Turkey Lycian Coast D400: Demre to Antalya

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Demre

   Demre is the modern town on the site of Myra, one of the great cities of ancient Lycia, and it sits in a flat, fertile plain between the Taurus mountains and the Mediterranean on the south coast of Turkey. A great cluster of tomb houses, cut into the cliff face above the old city around the fourth century BC, looks down on the town, their stone fronts carved to imitate wooden buildings, and a large Roman theatre stands at their foot. It is one of the most impressive ancient sites on the coast, and visitors are often surprised at how few people are there.

   Read the complete Demre write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Demre is where the day begins. Next is Kemer.

2. 2. Kemer

   Kemer is a modern resort built on an old pine coast, and what makes it worth knowing is the mountain behind it. A few decades ago it was little more than a fishing village at the foot of the Beydağları range, but tourism has turned it into a lively town of seventeen thousand people with a long pebble beach, a busy marina and hotels from one end of the bay to the other. The setting is spectacular, though, with the dark, steep slopes of the Taurus coming down almost to the water and clouds sitting on the summit of Tahtalı, which at 2,365 metres towers above the town. A cable car climbs to the top of it, and in clear weather you can see across the gulf of Antalya.

   Read the complete Kemer write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Kemer comes up about 96 km into the recorded legs. Next is Antalya.

3. 3. Antalya

   Antalya makes a better end to a long coast ride than most cities deserve. The old harbour at Kaleiçi sits in a small cove below limestone cliffs, with Ottoman wooden houses, Roman walls and a fluted minaret, Yivli Minaret, standing as the symbol of the town. Hadrian's Gate, a triple arch of white marble built to honour the emperor's visit around AD 130, still serves as one of the entrances to the old quarter. King Attalus II of Pergamon founded the city in the second century BC, and its name comes from him, which shows how long people have wanted to live in this sheltered spot between the sea and the snowy Taurus mountains.

   Read the complete Antalya write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   The route ends here after 140 km.