An antalya kekova gulet cruise is a week on a wooden gulet along the Lycian coast of Turkey. It starts and ends in Antalya, with seven nights on board and the sunken city of Kekova as its far point. Browse more tours in Greece to compare the day trips that reach the same coast.
This page covers the eight-day outline, the sailing season and life on board. It also covers the stops at Olympos, Myra, Kekova and Phaselis, plus swimming, packing, entry points and a FAQ.
What is an antalya kekova gulet cruise, and how does the route run?
An Antalya Kekova gulet cruise is a week-long blue cruise on a wooden gulet. It sails the Lycian coast from Antalya to the sunken city of Kekova and back. The plan covers eight days and seven nights, all spent on board.
A blue cruise, also called a blue voyage, is a recreational trip along Turkey’s southwestern coast. A week on a local gulet is the standard form. This Antalya Kekova gulet cruise heads west into ancient Lycia. There, little ports were once linked by sea, because no road reached them.
On an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise, eight days mean seven nights, all spent on the boat. You step aboard in Antalya on day one and leave after breakfast on day eight. A gulet is built of wood, and the common design has two masts. Later sections explain life on board.
The Antalya Kekova gulet cruise runs west first. Day one stays in Antalya harbour. Day two reaches Olympos, an ancient seaside city. The Chimaera flames can be visited, and the night is at Adrasan. Day three passes Cayagzi, where the visit to ancient Myra starts, and ends at Gokkaya Bay. Day four crosses the sunken city to Ucagiz.
Day five visits Kale, the village of ancient Simena, and ends at Gokliman near Finike. Day six sails to the port of Ceneviz, with an afternoon for swimming and snorkelling, and ends at Tekirova. Day seven stops at the ruins of Phaselis, an ancient port, and sails back to Antalya. Day eight ends in Antalya after breakfast.
A round trip needs only one harbour and one airport. Antalya has a major international airport with wide flight links, as a charter page states. So both ends of the Antalya Kekova gulet cruise sit in one city. This page covers the season, each day, life on board, each stop, the water and a Kekova day trip.
Which season suits an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
The season for an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise runs from April through October, as a charter page states. The months on either side of midsummer bring comfortable weather for swimming and walking to ruins. July and August bring hot, sunny weather and a warm sea.
A second page puts good sailing conditions from late spring through October, with favourable weather from June to September. A third page names April, late spring, October and November for sightseeing, and the sea stays warm late into autumn. The charter page adds that mountains rising from the sea shelter the coast from prevailing winds.
July and August bring hot, sunny weather and a warm sea for swimming, as the charter page states. A travel page puts Antalya’s summer days at 30 to 35 degrees Celsius, with hotter spells and sticky nights. In midsummer an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise shares the coast with more boats, yet the coves keep peaceful anchorages open.
The shoulder months are the weeks before and after midsummer. The charter page lists comfortable temperatures, calmer seas and fewer boats. A travel page on Kas calls September a good time, with warm seas but no sweltering heat. These months suit an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise that mixes swimming with shore walks.
April and late October are the quiet ends of the season for an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise. The charter page notes wildflowers in spring and golden light in autumn, though cooler air can limit swimming. Winter lies outside the season, and a travel page describes mild winters broken by storms, downpours and strong winds.
On an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise, days one and eight sit in Antalya. Its bay is ringed by mountains, which gives very hot summers for a coastal city. Walkers on the Lycian Way, a coastal trail, come mainly from March into June and again in autumn. The shore walks on days two, three and seven fit those seasons.
What happens on each day of an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
An Antalya Kekova gulet cruise runs for eight days and seven nights. You board in Antalya on day one and reach Kekova on day four. You step off in Antalya on day eight, with all seven nights spent on board.
- Day 1: Board the gulet in Antalya, enjoy a welcome cocktail and dinner, and spend the first night on board.
- Day 2: Sail to Olympos for lunch and a chance to visit the Chimaera, then dine and sleep at Adrasan.
- Day 3: Sail on to Cayagzi for lunch, with a chance to visit ancient Myra, then dine and sleep at Gokkaya.
- Day 4: Cruise over the sunken city to Kekova, then dine and sleep at Ucagiz.
- Day 5: Visit Kale village (ancient Simena) after breakfast, eat lunch on board, then dine and sleep at Gokliman near Finike.
- Day 6: Sail to the port of Ceneviz for lunch, swim and snorkel in the afternoon, then dine and sleep at Tekirova.
- Day 7: Visit the ruins of Phaselis after breakfast, have lunch there, then sail back to Antalya for dinner and the night.
- Day 8: Eat a last breakfast on board and disembark in Antalya, where the cruise began.
The days of an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise share one rhythm. Two itinerary pages show the same pattern. A day runs from breakfast on board to a sail, lunch and a swim. Then a bay brings dinner and the night. Both pages list the shore visits as optional, so a traveller can skip a ruin and stay on deck.
On an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise the first and last nights are spent on board in Antalya. Days two to six each end in a different bay, so the boat sleeps somewhere new every night in between. Kekova on day four is the turning point. From day five the boat heads back toward Antalya, and day eight brings the disembarking.
How does life on board work on an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
An Antalya Kekova gulet cruise has a crew of a captain, a cook and a deckhand. Two pages on gulet trips list the same three roles. You sleep in a cabin on a wooden boat, and the cook serves breakfast, lunch and dinner.
The vessel on an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise is a gulet. As Wikipedia states, gulets are traditional Turkish boats of wood, built with two masts or three. Two is the common design. Gulets are built particularly in Bodrum and Marmaris. Wikipedia adds that gulets worked in fishing or sponging until tourism grew. It says diesel power is now almost universal.
Two pages describe gulet cabins with their own shower and toilet. The Blue Cruise page on Wikipedia says the broad stern of a gulet gives space for daily living. On an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise that space holds the sunbathing and fishing that one page lists. It also names a dinghy and a radio on each yacht.
Meals on an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise come from the cook on board. Two itinerary pages list breakfast, lunch, dinner and an afternoon tea with biscuits. A third page names Turkish breakfasts, meze platters and grilled seafood, with dinners served outdoors under the stars. This plan adds a welcome cocktail on day one.
Sleeping on an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise means a berth in a cabin. One itinerary page gives couples their own cabin. A cabin-charter page also offers a night on deck under a star-filled sky. Wikipedia names sea travel as one cause of motion sickness and lists focusing on the horizon among the behavioural measures.
Gulet pages describe two ways to join an Antalya Kekova gulet cruise. A charter page says the group books the entire yacht exclusively, with a professional crew. The same page calls the gulet the group’s floating accommodation. A cabin-charter page says a cabin means sharing the boat with other couples, with the crew there for your needs.
What does Antalya add at the start and end of an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
An antalya kekova gulet cruise starts and ends in Antalya, a large city on the southwest coast of Anatolia. Day one brings boarding, a welcome cocktail, dinner and the first night on board. Day eight brings breakfast and disembarking.
Antalya is one of the largest cities in Turkey. It is the chief resort of the Turkish Riviera, with the Taurus Mountains behind it. King Attalos II of Pergamon based his fleet here, and the city took its first name, Attaleia, from him. That naval past suits the first evening of an antalya kekova gulet cruise.
Kaleici, meaning Inner Castle, is the historic city centre. Ancient walls enclose it, and it overlooks the old harbour, which is now a yacht marina. Narrow alleys climb between about 3,000 red-tiled houses. Hadrian’s Gate was built in the second century for a visit by Emperor Hadrian. It marks one main entrance to the old town.
The gate was bricked up inside the city walls, which kept it safe until the walls crumbled. A museum in the Muratpasa district held statues from Perge and Roman sarcophagi. A reference entry now says its old building has closed. The site is being rebuilt, so check the current status before an antalya kekova gulet cruise.
Antalya Airport is 13 km away, to the northeast of central Antalya. A tram line runs from terminal one to Ismetpasa, the stop for the old town. The ride takes 50 minutes. The tram does not serve terminal two. Day one of an antalya kekova gulet cruise is the boarding day, so plan the arrival leg with care.
One itinerary page includes a private pick-up from the airport to the harbour, while another leaves airport transfers out. Both end with breakfast on board and then disembarking, and one names ten in the morning. A flight home booked a day later leaves no rush. A spare day adds time in Antalya after an antalya kekova gulet cruise.
How do Olympos, the Chimaera and Adrasan fit an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
On day two an antalya kekova gulet cruise reaches Olympos, an ancient Lycian city by the sea, for lunch. A visit to the Chimaera, the flames of Yanartas, is a chance that day. The night is spent at Adrasan.
Olympos, the lunch stop of an antalya kekova gulet cruise, is an ancient city in Lycia. Its ruins spread along both sides of a creek that runs through a deep valley to the Mediterranean. The city was one of the six cities of the Lycian League, each with three votes. Later it was mentioned mainly in connection with piracy.
The ruins include the baths, a temple, Bridge Street and the bridge. Nine early Byzantine churches stand in the city centre. A travel entry points to the mosaics and the tombs near the former harbour. Cirali beach is pebble, lacks shade and stretches 1 km down to the ruins.
Yanartas is Turkish for flaming stone. Dozens of small fires burn constantly from vents in the rock. The ruins of a temple of Hephaistos lie below. Visitors go to the entrance at the foot of the mountain, then climb an easy 1 km path. On an antalya kekova gulet cruise this climb is a chance, not a fixed stop.
Visitors go at night, when the fires are brightest, and a travel entry says to go just after sunset. The descent is then in the dark, so pack sturdy shoes and a torch. In ancient times sailors steered by the flames. Homer’s Iliad tells of a fire-breathing Chimera, though authorities disagree on the link.
Adrasan, also called Cavuskoy, is a neighbourhood of Kumluca in Antalya Province, with 2.5 km of coast. Its bay is known for its natural setting. A reference entry says visibility can reach 25 metres on a clear day, which suits swimmers and snorkellers. Two itinerary pages name Cavus Bay as the night stop of an antalya kekova gulet cruise.
What does the stop at Myra add to an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
The Myra stop adds ancient Lycian tombs and a Roman theatre to an antalya kekova gulet cruise. On day three the gulet reaches Cayagzi, a small marina at Demre. The old city of Myra lies up the river from its port.
Day three of an antalya kekova gulet cruise brings lunch at Cayagzi. Cayagzi Beach lies 500 metres west of the Andriake ruins, as a travel reference states. Andriake was the harbour of ancient Myra. Its main building today is a granary built under the Roman emperor Hadrian. The granary now holds the Museum of Lycian Civilizations.
Myra was a city of ancient Lycia on the river Myros, in a fertile plain below the mountains. Silt from the river covers the old town, so only parts have been dug out. Those parts are the acropolis, the baths and the Roman theatre. The semicircular theatre fell in an earthquake long ago and was rebuilt.
Myra has two necropoleis of Lycian rock-cut tombs, a river group and an ocean group. They are cut into cliffs and shaped like temple fronts. The ocean group lies northwest of the theatre. Another reference notes traces of red, blue and yellow paint. On an antalya kekova gulet cruise, this is the Lycian side of day three.
In Demre town stands the church of St Nicholas. Nicholas was bishop of Myra in the fourth century. Legends about him gave rise to the figure of Santa Claus. The floor is a mosaic of coloured marble, and parts of the wall paintings survive. Opening hours change, so check them before an antalya kekova gulet cruise.
One travel page lists the Myra visit as an optional land tour. A travel reference says a minibus or taxi links Demre town with Andriake and Cayagzi Beach. Ancient Myra is walking distance from the town bus station. Gokkaya Bay, where travel pages describe an anchorage for dinner, ends day three of an antalya kekova gulet cruise.
What does the sunken city of Kekova show on an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
The sunken city of Kekova is the ruin of a town that an earthquake partly sank in the second century. On day four the gulet cruises over it. An antalya kekova gulet cruise looks at the ruins from the boat, not from the water.
Kekova is a small island of 4.5 square kilometres near Demre, and it is uninhabited. The ruins lie on its northern side and belong to the ancient town of Dolichiste. The island faces the villages of Kalekoy and Ucagiz. An antalya kekova gulet cruise spends the night of day four at Ucagiz.
Swimming over the ruins is not allowed. An encyclopedia entry says the ban once covered the whole protected area and now covers only the sunken city. A travel reference says boats cannot anchor there, while kayaks are allowed. So an antalya kekova gulet cruise passes over the ruins and docks in a nearby bay.
Day five of an antalya kekova gulet cruise visits Kalekoy, also called Kale, on the site of ancient Simena. Part of the old city lies under the sea, with the remains of baths in the water. A castle rises above the village, with a small theatre cut into the rock inside. Two travel pages put the audience at 300.
Ucagiz lies one kilometre from Kalekoy. Its name means three mouths, for the three exits to the open sea. Its ancient name was Teimioussa. A travel reference notes a group of Lycian sarcophagi on rough ground along the coast east of the village. Lycian tombs also stand near Simena, as two travel pages state.
The Kekova region covers 260 square kilometres. It holds the island, both villages and four ancient towns: Simena, Aperlae, Dolichiste and Teimioussa. Day four ends at Ucagiz, and day five opens there with breakfast before the visit to Kale. An antalya kekova gulet cruise thus spends two days inside one protected region.
How do swim and snorkel stops work on an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
On an antalya kekova gulet cruise the captain anchors in a bay, and you swim from the boat. Two travel pages list fins and a snorkel among the gear on board. The pages place a swimming break after lunch.
Travel pages for this coast keep a steady rhythm. One page anchors for lunch and a swimming break. Then it sails on to a second bay for dinner and the night. Another page puts a swim after lunch before the next stop. The swim is part of the daily routine of the week.
The coast suits these stops. Wikivoyage calls the Lycian shore near Kemer rugged and hemmed in by mountains. It adds that a string of little ports grew along it in ancient times. A charter page states that the Taurus Mountains drop straight into clear water. An antalya kekova gulet cruise follows that line of coves.
The gear on an antalya kekova gulet cruise is simple. Two travel pages list fins and a snorkel among the equipment on board, and one adds fishing tackle. Wikipedia describes the coast near Finike as rich in marine life, including sea turtles and fish. Ask the crew what the boat carries and which bay suits a swim.
Ruins come with a rule. Wikipedia states that Kekova became a specially protected area and that swimming and diving were first banned there. It adds that the ban was later lifted everywhere but over the sunken city. An antalya kekova gulet cruise therefore passes over the sunken city, and the swim stops come in other bays.
Day six of an antalya kekova gulet cruise starts at Gokliman, near Finike. Wikipedia links Finike to its oranges and its yacht marina. The boat then sails to the port of Ceneviz, which a travel page gives as the Genoese harbour. The afternoon is for swimming and snorkelling. The night is at Tekirova, a Kemer neighbourhood with large tourist hotels.
What does Phaselis add at the end of an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
Phaselis adds the last ancient city of an antalya kekova gulet cruise. Wikipedia describes a Greek and Roman port on the coast of ancient Lycia, built around three harbours. The ruins lie north of Tekirova, so the boat stops there on day seven.
Wikipedia dates the founding by the Rhodians to 690 BC. The town stood on a land bridge that separates two harbours. It became the chief harbour city of eastern Lycia. Two travel pages link the port with the perfume trade. Wikipedia adds that the town was renowned for its roses.
Wikipedia names the three harbours: the Northern Harbour, the Battle Harbour and the Protected, or Sun, Harbour. Wikipedia calls the Sun Harbour the main one today. Wikivoyage adds that it is the southerly harbour and better preserved than the other two. An ancient street, 24 metres wide, runs through the middle of the city.
On the shore, an antalya kekova gulet cruise meets the ruins that Wikipedia lists along that street. These are shops and stores, then Roman baths, agoras and theatres. Water canals run between the town centre and a plateau, and sarcophagi lie among the remains. Wikivoyage describes the port ruins as overgrown by pine forest.
Phaselis has the Bey Mountains on one side and Olympos National Park on the other. Wikipedia places it 16 kilometres south of Kemer, a resort that Wikivoyage puts about 40 km southwest of Antalya. Wikipedia adds that daily yacht tours bring visitors to Phaselis by sea. That is also how an antalya kekova gulet cruise arrives.
On day seven an antalya kekova gulet cruise lands at Phaselis for the ruins and lunch. Then the boat sails back. A travel page for a similar week ends it the same way. It lists a last dinner and a night in the Antalya marina. The last night on board closes the loop that began on day one in Antalya.
Which entry rules, health points and packing items matter on an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
Check the official pages for your passport and visa rules before an antalya kekova gulet cruise. Your passport needs 60 extra days of validity past the longest stay allowed. Pack a soft bag with sun protection, comfortable shoes and a layer for cooler months.
An antalya kekova gulet cruise is a visit to Turkey, so entry rules apply. Wikipedia’s visa page for Turkey says anyone who lacks the right of abode needs entry permission. Travellers who need a visa must get it before they travel. Others stay for a set number of days, up to 90 within any 180-day period, without one.
The same page describes an e-Visa for citizens of listed countries, so read the official pages that match your passport. Money comes next. Wikivoyage names the Turkish lira, written TL, as the currency and says the main bank cards are widely accepted. It adds that cash machines are widespread in Turkish cities and suggests exchanging leftover lira before leaving.
Health points for an antalya kekova gulet cruise start with the sea. Wikipedia’s page on motion sickness says the rocking of a craft brings on seasickness. Its behavioural measures are a still head and a steady gaze at the horizon. Medicines carry side effects, so ask a pharmacist before you travel.
Wikivoyage’s Lycia page says to drink plenty of water in hot sun or sea breeze and to use sun protection. Its Turkey page says to dial 112 from any phone to reach all emergency services. Two cruise pages mention yacht insurance and advise travellers to take their own travel insurance.
Two cruise pages agree on swimwear, sunglasses, sun lotion, beach towels and mosquito repellent for an antalya kekova gulet cruise. One adds a hat, soft shoes or sandals for the boat, and sweaters and trousers for cooler months. It also asks for a soft folding bag, not a suitcase, to save room in the cabin.
How does an antalya kekova gulet cruise differ from a Kekova day trip?
An antalya kekova gulet cruise runs for eight days with seven nights on one boat, round trip from Antalya. A Kekova day trip is one boat outing from a base such as Kas, Demre or Ucagiz. One covers the coast; the other covers one stretch of it.
Wikipedia describes a blue cruise as a week-long trip aboard a gulet to ancient cities and small coves. An antalya kekova gulet cruise fits that shape. The traveller sleeps on board all seven nights, five of them in five different places along the coast. A day trip skips those nights and sails back to the same shore.
Wikivoyage says boat trips for Kekova start from the small marina at Cayagzi Beach, near Demre. Its Kas page counts over a dozen operators running boat trips from the harbour. A travel page adds that boat tours to the sunken city leave from Ucagiz. An antalya kekova gulet cruise boards in Antalya instead.
A day trip needs a base on the coast first. Wikivoyage’s Kas page gives the bus ride from Antalya at about four hours. Its Lycia page says the twisting coastal road makes for long transfer times from Antalya Airport. On an antalya kekova gulet cruise, the boat covers that coast while the traveller swims, eats and sleeps.
The Kekova region covers 260 square kilometres and holds four ancient towns, says Wikipedia: Simena, Aperlae, Dolchiste and Teimioussa. Wikivoyage says boat trips to Kekova visit Kalekoy, the village below a Byzantine castle. The cruise also calls at Olympos, the Chimaera, Myra and Phaselis, which that list does not include.
A Kekova day trip fits a single free day for a traveller based at Kas or Kalkan. An antalya kekova gulet cruise suits a traveller with a week who wants the Lycian coast in one trip. Timetables and entry rules change, so read the official pages for either choice.
What else do travellers ask about an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
Is an antalya kekova gulet cruise suitable for a first-time sailor or for children?
Cruise pages name lone travellers, pairs, groups of friends and whole families among the guests. Each boat has its own crew, and one page says guests can join in the sailing if they wish. A first-time sailor can leave the sailing to the crew, who also carry the luggage to the cabins.
A page for shared departures lists a dinghy and a VHF radiotelephone on each yacht. A charter page describes crews who are familiar with every anchorage along the Lycian shore. The pages behind an antalya kekova gulet cruise set no age limit for children. Ask the organiser of a departure for its own rule.
How does a strong wind change an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
The captain decides, and the plan bends to the weather. One charter page says the captain adjusts the route each day. The weather, the group and the pace shape each change. A cruise page also ties the night mooring to the weather conditions.
The coast helps. The same charter page says mountains rising straight from the sea give shelter from the prevailing winds. Coves under the cliffs offer quiet anchorages. It calls Adrasan a sheltered anchorage. In a strong wind, an antalya kekova gulet cruise can turn to such a bay.
One traveller’s review on a cruise page says bad weather kept the boat near Demre for the first two days. No page promises a fixed order of stops, so read the day-by-day outline as a frame, not a promise.
Can an antalya kekova gulet cruise run in the other direction or from another port?
Yes, because pages describe this coast from other ports. Wikipedia lists Bodrum, Marmaris, Fethiye and Antalya as places where a blue cruise starts. It counts Kekova among the popular stops. One cruise page starts and ends at Kemer. Another starts and ends at Kas.
Two one-way cruises between Fethiye and Demre run in opposite directions, each for six nights. The page says they bring new scenery every day, with no repeats and no backtracking.
A start in Kas adds a road leg, because Wikivoyage puts the bus ride from Antalya at about four hours. Any other port changes where the week begins and ends. An antalya kekova gulet cruise still follows the same Lycian coast.
Is a cabin shared on an antalya kekova gulet cruise, and how are groups formed?
Both set-ups exist. A charter page says a group books the entire yacht for itself. A page for regular departures offers one cabin on a boat shared with other couples.
On a shared departure, the cabin is the unit. Another cruise page says couples get their own cabin. Solo travellers share a twin, double, triple or quad cabin, depending on the make-up of the group.
The page for regular departures adds two points for a shared antalya kekova gulet cruise. The yacht name is known only one or two days before sailing, as bookings arrive late. Crews do not always speak a foreign language, yet they know everyday phrases and understand almost every request.
Can a traveller walk part of the Lycian Way during an antalya kekova gulet cruise?
As Wikipedia states, the Lycian Way is a marked hiking trail. It runs from near Fethiye to a point about 20 km from Antalya. Signs show a white stripe above a red stripe, repeated on rocks and tree trunks about every 50 m. The article adds that the Lycians used parts of the trail as routes between their cities and ports.
Its listed stages name Kekova, Demre, Finike, Adrasan, Olimpos, Tekirova and Phaselis, the same places that this route visits.
The day-by-day plan on this page sets no trail walk. A Lycian Way hike on an antalya kekova gulet cruise is therefore an extra. A cruise page for a round trip from Kas describes a walk from Ucagiz to Simena. The boat waits at Simena.