Kalkan – on the turquoise coast

Kalkan magic

Kalkan is a sophisticated historic town, clustered around a beautiful harbour on the turquoise coast of Turkey. At the foot of the Taurus Mountains, it retains some fine examples of Ottoman architecture and a delightful cultural authenticity. It is also a 10/10 place to have a holiday!

There is sun, sea and sand a plenty here, as well as gorgeous boutiques and multiple restaurants to choose from. Kalkan is on a steep hill. To make the most of this incline, most restaurants have an open rooftop with a stunning view down to picturesque harbour.

At night the view is incredible. A whole new world opens up on each of the roofs of the old historic buildings overlooking each other, all lit by swaying lamps.

Kalkan is not really a mass tourist resort. It remains a charming and unspoilt, rather upmarket destination. The crystal-clear sea and traditional Turkish hospitality are a magical combination.

Eating out in Kalkan

You really are spoiled for choice here. There are multiple chic cafes and restaurants to choose from. The food is excellent and perhaps a little cheaper than it is in the UK. We found the gorgeous Old Trading House right away, and enjoyed a most delicious iced coffee and home made baklava here twice. It’s also has a lovely restaurant on the roof and is a small hotel. The Gironda restaurant is also lovely. They even have a sister restaurant back here in the North East – the Turkish Kitchen in Durham! 

If you are a night owl, there are lots of bars and clubs here too. We had a lovely evening at the Botanik bar where we downed a couple of mudslide cocktails while sitting in a real tree house made by the owner of the bar!

Getting around

Kalkan is an old fishing town and the only safe harbour between Kas and Fethiye. Its white washed houses descend to the sea strewn with brightly coloured bougainvilleas. It averages 300 days of sunshine every year. Getting around to other towns and beaches along the coast from here, is relatively easy.

There are lots of agencies you can book trips with, or you can explore the coast by the frequent and cheap bus system. The buses or vans are Dolmus (pronounced Dolmush) They cost a couple of pounds to travel between set routes along the coast.  Our hotel was about five minutes from the bus terminal so we made the most of this proximity and jumped on a Dolmus to somewhere else most days

Shopping

Retail opportunities in Kalkan are enough to satisfy the fussiest of shoppers. Yes there are plenty of fridge magnets, t shirts and trainers to be had, but there are also some serious high end boutiques. They sell beautiful jewellery, unique Turkish ceramics (my weak spot) stunning carpets, designer clothes and high end Turkish cotton towels and clothing. Turkish cotton is very high quality and long lasting and worth the investment. I confess I bought a rather expensive sun hat in one such boutique, which I will be taking on all my sunny travels henceforth.

Markets

If you are more of a budget shopper then Turkish markets are for you!  We got the Dolmus to Fethiye market which is the biggest of the weekly markets which tour the region. The market appears in a slightly different guises on different days in different towns. Market day in Fethiye is on a Tuesday, whereas the slightly scaled down version is on a Thursday in Kalkan. Stalls are all under canvas cover to protect goods and shoppers from the blazing summer sun. Dozens of stalls spread out through the streets and bridges of the town, taking some time to navigate.

The freshest fruit and vegetables are piled high in one section and are very cheap. It does make you wish you were self catering. A huge sweet melon costs just 20p!

Other things you can buy include (fake) designer clothes and shoes, and real items made from beautiful Turkish cotton. Turkish towels and bed spreads are a myriad of delightful colours and pretty Turkish bowls and cups and plates are also very cheap. Spices of every sort, dried fruits and of course delicious locally made baklava are also a must buy for presents.

One area of the market is given over to street food stalls and refreshments. It would take a will of steel not to return from the market with multiple purchases of things you didn’t know you needed.

Beaches

Kalkan’s town beach is safe for swimming but it is very pebbly. However, there are plenty of nearby sandy beaches easily accessible by Dolmus. We visited Patara beach which is 18km long and very popular with visitors and locals alike.

It is also a protected nature reserve and nesting site for the endangered Loggerhead turtle. You will see little metal pyramids covering the nesting sites where the turtles have laid their eggs on the busy beach to keep them safe. These rare turtles, ‘Careta Careta’ have laid their eggs here for millions of years.

Patara Ruins

As you approach Patara beach, a man will jump on your bus and try to sell you a ticket to the adjacent Patara ruins. Take him up on his offer!

Patara is one of the most important and oldest cities of the Lycian League in the southwest of the Xanthos Valley. These impressive ruins have tremendous historical and archaeological importance.

In Christian history Patara is famous for being visited by St Paul. It was also the birthplace of St Nicholas, bishop of Myra and the future Santa Claus! At the entrance to the site is a building with a cafe, toilets and a model of the city. There is a footpath all around the city and the main ruins have been well restored. However there are lots of other buildings, bath houses etc which have not yet been excavated, and are still fully covered in overgrown vegetation. You will need at least 1 1/2 hours to explore this organised site.

The amphitheatres

There are actually two amphitheatres side by side, one was for theatrical purposes and one for political, and they are both impressive. The main street with its Doric pillars and its reconstructed doorways is not far away. There is also a reconstruction of a boat to be seen here, looking just as it may have done when it sailed into the city.

You can then walk down to the beach and see the remains of the Emperor Nero’s lighthouse which is undergoing restoration. An excavated sarcophagi stands at the edge of the city which was an ancient burial chamber for a person of importance In Patara. It seems that in this one, it was Theronides, a great athlete of his day.

Another of these strange looking monuments appears in the sunken city of Kekova quite a distance further down the coast. This part of Turkey is full of ancient historical treasures. Patara is a delight for historians and archaeologists as well as the regular visitor.

Kalkan to Kekova

It’s often easier to get around the coast by boat and it a most beautiful coast it is too. Many boat trips head out from here. One of the most popular is to the sunken city of Kekova. Here, great Lycian cities are immersed in water, the result of an ancient earthquake. The same quake created the Taurus mountain range around them. Aperlai, Kekova, Simena and Theimussa were founded in 10BC by the Lycians. Kekova Island itself is long and narrow. The ancient cities and port are seen beneath the crystal blue waters. The mysterious Lycian sarcophagi sit above the water line.

Although you can’t sail directly over the cities any more, you can still see the sarcophagi and sometimes people take kayaks out to view the sunken cities.

Kalkan – an unforgettable holiday destination.

Until the early 1920’s nearly all of Kalkan’s residents were Greeks and the town was called Kalamaki. Most of them left during the exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey after the Greco-Turkish conflict and they settled in Greece in a new town which they also called Kalamaki. Abandoned Greek Houses can still be seen at Kalkan.

An important harbour town until the 1970’s, Kalkan’s importance declines after the Fethiye road is built. Its fortunes revive once more, after the emergence of the tourism industry in the region.

Kalkan is very popular with visitors from the UK and I can see why. It is a very lively destination with more than 350 restaurants, bars and cafes. Nestled on the most beautiful turquoise coast in Turkey, it enjoys the accompanying fantastic Mediterranean climate.

The view over the harbour from our hotel up on the hill is breathtaking. It is easily up there in my top three world views!

Check out my article about Istanbul in a day!