Lycian Trail: West + Central

Group gathering in the resort town of Oludeniz around noon. If you want to go paragliding (~$60) or lie on the beach, arrive a couple of hours early. Read how to get to Oludeniz. The nearest airport is Dalaman (1.5 hours by bus). Antalya Airport is 4-5 hours drive. You can arrive the night before and spend the night at the hotel.

From Oludeniz we take a minibus to the top of Mount Babadag (1969 m). It is from here that numerous paragliders take off and from here our hike, or rather the western part of the Lycian Way, will begin. But first we take pictures on the observation deck.

We begin our descent along the southern spur of Babadag. We successively pass through alpine meadows, juniper woodlands, Lebanese cedars, and pine forests. We set up camp and spend the night in a secluded mountain valley at an altitude of 1300 m.

We continue our descent - the trail winds through the forest, teasing us with seascapes. A short stop at a cafe (fresh juice, flatbread, ayran) near the village of Kirme. Then we pass the famous Ptushkin's chair and go down to the village of Faralya. There is a shop here, and you can spend the night either in tents on romantic terraces or in a private guesthouse.

In any case, we don’t waste time - quickly throw off our backpacks, take our swimming trunks/swimsuits and go to the evening radial. Those who want to cheer up can expect an extreme descent into the Valley of the Butterflies - 280 meters of thrills and adrenaline. If you don’t want to climb the rocks, you can just stay in the camp and relax.

At the bottom of Butterfly Valley, most of the group will simply hang out on the beach. But if you want, you can walk deep into the canyon to a small waterfall. Before sunset we return to Faralya along the rocks (climbing up is much easier).

From Faralya we follow an alternative branch of the Lycian Way, along the sea. First, we climb onto a huge rocky ledge hanging over the same Valley of Butterflies, and then smoothly descend to the coastline. We relax on the beach near the picturesque Cape Ak-Tash (White Stone). In the second half of the journey, a new horizon opens up - we are the first to see the stunning mountain range of the Seven Capes (Ediburun).

We arrive in the village Kabak. Here, too, you have a choice - you can put up tents at the campsite (shower, toilet) or stay in houses (bungalows). In the evening, the guide leads those interested in search of adventure in the local canyon. There is a real jungle, shade, and you can wade through knee-deep water and climb the gorge in search of a cascading waterfall.

We go down to the sea and hire a boat to Paradise Bay. By sea we round several beautiful capes and land on the white and truly “paradise” sand of this secluded bay. We swim and get ready to go out.

From Paradise Bay we move along the sea to the mysterious ruins in Pirate Bay. In fact, there was a Greek fishing village Calabantia, but you have to admit, pirates sound more interesting. Next we have a long climb ahead (400 m), so it makes sense to take a break in this bay and swim again.

We climb onto a plateau not far from an ancient domed cistern. Then everything will be much simpler - we go through fields and gardens to the village of Bogazici. We set up tents in an ancient olive garden on the mountainside. In the evening there is a traditional radial drive to the ruins of the Lycian city of Sidima.

A very busy day. Today we almost never walk with backpacks. A minibus will come for us and take us around the sights all day. Let's start with the ruins of the Lycian city of Xanthos (Xanthos) - an amphitheater, a forum, tombs. Then we will go to the Saklikent Canyon. This is a very narrow (up to 3 m) and very deep gorge (up to 300 m), along the bottom of which a river flows and tourists wander ankle-deep in water. When we’ve had a walk in the canyon, we’ll have lunch and go to the Gizli waterfall, where we’ll wade through the water again and take pictures.

Then we go back to the sea. There we look at the ruins of one of the Lycian capitals - Patara. And then we see off the sunset on the protected Patara beach - this is a wide strip of sand 12 kilometers long, where sea turtles nest at night. This is where Western Lycia ends for us.

Late in the evening, a minibus takes us to the resort town of Kas (supermarket, restaurants, exchange office), where we spend the night in a hotel.

Today begins the TV part of the route, which can conditionally be attributed to the Central Lycian Trail. We go down to the Kasha embankment, hire a boat that will take us to the other side of the bay (20 minutes) to the secluded Nuri beach. Here we make a short radial to the Lycian necropolis of Sebeda, then we swim and finally put on our backpacks again. Today will be a full day of hiking - we will cross several capes, swim in three more bays, and walk along the sharp rocks of the carr beach. We stop for the night in an olive garden in Yuzumlu Bay.

Today is the last day of walking and it will be quite long - reserve your strength. We overcome a long climb (250 m) along an ancient Roman road. Along the way we climb a ruined watchtower with a magnificent panoramic view.

We cross the plateau, pass the village of Bogazcik and settle down for lunch at the foot of the hill. At its top is the small but extremely atmospheric Lycian site of Apollonia. We quickly examine it and begin the long descent to the sea.

We pass the fortress walls of the ancient city of Aperlai, which became rich from the extraction of “royal purple” and go out to the bay where there are submerged sarcophagi and the most picturesque Purple house. We cross the narrow isthmus connecting the Sychak Peninsula with the mainland and set up camp on the shore.

The tests are over - today we have relaxation. We will spend most of the day traveling by boat - sightseeing and swimming a lot. The boat will pick us up literally 100 meters from the camp and take us to the famous Turkish Atlantis (Kekova). This is an ancient city that went under water. In addition, we will see the “Aquarium”, climb the Crusader fortress in the village of Kalekoy (Simena), and look into the pirate cave. We have lunch right on board, and then swim again in the open sea.

In the afternoon we disembark near the Andriake museum complex. This is another ancient port and here, in addition to the usual ruins, you can see an underground reservoir (like in Istanbul) and a collection of Lycian artifacts.

From Andriake we leave by taxi (30 min) to the city of Demre. Here you can visit the huge amphitheater and the tombs of Myra, as well as the temple where the same Saint Nicholas (the prototype of Santa Claus) served at the end of the Roman Empire. This concludes the Lycian Way tour. From Demre you can easily go to Antalya or Dalaman airport. If you want to stay a couple more days by the sea, the guide will advise where it is better to stay.