Best Day Trips and Excursions from Antalya
Before You Book Anything
Skip the hotel reception and the TUI/Jet2 reps. The excursions are the same, just 30–50% more expensive. Walk into any travel agency in Kaleiçi or Konyaaltı, spend ten minutes comparing prices, and you’ll save a noticeable amount. For self-guided trips, a hire car and Google Maps covers most of these without needing a tour at all.
Within 30 Minutes of Antalya
1. Düden Waterfalls (Upper and Lower)
Two separate waterfalls, and they’re quite different from each other.
Upper Düden is inland, set in a park where you can walk behind the cascade through a short cave. Good for photos, there’s a tea garden nearby, and entry is very cheap. It’s relaxed and easy to do in an hour.
Lower Düden is the one worth making the effort for. The waterfall pours straight off a cliff into the Mediterranean, which is a sight that doesn’t quite make sense until you’re standing there looking at it. You can view it from the clifftop park for free, or see it from the water on a boat trip from the old harbour.
Upper Düden is 20 minutes by bus or taxi. Lower Düden is about 15 minutes by bus toward Lara. Both are comfortable half-day trips.
2. Perge
An ancient Greek and Roman city 18 km from central Antalya. The Roman gate is enormous, the colonnaded street runs for hundreds of metres, and the stadium seated 12,000. It’s comparable to Ephesus in scale but sees a fraction of the visitors, so you can actually walk around without jostling for space.
Getting there: drive (20 minutes), taxi, or dolmuş toward Aksu. Allow 1.5–2 hours.
3. Termessos
A mountain-top Pisidian city at 1,000 metres in the Güllük Mountain National Park. Alexander the Great looked at the defensive position and decided it wasn’t worth the bother — which tells you something. The city was never excavated properly, which gives it a more raw, overgrown feel than most ancient sites in Turkey. The theatre sits on a ridge with forested mountains dropping away on all sides. It’s one of the better views in the country.
Getting there requires a car or taxi (30 minutes). There’s no public transport. The walk from the car park to the main ruins is steep and takes 30–40 minutes. Wear proper shoes and skip this one if mobility is an issue. Allow 2–3 hours total.
30 Minutes to 1 Hour
4. Aspendos
The Roman theatre here is the best-preserved in the world, and that’s not a claim that’s hard to back up once you’re standing inside it. Built in the 2nd century AD, it still seats 15,000 and hosts live performances in summer. The acoustics are worth testing — stand at the back row and you can hear a normal conversation on the stage below.
The rest of the ancient city (aqueduct, basilica, agora) sprawls around the theatre but the theatre is what people come for.
Getting there: 45 minutes east by car, organised tour, or dolmuş to Serik then a taxi. Allow 1–1.5 hours for the theatre alone, 2–3 hours if you want to see everything.
5. Side
A touristy but charming ancient port town about an hour east of Antalya. Roman ruins are scattered through the modern town — the Temple of Apollo on the waterfront is the main photo opportunity, especially at sunset. There are decent beaches, plenty of restaurants, and a small old quarter that’s pleasant to walk at a slow pace.
It gets busy in summer but has a better atmosphere in the shoulder months. Easy to combine with Aspendos in one day.
Getting there: dolmuş from Antalya bus station (1 hour), drive, or organised tour. Half a day minimum, a full day if combining with Aspendos.
6. Kemer and Phaselis
Kemer is a resort town 45 minutes southwest, set where pine-forested mountains meet the coast. The reason to come is Phaselis, a Lycian and Roman port city spread across three small bays. The water is clear enough that you can swim among the ruins, and the combination of ancient walls, pine trees, and the sea makes it one of the more photogenic spots along this stretch of coast.
Getting there: dolmuş from Antalya (45 minutes), drive, or boat trip. Half day to full day.
1–2 Hours Away
7. Olympos and the Chimaera
Olympos is a ruined Lycian city in a forested gorge that runs down to a wide beach. It has a backpacker reputation — treehouse hostels, campfires, none of the big resort infrastructure. The beach is good and the site itself is free to wander.
A few kilometres away, the Chimaera is a hillside where natural gas vents through cracks in the rock and has been burning for millennia. Go at dusk. In daylight it’s underwhelming; once the sun drops it looks properly surreal.
Getting there: drive (1.5 hours) or dolmuş. The Chimaera requires a short uphill walk. A full day covers both properly.
8. Kaputaş Beach
A small turquoise cove between cliffs, reached by a staircase from the road. The water colour is almost absurdly vivid. It gets crowded in high season because it’s small, but outside of July and August you can usually find a spot. Worth the drive if you’re heading toward Kaş.
Getting there: 2 hours west by car, or combine with a tour in that direction. Allow 2–3 hours at the beach plus travel.
9. Saklıkent Gorge
A narrow canyon where you wade through cold glacial meltwater between walls of rock. Popular in summer for obvious reasons. There are platforms and cafés at the entrance, and you can wade as far in as you like. Further in it gets narrower and more interesting.
Getting there: 1.5 hours west by car, often combined with organised tours. Allow 2–3 hours.
Full Day or Overnight
10. Pamukkale
Turkey’s famous white travertine terraces, with the ancient city of Hierapolis at the top. Photos circulate endlessly online and the reality is slightly more complicated. The terraces themselves are smaller than they appear in pictures, and quite a few are dry or off-limits to protect what remains. It’s still worth seeing, but go in with calibrated expectations.
The ruins of Hierapolis above are less photographed but arguably more interesting — a Roman theatre, an extensive necropolis, and Cleopatra’s Pool, where you swim among sunken Roman columns for an extra fee. That part is worth the extra cost.
Getting there: about 3 hours by car, or organised day trips run from every agency in Antalya. Budget tours cost around £25–40 per person including transport and entry. An overnight in nearby Denizli makes it more relaxed, but most people do it as a long day trip.
11. Cappadocia
The fairy chimneys, cave hotels, and hot air balloons. Technically doable as a day trip from Antalya (fly to Kayseri or Nevşehir, take a tour, fly back) but it’s rushed and not cheap. A fly-in day tour runs £150–250 per person. Balloon rides are extra at £150–200+ and need to be booked well in advance.
The better approach is a separate 2–3 night trip. Pegasus usually has reasonable fares. You’ll see more, feel less harried, and it’ll probably cost less overall than cramming it into a day.
12. The Lycian Way (Hiking)
Turkey’s most famous long-distance trail runs 540 km from Fethiye to Antalya along the coast. You don’t need to walk the whole thing. Day sections are excellent, particularly around Olympos, between Kaş and Kalkan, and the stretch near Çıralı.
Best months are October–November and March–May. Summer is too hot for serious walking.
Various trailheads are reachable by car or dolmuş from Antalya.
What’s Overhyped (Honest Opinions)
Organised “Turkish Night” shows: Folk performances with unlimited drinks. Fine if you know exactly what you’re signing up for, but don’t expect anything that feels remotely authentic.
Cappadocia as a day trip: Too rushed. Go properly or save it for another visit.
Antalya “pirate boat” trips: The boats are fun for kids, but the theming is naff. A straightforward harbour cruise is a better experience for adults.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best day trip from Antalya?
Aspendos and Side combined is the best balance of history, scenery, and ease. For something more natural, Olympos with the Chimaera at dusk is hard to beat.
How do I book cheap excursions in Antalya?
Walk into local travel agencies in Kaleiçi or Konyaaltı and compare prices. Avoid booking through your hotel or holiday rep — the same trips typically cost 30–50% less when booked locally.
Can you do Pamukkale as a day trip from Antalya?
Yes, though it’s a long day with 3 hours each way. Organised tours handle the driving and include entry fees. Leave early and you’ll have enough time for both the terraces and Hierapolis.
Read our complete Antalya Turkey Travel Guide for more.
