In and around Sakli Vadi...
Each of the links below has been created to give a flavour of some of the many places of interest, both ancient and modern, that surround Sakli Vadi.
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 Sakli Vadi cottages are located in the picturesque Kaya Valley, on a peninsular between the towns of Fethiye and Oludeniz. The peninsular is situated on the Mediterranean coastline of southern Turkey. The cottages are roughly one hour and fifteen minutes from our local airport at Dalaman.
The Kaya Valley is situated east of the town of Fethiye on Turkey’s Turquoise Coastline and about 900 feet above sea level. The area in ancient times was part of the Kingdom of Lycia.
From Fethiye you follow the winding road up the cliffs which is signposted for Karmylassos or Levissi. These are the original Greek and Lycian names for the valley. The journey by car or dolmus (the local village buses) takes about 20 minutes. You crest the cliffs and begin to descend into the valley through some beautiful pine forests. As you exit the trees, there are several parking areas by the roadside where you can stop your car and look down over the whole of the valley.
There are three villages in the valley. Keciler in the east, Kinali in the west, where the Sakli Vadi cottages are located and the central village of Kaya Koy. The valley has very fertile soil and up until the advent of tourism, tobacco was the cash crop. Many of the farmers continue to tend their fields but the crops now are a mixture of arable feed for their animals, black figs, almonds and vegetables. Many of the fields are so small that they still have to be ploughed using horses, which is a wonderful sight. The valley has many traditional tea houses, restaurants and bars that cater for all tastes.
The residents of the two villages of Keciler and Kinali are now a mixture of farming families and an increasing number of new comers, both Turkish and European. In Kaya Koy is the site of the famous Ghost Village. This was inhabited up until 1923 by Greek nationals. It became abandoned after the Greek-Turkish population exchanges at the end of the 1919-1922 war between the two nations.
Because the villagers thought the evicted Greeks had put evil spells on the buildings they have remained empty for over 80 years and the village is now in ruins. The Ministry Of Culture has designated the village, which has over 2,000 houses and two churches as an area of historical interest and so it cannot be developed. The village is wonderfully peaceful to walk around and the houses are overgrown with flowers and local wild herbs. There are tracks up to the little chapel on the hill above, which has panoramic views of the sea and the world famous Oludeniz lagoon and beach to the south. Louis de Bernieres uses the story of the ghost village and the other villages in the valley to weave the plot in his book “Birds Without Wings”.
Towering above the valley is the 3,000 metre high mountain called Baba Dag. From the top of the mountain hang gliders and parascenders can be seen launching every day. The air currents are so good for this exciting sport that the World Championships are held here almost every year.
As you drive through the valley, you experience real Turkey. The villagers can be seen tending their animals and fields as they have done over the generations. The typical stone houses are interspersed with more modern designs. However, the valley has been designated an area of natural beauty by the Government and so has been spared the worst of modern building developments.
Passing through Kinali Koy at the far western edge of the valley, the road winds down to the coast at Gemiler Bay. This delightful pebble beach is safe for swimming and there are a number of restaurants on the beach which sell local delicacies and drinks. Across the bay is St. Nicolas Island, which is well worth taking one of the water taxis to visit. The island is said at one time to have housed the remains of St. Nicolas, better known as Santa Clause or Noel Baba in Turkish, who was born nearby in Patara. The island is home to the ruins of several villages and a monastery and is a great place to explore.
The Kaya Valley encompasses all of what is best of Mediterranean Turkey. The old blends beautifully with the new. The valley is a paradise of calm and tranquility, with wonderful walks and breathtaking flowers and forests. A truly magical and relaxing experience.
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A Brief History
 The part of Turkey that you will be staying in was in ancient times the rugged territory of Lycia. The land of Lycia is agreed to lie south of a line between Antalya and Koycegiz. The 3,000 metre high mountain peaks of Bey Dagari and Ak Dag form the core of the region and isolate it from the rest of Anatolia.
The Lycians are first mentioned in Homer’s “Ilyad”, in which they fought as allies of the Trojans. Harpagus, the Persian warrior, conquered the area in the sixth century BC. The Lycians were ferociously independent as a nation and even when conquered they were, in the main, left to govern themselves. The Greek influence in the area began in 454 BC when the Persians were expelled by the Athenians. Lycia joined the Delian League, which meant they had to pay allegiance to Athens.
Alexander The Great took over the area in 333BC. After his death, Ptolomey his senior general ruled the area and it was at this time the Lycian language was replaced by Greek. The area was conquered by the Romans in 187BC and then handed over to the Rhodians in 167BC, whom the Lycians hated with a vengeance. Rome took over again and peace reigned for over 200 years. It was during this period that the influence of Roman architecture came to the fore, as can be seen in all the ruined cities in the area.
After the fourth century AD, Roman influence waned due to incursions particularly from invading Arab armies. From the eight century AD, the area came under the rule of the Selcuk Turks and the present state system was installed by the Ottoman Sultans.
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Kadyanda
 This amazing mountain-top city complex is just under an hour’s drive from the cottages. Leave Fethiye and head for the town of Uzumlu. Go into the town centre and then bear left from the main square, following the signs. About three kilometres out of the town turn right and ascend the gravel track towards the summit ; it’s about 5 kilometres to the top. Once you arrive at the car park, follow the signs that take you round a track through the city. The city is mainly Roman and includes a necropolis with tombs, and an agora from where you can see Fethiye, on a clear day. At the very top of the site is the stadium and a flat expanse with two deep water cisterns. The route around the city takes a leisurely 45 minutes to walk, if only to take in the breathtaking views and to ponder on how the Roman engineers moved the massive stones that make up the city, to this eyrie.
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Gocek
 This village is the centre for yachting and gullets in the area. Many of the flotilla companies are based here and the waterfront is very pretty, with lots of bars and restaurants. Leave Fethiye and head along the main road towards Dalaman. Gocek takes between forty five and fifty five minutes to reach. There are lots of nice boutique shops and souvenir kiosks in the village. It’s a pretty drive out for lunch, looking over the blue sea of the Gulf Of Fethiye.
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Dalyan
 This picturesque town is home to mud baths and loggerback turtles. Leave Fethiye on Highway 400 heading west through Gocek and Dalaman. Dalyan is well signposted and takes about one and a half hours comfortably.
The town centre is very quaint with lots of shops and bars. The water taxis will take you to the many beaches, Iztuzu being the most famous. All the beaches are declared as sanctuaries for the turtles. No-Go areas are pegged off close to where the turtles lay their eggs. The beaches are only open during the hours of daylight. Take a river taxi to Koycegis Lake and try the thermal baths. The ruins at Kaunos are not spectacular but the site swarms with wildlife and is an easy walking tour. Kaunos was first excavated in 1967 and is a Carian foundation from the ninth century BC. It has many Lycian rock tombs and was closely linked with the principal city of the area in ancient times, Xanthos.
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Fethiye
 Although the economy of the town is now firmly entrenched in tourism, Fethiye still retains the atmosphere of a lively, Turkish market town, which has been lost by places such as Bodrum, Marmaris and Kusudasi. The town is protected by steep cliffs into which Lycians cut their distinctive rock tombs. Known as Telmessos in ancient times, the town boasts a beautiful amphitheatre and the remains of a Crusader castle.
The town has many good European style supermarkets as well as the traditional small independent traders. Other than in the supermarkets, friendly bargaining on prices is a way of life and is carried on in a lively and enthusiastic way ! There is a central fish and vegetable market that is open everyday. Here you can buy your fresh fish and have it cooked in front of you at one of the many restaurants in the market square. Along the waterfront the gullets moor and there are many restaurants and bars. There is a busy area of streets just back from the quay side called Passpatout. Here you can find all the tourist souvenir shops, restaurants, bars, hamams (Turkish baths), banks and nightclubs.
East of the marina, which accommodates over 2,000 yachts, if you follow the coast road you will in a few minutes reach the boat builders yards. Here wooden vessels of all sizes are still built by hand ; worth having a look. Every Tuesday, the traveling market comes to Fethiye. This is a must. It is a lively and friendly place covering both sides of the river, with 250 or more stalls. Good bargains can be found here.
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Kaya Koy
 This village is in the centre of the Kaya Valley, where our cottages are located. The main interest in this quaint village is the ruined Greek town of over 2,000 houses. The town has been called both Levissi and Karmylassos in ancient times. The town was populated by mainly Ottaman Christian Greeks, who were evicted and re-patriated after WW1 and the Turkish war of independence. The houses were never occupied again by the locals, as they were thought to have been cursed by the out going Greek Christians. The town gradually deteriorated and is now in ruins. In the 1980’s, to stop the town being bought and turned into a tourist village, the Ministry Of Culture declared the area of architectural interest and so prevented any development. The old town is fascinating and the two churches worth a visit. There are lots of restaurants and bars in the village.
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Gemiler Bay & St. Nicolas Island
 This beautiful bay with it’s half moon pebble beach lies at the very western end of the Kaya Valley. Head west out of Kay Koy along the windy road through the fields, passing through the village of Kinali (where the Sakli Vadi cottages are located), you will see the forest tree line in the distance. As you enter the trees the road meanders steeply down the cliffs for about three kilometres onto the shoreline. The beach has small bars and restaurants that will rent you sun beds. It’s worth getting one of the local boats to ferry you over to the island (Aya Nikola). On the island stand the remains of several civilisations. There are naturally Lycian rock tombs, but also a Byzantine Monastery and a later ruined hamlet complete with a nineteenth century church.
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Hisaranou & Oludeniz
 These two towns lie due south from Kaya Koy over a range of wooded hills. The two towns come alive for the six summer months and then become deserted. They unfortunately epitomise the most unflattering aspect of modern tourism, with noisy disco bars and cheap souvenir stores.
Oludeniz is however worth a visit to see the lagoon and crescent beach. If you are interested in trying paragliding off Baba Dag mountain, then this is the place to sign up. It’s a very spectacular flight from a little over 9,000 feet from the mountain top to a five foot square landing point on the beach!
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Tlos
 This was one of the most important cities of ancient Lycia. Head out of Fethiye towards Kas and Antalya along Highway 400. Follow the yellow road sign left off the highway for Saklikent and Kayadibi. Look for the yellow signs for Tlos. The city is set on top of a rocky promontory. There is a fortress acropolis and many rock tombs. The theatre is in excellent condition. There is a bas-relief of Bellerphon riding the winged horse Pegasus. Treat yourself to a meal of fresh trout in any of the restaurants close by to the site.
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Saklikent Gorge
 12 kilometres east of Tlos and roughly 40 minutes drive from Fethiye is this spectacular gorge, which is 18 kilometres long. It is steep sided and narrow, so little sun filters through to warm the icy water flooding down from Ak Dag mountain. It is worth wading across the river, hanging onto the rope and then continue up the gorge. It is great fun and includes scrambling up rocks, walking in the river and along the rock or sandy banks. You can hire rubber shoes at the beginning of the gorge. When you have got back from your walk, there are lots of restaurants built on stilts out from the river banks, where you eat your meal on wooden platforms over the swirling waters. Very Turkish!
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Pinara
 Approximately 50 kilometres out of Fethiye lies the spectacular ruins of Pinara. Head out towards Kas on Highway 400. Look for the brown signs on the right hand side of the highway. Turn off the highway and drive through the fields to the village of Minara. The track to the ruins is marked to your left as you enter the village. This is an unmade road and it winds steeply up to the car park ; about three kilometres. When you get to the entrance, ask the guard if Fethi Parca is available. Fethi lives in the village below and is very knowledgeable about the site. He is a real character and brings the site to life in his somewhat pigeon English. It is courteous to offer him a small gratuity for his time at the end of his tour.
The ruined city was one of the most important to the ancient Lycians. The ruins are vast in area and much has yet to be excavated. However, Pinara has one of the best restored theatres in all of Turkey. The paths around the ruins are signposted. There are temples to Apollo, Aphrodite and Athena, which have heart shaped columns. The site is on a grand scale and it’s most impressive feature are the hundreds of rock tombs carved into the sheer cliff towering above the city. Given the age of the site, modern engineers are still baffled how the ancient Lycians carved these tombs.
In the ruined city are other tombs and the Royal or King’s Tomb has impressive fine relief’s carved into it. Very little is known about Pinara. It is said to have been founded originally to accommodate the overflow of people from Xanthos. Pinara means “something round” in the Lycian language. The city grew to be one of the largest in the Lycian Federation, being allowed to mint it’s own coins.
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Letoon
 16 kilometres south of Pinara on Highway 400 towards Kas, is the site of the Letoon. Drive to the village of Kumluova and the site is signposted and only a short walk. The Letoon is the shrine of the goddess Leto. The ruins are extensive and reflect the respect the Lycians owed to this nymph. Leto gave birth to the divine twins Apollo and Artemis. A Christian church was built on the site but destroyed by Arab invaders in the seventh century. It is thought that the name Lycia was derived form the Greek word lykos meaning wolf.
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Xanthos
 This was reputedly the grandest city in all Lycia and it’s capital. The ruins lie astride the road from Saklikent to Kinik, just under an hours drive from Fethiye towards Kas, east along Highway 400. The site has been extensively excavated and is well worth a visit.
However, many of the best art work and artifacts can now be found in the British Museum, plundered by a gentleman called Charles Fellows in 1842 during a visit. Being deliberately built on a high and easy to defend outcrop, the views from the site are spectacular, particularly across the Xanthos (now Esen Cayi) River and across to the coast. The earliest historical record of Xanthos is in 540BC by the Persian general Harpagus. He laid siege to the city and the inhabitants reaction was a somewhat unusual one. They decided to destroy the city themselves and then commit mass suicide on huge funeral pyres ! This happened a number of times through history, the last time in 42BC when the Romans led by Brutus tried to take the city.
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Patara
 Head east towards Kas past Xanthos and after 7 kilometres turn off the main road, heading for the coast. The sites are along the southern end of Gelemis village.
Patara has two attractions. Firstly there are the ruins of the ancient principal port of Lycia and secondly one of the longest white sand beaches in Europe. Patara played a very important role in the history of Lycia and was it’s main naval base.
The city is well preserved in places but has never been fully excavated, which makes it look rather a mess. The city entrance is spectacular with it’s triple arched Roman gateway. The city is also said to have been the oracle of Apollo. The city silted up in the Middle Ages and was abandoned. The ancient city is now over 300 metres from the water’s edge ! The beach at Patara is worth a visit. It is over nine kilometres in length and consists of fine white sand, as opposed to the shingle beaches along most of this coastline.
Patara has one other claim to fame, as the birthplace of St. Nicholas. Born in the 4th century AD, he became the Bishop Of Myra and of course is better known as Santa Claus or Noel Baba in Turkish. The bishop became a legend because of his acts of kindness to local poor village girls who could not find the money for a dowry and could not be married. The Bishop would drop bags of money down the chimneys of the girls homes and this would allow them to wed. The bishop became the patron saint of virgins (not surprisingly !), sailors, children, pawnbrokers and many others. The church of St. Nicolas can be found in the village of Demre, about 40 kilometres east of Kas.
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Kalkan
 The village of Kalkan is 11 kilometres east of Patara, along Highway 400. This quaint fishing village is built on a steep hillside and was originally built by the Ottoman Greeks. In the past the locals made their living from the sea, olives and charcoal burning. The village is now completely turned over to tourism. If you walk the steep roads in and out of the village, they will soon have you fit and there are still some funky shops and boutiques to root around in.
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