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Here
are Turkey's top 10 beaches,
with nearest big town (in parentheses).
Some even rate the coveted Blue
Flag for cleanliness.
Important
note: most Turkish beaches do
not have lifeguards, but
some do occasionally
have dangerous riptide and undertow conditions. Swim
at your own risk, don't
swim alone, and make some
plan for what to do if disaster
strikes.
1. Patara (Fethiye): 50
meters/yards wide and 20 km (12.5
miles) long, this beach 75 km (47
miles) south of Fethiye is Turkey's
finest. Accommodations—and shade—are
limited, though. (Big
photo)
2. Ölüdeniz (Fethiye): Very
fine, with good hotels, restaurants
and bars, but because it's Turkey's
most famous, it can get crowded.
(Big
photos)
3. Olimpos (Antalya): The
opposite of the others: small, secluded,
atmospheric, backed by a forest filled
with Roman ruins.
79 km (49 miles) southwest of Antalya
(map).
4. Side (Antalya): The
once-idyllic village 65 km (40 miles)
east of Antalya is now crowded and
noisy, but the beaches are still
fine and unspoiled. Roman ruins abound
(map).
5. Alanya: The
town (115 km/72 miles east of Antalya)
is busy and crowded, but the beaches
are so long (22 km/14 miles to the
east) that there's plenty of sand
for everyone. Great Seljuk castle,
too (map).
6. Iztuzu (Dalyan): Good
beach, with or w/o logger-head
turtles. The town, 8 km (5 miles)
NW of Dalaman
Airport, the river, cliff
tombs and Caunos ruins
are a nice bonus.
7. Bodrum Peninsula: Beaches
in the towns are not great, but good
smaller ones abound: Ortakent
Yalisi (coarse sand & pebble), Turgutreis (surfy),
and gem-like Gümüslük (map).
8. Kemer (Antalya): Very
mod-resorty, but near a lot of interesting
day-trip possibilities (map).
9. Pamucak (Ephesus): Big,
broad, dark sand, only 7 km (4 miles)
west of Ephesus, relatively clean
with a few cig butts and bottlecaps
(map).
(Big
photo)
10. Çalis
(Fethiye): Long
beach near the city cradling yacht-happy
Fethiye Bay, good but somehow un-charming,
and famous Ölüdeniz is
just 10 km (6 miles) away over
the hills.
HONORABLE
MENTION:
Kizkalesi (Silifke): Known
only to Turks and savvy foreigners,
the beach is sort of small but the
castle out at sea makes up for it.
Sinop: Nice
beaches, never crowded, because the
Black
Sea water is usually pretty
chilly.
Kusadasi (Ephesus): Nice
enough beaches, but small and very
crowded (map).
Antalya: Big,
l-o-n-g pebble/coarse sand beach
using the Blue Flag System to certify
cleanliness (map).
Samandagi
(Antakya): Nice
enough, but w-a-y down near Syria
(26 km/16 miles) southwest of Antakya.
Anamur (Alanya): Good
beach that only Turks seem to know
about. Interesting Byzantine ghost
town nearby.
BEACH
SAFETY:
Note
that few Turkish beaches have lifeguards!
Be careful of the surf, and prepared
to save yourself.
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