ATMs in Olimpos. Bring cash to cover your expenses here.

Now there are plenty of other accommodations in Çirali as well, from the very comfortable, modrately-priced Hotel Canada to the exclusive Olimpos Lodge.

The Chimera (Yanartas), a number of natural eternal flames springing from the rock, is located on the north side of Çirali village, on a mountainside about a 7-km (4.3-mile) hike from Olimpos village.