10 Days: Antalya to the Lycian Coast and Fethiye

How this route is paced

Ten days is enough to travel the full arc of coastline from Antalya to Fethiye, but only if the driving is spread out rather than compressed into one or two marathon days. The road southwest of Kaş narrows and twists along cliffs and headlands, and the stretch on to Fethiye is noticeably longer again — this itinerary treats the coast as a slow crawl west, with a car as the only practical way to link small towns that have limited bus schedules and no rail line at all.

The logic is simple: start in Antalya and Kemer, where the roads are fast and the sights are close together, then slow right down once the route turns onto the Lycian coast proper. Kaş becomes a two-night base for boat trips to Kekova and an easy loop to Kalkan, before the drive continues to Patara and finally Fethiye and Ölüdeniz. A rental car is assumed throughout — see getting around the Antalya coast for what that involves on these roads.

Day 1: Arrival and Kaleiçi

Land at Antalya Airport and settle into the old town. Spend the afternoon and evening wandering Kaleiçi, the walled old quarter around the historic harbour, with its Ottoman-era houses, narrow lanes and waterfront cafés. For an overview of the neighbourhood’s layout and best entry points, the Kaleiçi old town guide is worth reading before you set out on foot. Keep the evening low-key after a flight — this is a jet-lag buffer day, not a sightseeing sprint.

Day 2: Antalya’s waterfalls and beaches

Antalya’s waterfalls are genuinely two separate sites, not one. In the morning, visit the inland Upper Düden Falls, then head to the cliffside Lower Düden Falls, where the river drops directly into the sea — full detail in the Düden Waterfalls guide. In the afternoon, choose between the city beaches of Lara and Konyaaltı; if you’re unsure which suits you, Konyaaltı vs Lara Beach compares the two directly. Antalya’s tram and bus network, run on the AntalyaKart card, makes this a car-free day — see getting around the Antalya coast.

Day 3: Perge and Termessos, then pick up the car

Antalya’s two big Roman-era sites sit in different directions from the city and are both worth a half-day each: Perge, a sprawling ruined city on flat ground, and Termessos, a mountaintop city reached by a forested walk within a national park. Both are paid, ticketed sites — the ancient sites guide for Antalya covers ticketing and timing for each. Pick up your rental car this afternoon or evening, ready to start driving tomorrow.

Day 4: Kemer coast — Tahtalı and Phaselis

Drive the roughly hour-long stretch to Kemer. Ride the Tahtalı cable car up to its Mediterranean-view summit near 2,365m — check conditions first, as high wind can close it, and queues build in peak summer. In the afternoon, visit Phaselis, where Roman and Byzantine ruins sit directly on a pine-backed bay with three separate beaches, so bring swimwear as well as a camera. Overnight in or near Kemer.

Day 5: Olympos and the Chimaera flames

Continue south to Olympos & Çıralı, a laid-back riverside village next to its own ancient-city ruins near the beach. In the late afternoon or evening, walk up to the Chimaera (Yanartaş) flames, a short climb from a car park a few kilometres away — the naturally seeping gas burning at the rock’s surface is far more striking after dark, so time this deliberately rather than visiting at midday. This is natural gas, not volcanic activity. Overnight around Olympos & Çıralı.

Day 6: On to Kaş — the drive lengthens

This is the day the road changes character. The route from Olympos to Kaş climbs and winds along cliffs and headlands, and it takes noticeably longer than the flat, fast roads around Antalya and Kemer — budget most of the day for driving with stops, not a quick transfer. Settle into Kaş for two nights; it’s a relaxed harbour town that makes an ideal base for boat trips rather than a place to rush through.

Day 7: Kekova and Kalkan

Base day in Kaş. In the morning, take a boat trip to the Kekova day trip from Kaş, passing the part-submerged ruins of Kekova Sunken City — note that swimming directly over the sunken ruins is prohibited by law, so this is a viewing trip from the water, not a snorkelling one.

Alternatively, a longer option is a full-day boat trip with lunch out of Kaş, or a dedicated Kekova sunken-city boat tour if you’d rather start directly from the Kekova side. In the afternoon, make the short drive over to Kalkan, a quieter, more upscale harbour town, for dinner before returning to Kaş.

Day 8: Patara’s ruins and beach

Drive on to Patara, a combined archaeological site and one of the longest sand beaches on this coast. Spend the morning among the ruins — a Roman theatre, city gate and colonnaded street partly reclaimed by dunes — and the afternoon on the beach itself, which stretches for kilometres with relatively few facilities. This is a shorter driving day than Day 6, deliberately, so it can double as a rest day between the two longer legs of the trip. Overnight near Patara or push on partway toward Fethiye if you prefer to split the next leg further.

Day 9: Fethiye and Ölüdeniz

Continue to Fethiye, a working harbour town that’s larger and more built-up than Kaş or Kalkan. Do not expect this to feel like a quick add-on: the road from Patara to Fethiye, and the whole run from Antalya, adds up to considerably more driving time than a straight-line map distance would suggest — this itinerary has already spread that load across days 6 through 9 rather than saving it for the end. In the afternoon, head to Ölüdeniz for its lagoon and beach, one of the most photographed spots on this coast, before returning to Fethiye for the night.

Day 10: Saklıkent Canyon and departure

If your flight home isn’t until evening, spend the morning at Saklıkent Canyon, a narrow gorge walked partly by wading through cold, fast-moving water — wear shoes with grip, and check locally that it’s open, since heavy rain can close it due to flash-flood risk. Otherwise, use the day to drive back toward Antalya (or fly out of a closer regional airport if your booking allows it) and return your rental car. Given the distances covered over the week, don’t schedule a same-day flight departure right after visiting the canyon unless your flight is late in the evening.

Planning notes for this route

Leg	Approx. drive time	Suggested nights
Antalya Airport → Kemer	~1 hour	1
Kemer → Olympos & Çıralı	~45 min–1 hour	1
Olympos → Kaş	~2–2.5 hours (winding road)	2
Kaş → Patara	~1–1.5 hours	1
Patara → Fethiye	~1–1.5 hours	2

Times are approximate and traffic- and season-dependent; the mountain roads west of Kemer run consistently slower than the distances alone suggest. For boat-heavy alternatives to driving certain legs, a private boat tour along the Antalya/Kemer coast covers some of the same scenery from the water instead of the road.

Frequently asked questions about this 10-day Antalya to Fethiye itinerary

Can I drive from Antalya to Fethiye in one day with stops?

Not comfortably. The coastal road narrows and winds significantly west of Kemer, especially around Kaş, and the full distance with any sightseeing stops is unrealistic as a single day. This itinerary spreads the drive across roughly four travel days instead of compressing it into one.

Do I need a car for this whole route?

A rental car is the most flexible option and is assumed throughout this itinerary, since bus connections between the smaller towns (Olympos, Kaş, Kalkan, Patara) are limited. See getting around the Antalya coast for alternatives if you’d rather not self-drive the whole way.

Can I swim over the sunken ruins at Kekova?

No. Swimming directly over the submerged ruins at Kekova is prohibited by law to protect the site. Boat trips let you view the ruins through clear water from above; check current rules with your boat operator before the trip.

Is the Chimaera an active volcano?

No. The Chimaera (Yanartaş) near Olympos is natural gas seeping through rock and burning continuously at the surface — a geological curiosity, not volcanic activity. It’s more visually striking after dark.

Should I stay in Kaş, Kalkan, or both?

Both towns are close enough to visit as a day trip from either base, so a two-night stay in Kaş with an afternoon in Kalkan (as on Day 7) covers both without adding an extra hotel change.

How much longer is the drive after Kaş?

Noticeably longer. The legs from Kaş to Patara and on to Fethiye add real time on winding roads, which is why this itinerary allocates three separate days to that stretch rather than treating it as a single afternoon drive.

Is 10 days too rushed for this route?

It’s a reasonably full itinerary rather than a relaxed one — every leg after Kemer has at least one full driving day attached. Travelers wanting more downtime could drop Saklıkent Canyon on Day 10 or extend the Kaş base to three nights and shorten time in Antalya city.

What if I only have a week instead of 10 days?

Consider the shorter seven-day Antalya budget beaches and ruins route or a five-day Lycian coast itinerary covering Kaş, Kekova and Myra without pushing as far as Fethiye.