Fethiye, Ölüdeniz and Faralya

Fethiye is the largest town in Muğla province and the gateway to Lycia, the ancient land on the peninsula between Fethiye and Antalya. The modern town sits on top of ancient Telmessos, but its tombs are still there, carved into the cliff above the harbour. It is a base for three kinds of trip: the beach at Ölüdeniz, walking on the Lycian Way that starts here, and the sea, aboard gulets sailing down the coast to Kekova.

Fethiye and its tombs

Above the town, the rock face is pierced with Lycian tombs. Three have temple fronts; the best preserved, the Tomb of Amyntas, bears the inscription "Amyntas son of Hermapias" and dates from the 4th century BC. The others copy in stone the timber houses of the region. An ancient theatre was uncovered in the town in 1993. The Amyntas site will cost €5 from 1 April 2027; Fethiye Museum is free.

Eight kilometres south, Kayaköy is a village of 350 to 400 houses built by Greeks in the 19th and 20th centuries on the site of ancient Karmilissos. It was abandoned in the population exchange between Greece and Turkey; the roofless, doorless houses climb the hillside, each placed so as not to block its neighbour's view. Entry will cost €5.

Ölüdeniz, Babadağ and Butterfly Valley

Ölüdeniz is 24 km from Fethiye. Its protected lagoon, between Belcekız beach and the Kumburnu spit, has calm water ten months a year along a 3 km beach. Above it, Babadağ rises to almost 2,000 m and is Turkey's top paragliding site. A tandem flight down to the beach takes about thirty minutes; the full outing, about 1 h 40, sells from €160 per person. Several European foreign ministries point out that paragliding has caused fatal accidents here: pick a licensed operator.

Further south, Butterfly Valley opens onto the sea between two cliffs. A protected natural area, it is home to more than 80 butterfly species and is mostly reached by boat. The village of Faralya overlooks it, and Kabak Bay, on the Lycian Way, is a place of campsites and bungalows.

Offshore, Gemiler Island, between Ölüdeniz and Fethiye, holds the ruins of five Byzantine churches, one dedicated to St Nicholas. Day boat trips around the islands of the bay sell from €45.

The Lycian sites of the Xanthos valley

Day trips from Fethiye:

• Xanthos, 46 km away, was the capital of Lycia. With the Letoon, its sanctuary 4 km away, it has been on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 1988; the longest known texts in the Lycian language are found here. €5 each from 1 April 2027.
• Tlos, a member of the Lycian League inhabited until the 9th century (€5), and Pınara, about fifty kilometres away in the forest, with an almost intact theatre and hundreds of rock tombs (free).
• Saklıkent Gorge, 50 km away: a canyon 300 m deep and 18 km long, of which about 4 km can be walked, feet in icy water, once the snow has melted in April. The trip sells from €29.

The Lycian Way

The Lycian Way (Likya Yolu) is Turkey's first long-distance footpath, researched and waymarked in 1999 by Kate Clow. It runs from Ölüdeniz, two hours from Dalaman airport, to Geyikbayırı near Antalya: 760 km in 35 days according to the society that maintains it, along Roman roads and mule tracks that are often stony and steep. It passes about 25 ancient sites. Except on three mountain sections, you can sleep every night in village houses, guesthouses or small hotels. The recommended seasons are February to May and September to November; summer is too hot for long walks.

Most travellers walk a section. One example: eight days on the western section, with accommodation, breakfasts, five dinners and luggage transfer, from €1,245 per person.

Gulets from Fethiye

Fethiye is the home port of cabin-based gulet circuits to Olympos or Demre. A 4-day, 3-night circuit from Fethiye to Olympos, meals included, sold for €450 per person in May 2026; entry fees to the sites visited on the way are extra. For a private gulet, see our Göcek and Dalyan page.

Sabaro's hotel

Yonca Lodge is a small 20-room hotel in a seaside orchard at Yanıklar, between Fethiye and Göcek. Private beach, pool at the water's edge, restaurant facing the sunset; children under 12 are not accepted. Priced at €180 a night for two, breakfast included, in early June 2027.

When to go

In Fethiye, average highs run from 27 °C in May to 35 °C in July and August, then 27 °C in October. The sea is above 24 °C from June to October. Winter is mild (16 °C in January) but wet. For the beach, go from June to September; for walking, February to May and September to November.

Safety

None of the European foreign ministries that Sabaro follows advises against Fethiye or its surroundings. Several mention paragliding accidents at Ölüdeniz, drownings, and summer forest fires, when any open-air fire is banned. The Safety table on this page gives your country's advice.