More than a beach
Antalya is known for sunshine and all-inclusive resorts, and that reputation hides the best of it: along a hundred kilometres of coast there are three first-rate Roman cities, an Ottoman old town with its own harbour and one of the two finest archaeological museums in the country. You could spend a week here without going near the hotel pool.
The city looks out over the Mediterranean from the top of a cliff, with the Taurus Mountains behind it, snow-capped well into spring. That combination — sea, ruins and mountains within half an hour of each other — is what sets it apart from the rest of the Turkish coast.
What to see
Kaleiçi, the old town
The quarter inside the old walls: narrow lanes of wooden Ottoman houses, bougainvillea, the fluted Yivli Minaret, Hadrian's Gate — built in AD 130 for the emperor's visit — and a small harbour at the foot of the cliff, where the boats leave from. Many of those houses are now boutique hotels, and staying in one changes the way you experience the city.
Antalya Archaeological Museum
One of the great museums of Türkiye. It brings together the finds from Perge, Aspendos and Side: the Hall of the Gods, the Roman sarcophagi, the imperial portraits and the Perge gallery, with sculptures that rank among the finest of the Roman world. Two hours here are well spent before or after the ancient sites, because much of what is missing there is on display here.
Perge
About 20 kilometres from the city. You enter through the Hellenistic Gate with its two round towers and walk down the colonnaded street, with a water channel running along its centre, past the baths, the agora and the stadium. It is a city you can read from end to end: you can see where people lived, where the water flowed and how trade was organised.
Aspendos
The best-preserved Roman theatre in the Mediterranean, built in the 2nd century AD by the architect Zeno. It seats 15,000, its stage building is intact and the acoustics still work: from the back row you can hear a coin drop on the stage. It is still used for opera and concerts in summer.
Side
A town built inside an ancient city: the columns of the Temple of Apollo stand at the water's edge, with the sun setting right behind them, and the theatre and the agora sit among the houses and shops. It is the most charming stop on the coast, and also the busiest: go early in the morning or late in the day.
When to go
April to June and September to October. In those months you can combine swimming and ruins without suffering in the heat; in July and August the sites, which have no shade, are hard going at midday. Winter is mild, with daytime temperatures of around 15 °C, and good for sightseeing without queues, although the sea is too cool for most swimmers by then.
Getting there
Antalya Airport (AYT) is one of the busiest in Türkiye, with flights from Istanbul roughly every hour (about 1 h 15 min) and, in season, direct flights from many European cities. The drive from the airport to the centre takes about 20 minutes. For the ancient sites you need a car or a tour: public transport does not serve Aspendos or Perge well.
What to eat
Fish at the harbour in Kaleiçi or in the villages along the coast; Antalya piyaz, a white bean salad with tahini that is served as a main course here; şiş köfte, chargrilled meatballs; and, for dessert, Maraş ice cream, the stretchy dondurma from Kahramanmaraş. In the mountain villages, trout grilled over charcoal by the river.
How to fit it in
Three days are enough to see the city, the museum and the three ancient sites. Antalya works very well at the end of a route coming from Cappadocia via Konya, or as the starting point for the Lycian coast towards Kaş and Fethiye.