KEMER




Kemer is an important and well equipped touristic center situated 42 km / 26 miles west of Antalya. The Yörük Park , where nomadic people's everyday's life is displaid, is located in the small peninsula facing the marina.
The nice holiday resorts of Tekirova, Çamyuva, Göynük, Beldibi where beautiful hotels are situated, spread all along the coast among a luxuriant vegetation composed of pine trees, palm trees, orange and lemon trees.

Kemer enjoys an average of 300 sunny days while the pine forests act like a shelter giving it a cooler atmosphere. The water temperature in winter is 10-12 C and in summer 27-29 C; thus it is possible to enjoy the sea 8 months of the year. Many of the hotels and holiday villages are open throughout the year. If you are a fan of sun, sea, and watersports,  Kemer will provide all that you want. For those who prefer yachting, Kemer is the most proper point to set out on a “Blue Voyage”, with its many historical and beautiful bays. The Kemer Marina with a capacity for 180 yachts, provides electricity, water and telephone facilities as well as numerous restaurants, cafes and bars. It is possible to reach Kemer in 40 minutes from Antalya by road, which is very enjoyable with its many picturesque sights. The natural beauties in Kemer are unique; nature has granted Kemer with the beauties, which she did not in any other part of the world. The historical remains spreading all over the region accompanies this beauty. Phaselis Situated within the pine and cedar trees of Bey Mountains Natural Park the ancient city Phaselis is 16 km west of Kemer. Being within the boundaries  of a natural park, there are no accommodation facilities. The long beach is of fine sand and the water is shallow and calm. It is really a delightful beach sheltered by trees. There are daily excursions by boats to this fascinating piece of land, which was once an important commercial centre. Most of the remains are from the Roman times; the aqueducts, agoras, baths, a theatre, Hadrian’s Gate and the acropolis emphasize the former importance of this city as a commercial centre. There is also a museum in which some of the remains found in Phaselis are exhibited.


 


OLYMPOS

Located 50 km/31miles from Antalya, Olympos can be reached eather by two scenic roads which snake through a beautiful nature, or can be reached from the sea. The visit of the site is a pleasant and refreshing stroll because the ruins are scattered all along a stream and near Olympos beach where one should not miss the opportunity to enjoy a nice swim in the sea.

This ancient city stretches down to the sea on the slopes of a narrow valley. On both banks of the stream, where reeds and laurel trees grow, the following ruins can be encountered: the necropolis located on a hill, the agora and gymnasium, the Byzantine basilica, the theatre, the baths, a bridge, a temple in Ionic order erected during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, the bishop’ s house, tombs, a burial chamber with two sarcophagi and the acropolis above, on the hill.

Olympos was founded in the 3C BC and became one of the six major cities of the Lycian League . During the 1C BC the place was often frequented by the pirates. When the latter were defeated in 78 BC by the Roman Governor of Lycia, Olympos and the surrounding area were merged to become a Roman province. During the 2C AD, Olympos grew extremely prosperous. The pirates, attracted once again by its richness, provoked its decline. Later used by the Venitian and the Genoese pirates, the city was finally abandoned when the Ottoman fleets chased out the pirates.

During the Roman period, Olympos became quite famous with the cult of Hephaistos which was whorshipped at Çirali, higher in the mountain. At this place, there is a natural phenomenon of sulphurous fumes which has been recorded for at least 4000 years. One can extinguish the small fires, but the natural gas inside the mountain will light them again in minutes. The flames gave birth to the legend of the Chimaera, the daughter of Echidnae and Typhoon who was a three-headed creature with the front section looking like a lion, the middle section looking like a goat and the tail looking like a dragoon. Because of an uncertain love affair in which he was involved and as a punition, gallant Bellerophon was sent, by the king of Lycia, to kill the Chimaera that spat fire and terrorized the region. Helped by Athena, Bellerophon captured Pegasus, mounted the winged horse and attacked the Chimaera from above. He drove the lead tip of his spear into the mouth of the monster, where the lead melted and choked the creature. Thus Bellorophon drove her back into the earth where she still spits fire, and this is why you can see small fires coming out of the holes at Çirali in the upper reaches of Olympos!
 

 
    

PHASELIS

Near Tekirova, a forest road leads to the ruins of Phaselis, scattered on a peninsula surrounded by three natural harbors and sandy beaches.
This ancient city, located at the border of Lycia and Pamphilya, was founded by colonists from Rhodes Island in 690 BC. Overrun by the Persians, in the 5C BC Phaselis freed and later even became independent from Lycia, forming an alliance with Mausolus, the satrap of Caria, in the 4C BC. Phaselis was the most important port city in the region until the foundation of Attalaia (Antalya) in the 2C BC. The inhabitants minted coins showing the bow of a ship on one side and the stern on the other. In the winter of 333-334 BC, during his campain against the Persians, Alexander the Great spent some time in Phaselis, whose population had submited at once to his authority, before he advanced to Central Anatolia. After Alexander's death, the city remained in the Ptolemies' hands from 209 till 197 BC, then in the Seleucids' hands before it was handed over in 190 BC to the Kingdom of Rhodes together with the other cities of Lycia. From 167 BC, Phaselis became part of the Lycian League under Roman rule. But in the 1C BC, like Olympos, Phaselis was under the constant threat of the Cilician pirates who even took the place for a period and set it on fire when they were defeated by Rome to which the city was linked in 42 BC. In the 2C AD, for the purpose of Emperor Hadrian's visit, Phaselis was adorned with new statues, monuments and buildings, and most of the remains which can be seen today, date back from this period. In the Byzantine times, the city became a bishopric. Suffering again from pirates and Arab raids, the harbours began to lose importance and the city fell in complete decay. In the 12th century, when the Seljuks settled in the region, they prefered to concentrate in Alanya and Antalya, and Phaselis fell into oblivion.
Phaselis was home to the tragic author and poet Theodectes who was the pupil of Socrates and Aristotles.

On the west side of the main street are:

The Bath which was part of the bath-gymnasium complex.
Hadrian's Agora, almost square-shaped, lies south of the bath and was lined by porticoes and shops. The side of the agora looking onto the main street was decorated with statues and a fountain.
Domitian's Agora lies along the second section of the main street. An inscription written in honor of the emperor was found above one of the two gates that faced the street. At the far end is a late period agora connected with the south harbour.
The Monumental Gate of Hadrian bears an inscription in honor of this emperor. Located at the end of the main street, the gate opens onto a beautiful sea and mountain scenery.

One the east side of the main street are:

The Bath (late period 3-4th century) whose brick foundations which provided heat, can still be seen. A little further, lining the main street, are the Public Toilet which were covered with mosaics.
The Roman Theatre, located above the bath, replaced an earlier Hellenistic theatre and had a seating capacity of 1,500 - 2,000 spectators. It overlooks the city and the sea.
The Acropolis, covered with a thick vegetation, is located above the theatre. According to ancient writers, here stood the Temple of Athena where Achilles' broken spear was exhibited, and which is said to be the first place Alexander the Great visited upon his arrival in the city. However the temple has not been yet localized. Other temples, a palace and official buildings were also built on this site.