Lycia

Lycia (Turkish: Likya) is the westernmost section of Mediterranean Turkey. Sometimes known as the Turquoise Coast, it has a rugged scenic coastline popular for water activities. Administratively it corresponds to the southern part of Muğla Province and the western part of Antalya Province.

Cities

• 1 Marmaris is a large resort, crowded with tourists in summer.
• 2 Bozburun is the main village on the stubby peninsula south of Marmaris.
• 3 Datça is the town at the end of the long peninsula west of Marmaris.
• 4 Dalyan is a resort with rock tombs, sea turtle nesting beaches, and wetlands.
• 5 Dalaman has the region's airport, but is itself short of accommodation and attractions.
• 6 Göcek is a centre for yachting and cruising.
• 7 Fethiye is a large resort hemmed in by mountains dotted with Lycian tombs.
• Kayaköy south of Fethiye is an abandoned "ghost town" though it nowadays has accommodation.
• 8 Ölüdeniz is renowned for its "Blue Lagoon".
• Faralya village peers down into Butterfly Canyon, but with no connecting trail.
• 9 Kabak also has a canyon, simpler to access.
• 10 Kınık is the hub for visiting the Lycian cities of Xanthos and Letoon.
• 11 Kalkan is a coastal town with whitewashed Mediterranean architecture.
• Patara west of Kalkan is an ancient city lost under sand dunes, which now form an 8 km beach.
• 12 Kaş is a coastal town with some well-preserved traditional architecture.
• 13 Demre near the Lycian ruins of Myra was the home of St Nicholas, better known as Santa Claus.
• 14 Finike a tourist resort is the site of ancient Phoenicus.
• 15 Olympos has wooden tree-houses by a ruined ancient city.
• 16 Kemer is a coastal resort.
• 17 Elmali in the western Taurus mountains is the starting place for hikes onto Mt Kızlarsivrisi.
• 18 Korkuteli is an agricultural town in the Taurus Mountains.

Other destinations

• 1 Saklıkent is a dramatic gorge 40 km southeast of Fethiye.
• 2 Pinara is a ruined ancient city at the foot of Mount Babadağ.

Understand

Lycia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D       0.9 218     15 5       0.7 136     16 5       0.5 97     18 7       0 35     22 10       0 26     26 13       0 7.3     31 17       0 7.4     33 19       0 2.3     33 19       0 13     31 16       0 60     26 12       0.1 124     21 9       0.5 251     16 6 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation+Snow totals in mm
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D       0 8.6     59 40       0 5.4     60 41       0 3.8     65 44       0 1.4     71 49       0 1     78 56       0 0.3     87 62       0 0.3     92 66       0 0.1     92 66       0 0.5     87 61       0 2.3     78 54       0 4.9     69 47       0 9.9     62 43 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation+Snow totals in inches

The bulging belly of Turkey is called the Teke Peninsula and it's a rugged region, with the Gulf of Fethiye to the west and the Gulf of Antalya to the east. Pine-clad mountains tumble to a coast convoluted with gulfs and coves. It was an independent kingdom in the 14th / 15th centuries BC but thereafter was under Hellenistic or Roman control, and its antiquities such as rock tombs are from that later period. Its harbours were busy in the days of coast-hugging sailing vessels but were much too small for larger modern vessels, and the mountains blocked communications inland. Farming was limited and Lycia never developed industry.

So not much happened until the 1970s / 80s, when the region came within a few hours flying time from north Europe, and Turkey set out to attract tourism. The biggest development was in Pamphylia region stretching east from Antalya, as this has endless sandy beaches and a flat coastal plain that was swiftly carpeted in high-rise hotels. Lycia had similar development around Marmaris and Fethiye, but pebble beaches and steep terrain limited the package audience. So it has more to offer the independent traveller, with a string of village harbours along its coast, clear waters, and sheltered coves for water activities.

Talk

Many fragments of old scripts reflect bygone civilisations trading along this coast - Hittite, Phrygian, Phoenician, Greek, Roman and more. Some cannot yet be deciphered, even by archaeologists or Google Translate, and city slickers might say that the Muğla dialect of standard Turkish is in this unfathomable category. However, anyone you encounter in the hospitality sector will have standard Turkish and probably reasonable English. "Point-and-grunt" will do the rest and might be how the Hittites conversed with the Phrygians. In remote villages, no point wielding your phone app, the inhabitants will go fetch Ahmet who's worked in a car factory in Stuttgart and a restaurant in Manchester.

Get in

Rock tombs at Fethiye

By plane

Dalaman Airport (DLM ^IATA) is the main airport for this region, with seasonal budget flights from Europe, and daily domestic flights from Istanbul and Ankara. For convenience use Dalaman to reach Kaş and any point west of there.

1 Antalya Airport (AYT ^IATA) has more flights from Europe and from other Turkish cities plus Northern Cyprus. It's closer to Demre and any destination east of there, but the twisting coastal road makes for long transfer times.

Both airports have car hire, which you'll need if you're not being bussed direct to your hotel.

By bus

The larger towns, and smaller towns astride the main highway, have direct daily buses from Istanbul, Izmir and Antalya. Bus stations may be a few km from downtown or the beach hotel strip, so take a dolmuş or taxi for the last stretch; similarly for villages lacking an inter-city bus service.

By road

From Istanbul the quickest route to the region is usually the toll motorways O-7 / O-5 to Izmir then D550 towards Marmaris. There it meets D400, which snakes the length of the Mediterranean coastline, eventually to Antalya and away east.

For the east end of the region leave the motorway past Bursa to pick up D200 east, then D650 south via Kütahya, Afyon and Antalya onto D400.

By boat

The Greek Dodecanese islands are only a few km from the Turkish mainland. Ferries sail from Rhodes to Marmaris and Fethiye, and in summer a day trip may be possible.

Get around

Blue Lagoon in Ölüdeniz

Consider hiring a car, especially if you're not being bussed from the airport to your accommodation, or if you're based away from the main public transport routes.

Buses link the large towns, and may even have regular published timetables. Smaller buses link the smaller towns, dolmuşes link the villages and serve as in-town buses, and you'll have to go by local word-of-mouth on when these might run. What's remarkable is how these transports dwindle in size while packing in just as many people.

Hitchhiking is slow and tedious in this region.

See

• Rock tombs and sarcophagi (literally "flesh-eaters") dot the area, though their ornate carvings have mostly faded with erosion and souvenir-hunters. Fethiye has the largest collection.
• Ancient cities lie in ruins here and there, with fine examples at Kınık, Patara, Demre and Olympos.
• Traditional architecture from Ottoman times, including Orthodox basilicas as the area had a substantial Greek population until 1923.

Do

Roman ruins at Xanthos

• Hiking: lots of waymarked trails, mostly afternoon strolls under 10 km. The big one is the Lycian Way, 520 km from Fethiye to the hills above Antalya.
• Lycian Way Ultramarathon is run in September. Even hardy athletes baulk at the full 520 km, but you can run 20 km, 37 km or 57 km eastern sections.
• Cruising: short boat trips explore the rugged coves and nearby islets, and there are longer "Blue Cruises".
• Scuba diving: the Med is over-fished and has limited marine life, though protected patches show how it could flourish if properly managed. But the absence of river run-off means clear waters, and the Lycia coast is a good area for learner and low-experience divers.

Eat

Large resorts have free-standing restaurants serving all-purpose Med fare, with fish and chips in abundance. You might find the occasional Mexican or Chinese, but there isn't the mix of international cuisine found in north European cities.

In smaller resorts it's mostly trad Turkish, and hotel restaurants may have the best offerings.

Drink

St Nicholas - Santa Claus - was bishop at Myra

Large resorts are well-equipped for pouring alcohol of all types down the throats of western tourists. Small places don't have free-standing bars, but their cafes serve alcohol.

Lycia produces some wine and is close to regions that produce plenty, mostly red.

Rakı is Turkey's national drink, anise-flavoured and turning cloudy when diluted, similar to ouzo.

Drink plenty of water if you're out in the hot sun or sea breeze.

Stay safe

Natural hazards are few. Beware traffic (including water traffic - mad bats on jet skis), use sun protection and safeguard valuables.

Go next

• Pamphylia is the next region east. Sandy beaches stretch from Antalya to Alanya, so it's heavily developed for tourism. Belek is a golf resort, Side has extensive Roman ruins, and at Alanya a citadel perches on the headland above the port.
• The Southern Aegean region north has the raucous resort of Bodrum, outstanding ruins at Didim and Aphrodisias, and the glistening travertine pools of Pamukkale.
• Rhodes is a short ferry ride away. It has modern resorts, ancient ruins, and ferry connections to other Greek islands and indirectly to Piraeus the port for Athens.