Location Guide

This stretch of the Turkish coastline is known as the Turkish Riviera and stretches from Fethiye in the west right through to the Syrian coastline in the east. With beautiful sandy beaches picturesque towns and remote villages. 

Arching around a wide bay, Fethiye is a bustling, friendly market town overlooked by pine-forested mountains. Yachts and gulets - traditional wooden sailing boats - moor along the waterfront promenade, which is dotted with waterside cafes and several excellent seafood restaurants. Without doubt one of the most beautiful stretches of coastline anywhere in the Mediterranean.The area from Fethiye to Kemer is known as Lycia and has Turkey's most dramatic coastline with mountains falling away into crystal clear seas. Summer temperatures average 30-40°C with a winter average of 15°C. To the west of  Fethiye town centre, is Karagoz a quiet suburb where  luxury villas and apartments overlook the new marina. For supermarket shopping you will need to go into Fethiye where you have a choice of two - Migros on the outskirts of town and Gima in the town centre. Blessed with a well-protected bay and an extensive hinterland of flat, agriculturally productive land it is no wonder Fethiye has had a long history. Originally known as Telmessos, it has been around for at least 2,500 years. A vibrant modern town has rapidly developed, helped over the last 20 years by the tourist industry. A breed apart from many other Turkish resorts, tourism remains just another string to its bow. It is also a market town, administrative centre and exporter of chromium ore sourced from local mines. Away from the water, the bazaar district is a colourful grid of cobbled streets lined with shops stocking locally produced handicrafts such as silver jewellery, leather bags and beautiful hand-woven carpets. It's also home to the town's oldest Turkish Baths, where you enjoy a steamy soak and a relaxing massage. Within easy reach of Dalaman International Airport, Fethiye also has excellent public transport with minibus and boat services from the centre of town to the various suburbs. There are also regular bus services to local beaches, such as Oludeniz, as well as the fascinating historical sites of the Xanthos Valley. The town's private hospital is one of the best in the region with the latest equipment and many English-speaking staff.

While in the opposite direction the resort area of Calis offers beachfront apartments with wonderful views across the Bay to Fethiye. Calis is the beach resort closest to Fethiye. Spreading over 4km the beach is mainly shingle and is lapped by turquoise seas. There is a constant sea breeze so even on the hottest of days this is the place to visit. A wide range of shops, bars and restaurants run along the seafront promenade. Choose to have a drink at one of the seafront bars and watch the sun setting over the islands in the evening. On Sundays visit the local market, you can buy your holiday souvenirs, local grown produce and your “designer” clothing. Fethiye can be reached by Dolmus or by the more leisurely and scenic route on the water taxi.

The village of Hisarönu and Ovacik are located on a plateau 1,000ft above sea level under Mount Babadag. All around there are magnificent views of pineclad mountains with a cooling breeze coming from the sea in the summer. Hisaronu and Ovacik are both very lively places to be during the summer months. There are a host of shops, restaurants, bars and nightclubs which are open all hours. The nearby lagoon of Olu Deniz is the most famous and photographed beach in Turkey. Oludeniz means "dead sea" in Turkish a name given due to the serene calmness of its waters. An alluring turquoise lagoon, fringed by pine-forest slopes and protected from the sea by an arching golden sand beach, Oludeniz is the most widely touted image of Turkey. Not surprisingly it has become a magnet for tourists, foreign and domestic alike. The view as you descend the road to the resort is beautiful: a narrow valley hemmed-in by forested mountains and opening onto the blue Mediterranean sea. The lagoon is in a conservation area and new development is strictly controlled.

 Göcek is principally a yachting centre and during the summer season is bustling with activity it has recently been described as the new St Tropez of the Turquoise Coast. The picturesque harbour of Göcek is principally a yachting centre and during the summer season the Marina is bustling with activity. The bays of Göcek have some of the most beautiful and historical sites in the region. It is the closest resort from Dalaman Airport being only 25 kilometers drive away.

Fifteen kilometres from Fethiye is the beautiful and relaxed mountain village of Uzumlu. Just 500 metres above sea level, and nestling below the ancient Roman site at Cadianda, Uzumlu has managed to retain all the natural charm and character of a traditional Turkish village. Uzumlu village itself has a post office, school, jandarma station and a couple of small markets for your day to day needs The valley in which Uzumlu is located is one spectacular natural beauty, surrounded by thick pine forests, mountain streams and rugged hillsides. This is an ideal location for somebody who wants to combine the enchantment of rural life with the nearby convenience of a modern town like Fethiye just 20mins drive away.

Kaya Koyu is a quiet farming community sitting in a cultivated basin sown with crops of tobacco and wheat. Its real claim to fame however is the "ghost" town of Levissi which spills down a mountain side overlooking the village. Originally an Ottoman Greek settlement populated by migrants from the Dodecanese islands, Levissi, like other Greek towns along the Aegean and Mediterranean coast, thrived on a mixture of farming and trade. Following the First World War Levissi's population were forced to abandon their homes under the conditions of the 1923 Treaty of Lusanne and join the exodus of Orthodox Greeks leaving the newly proclaimed Turkish Republic. Sizeable settlements of about 2000 homes, the ruins have a melancholy, brooding atmosphere which is particularly evocative late in the day as the sun casts its shadows from the weathered buildings. Open to the elements, the rows of cottages seem to stare across the valley with their empty windows and it is easy to see why the Muslim arrivals in 1923 refused to reoccupy the town, believing it had been cursed.
This is an ideal location for anyone looking for peace and tranquility, complete relaxation in beautiful surroundings.