Antalya

Kaleiçi's old harbour full of boats, with the town's houses on the cliff above a turquoise sea.

03Cities and regions

South coast

Antalya is Türkiye's biggest international seaside resort, on the southwest coast of Anatolia with the Taurus Mountains behind it. More than 2.7 million people live in the province, and in 2023 it drew over 16.5 million foreign visitors, making it the fourth most visited city in the world. Its old heart, Kaleiçi, sits inside a double ring of horseshoe-shaped walls above the old harbour, and its buildings carry Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman layers. The best-known way in is Hadrian's Gate, a Roman monument; the emperor Hadrian visited the city in 130. Long beaches line the shore, Konyaaltı to the west and Lara to the east. Nearby, the lower Düden Waterfall drops 40 metres straight into the sea. Some 40 kilometres east stands the theatre of Aspendos, built in 155 and considered the best-preserved theatre of antiquity, with seats for 7,000. Wander Kaleiçi's lanes in the evening when the air cools, give Aspendos half a day and keep one day simply for the sea.

Over 16.5 million
Foreign visitors in 2023: 0 m
Lower Düden Waterfall: 0
Aspendos theatre built

Highlights

Düden WaterfallsTwo falls on the Düden River; the lower one plunges 40 metres into the sea.