ANTALYA BEACHES – Where to swim in Antalya?

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Just imagine: glittering turquoise waters contrasted with sparkling white sand and lush green forests of cypress. This is what awaits you on the Antalya beaches that hug the Mediterranean coast of Turkey’s south. In fact, the ONLY setback is that the water can get too warm.

The Antalya beaches are Turkey’s biggest tourist magnet. In advertising for Turkey, promoters typically use breathtaking photos of the beach at Kaputaş (near Kas). Antalya beaches are so magnetic that there are tourists who’ve never even stepped foot in Istanbul, Turkey’s biggest and most-famous city but been to Antalya multiple times.

Swimming season in Antalya is quite long – from May until the end of October. We recommend either going at the beginning or end of this season to escape the crowds and the heat. Below, you’ll find the best places to swim in Antalya. Some places will have facilities and services, but some sites are more remote. But all of them are favorites among locals, and we’ve written which ones are blue-flagged beaches.

Mermerli Beach - MURATPAŞA (CITY CENTER)

Mermerli Beach is located right in the historic center of Antalya, next to the Kaleiçi Harbor behind a cliff. It was once used as a women’s beach since it’s a bit isolated. But it then evolved into a beach for all city dwellers, and became a lifesaver for them in the heat. Though the beach looks empty in the photo, it is filled with lounge chairs during the summer. Mermerli was on the Blue Flag Beach list in 2017. Click here for the location.

Örnekköy Beach - MURATPASHA

This is another sandy beach near the center of the city. Located in the Lara region, Örnekköy is a calm beach where city locals typically have their summer homes. Click here for the location.

Lara Public Beach - MURATPASHA

As one of Antalya’s most famous beaches in the city center, it’s become a bit overcrowded these days. This is another sandy beach, but you’ll see a lot of tents set up here as it’s the location of many a summer camp. The waters on this beach are hotter than those of Konyaaltı Public Beach (further below) – but one nice aspect is the water is stays shallower for a long distance out. It was also listed as a Blue-Flagged Beach in 2017. Click here for the location.

Inciraltı Public Beach - MURATPASHA

Located next to Lara Beach, this is an excellent one of the Antalya beaches operated by the municipality. Although it’s a public beach, it’s calm, making it a great place to rest a bit in the center of the city. This was also on the Blue Flag Beach list in 2017. Click here for the location.

Konyaaltı Public Beach

This beach has more pebbles compared to Muratpaşa’s coastline, but Konyaaltı is known for having the longest shore. The last we heard, it was closed to cars. This sandy stretch is vast and consists of five beaches in succession, and all of them are Blue-Flagged Beaches. Click herefor the location.

Olympos, Çıralı

Only 1.5 hours away from downtown Antalya, Çıralı is a full 180 from the Antalya beaches in the city. The waters in Çıralı are azure, crisp and cool, the coast is rocky and the sounds of nature (yes, crickets!) take the place of those typical thumping beach club tunes. And there’s a historic trail to the beach to boot.

The Olympos Beach is a trench of the Olympus mountains, and it’s one of the major nesting areas for Carretta turtles in Turkey. Because of this, you won’t be able to find any services like umbrellas or chairs to sit on, as part of the effort to protect the turtles. If you’re traveling around in a car, make sure to bring a couple of folding chairs, an umbrella and a table with you if that’s how you roll.

Since this is one of the more remote locations, you’ll need to walk 5-10 minutes to get to the beach. You’ll first buy a ticket at the entrance to the Olympos Ancient City. You can get a single entry ticket for 20 TL, but you can get a multiple-entry ticket that works out to be a better deal.

If you’ve traveled by car, then you’ll be able to park on the right-hand side as you enter the ruins. Parking is 5 TL for 24 hours. Click here for the location.

Adrasan Bay - OLYMPOS

Outside of Antalya’s center, but still not too far, is another little paradise. 1 hour by bus from the Antalya bus station and 20-25 minutes from Çıralı by car, Adrasan Bay has plenty of nearby hotels, cafes and venues along the coast, and a sandy beach with shallow water. Umbrellas and chairs are 5 TL. Click here for the location.

Cleopatra Beach - ALANYA

Cleopatra Beach is 2-km of sand. The waters here are shallow and so clear that there’s no need to snorkel to see fish. This is also a blue-flagged beach. According to legend, Cleopatra and her lover Antonius swam here. We would be sad travel advisers if we didn’t add that this place has a spectacular sunset – perhaps those rulers of old knew it too. Click here for the location.

Phaselis Beach - KEMER

With three small coves that allow you to swim amongst the ancient city of Phaselis, this is our favorite of the Antalya beaches in the Kemer district. Only one of these coves has a shower and toilets, though. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to find anything here like umbrellas or sunbeds, but you can grab food and drinks in the middle cove. Entrance is 20 TL. Click here for the location.

Alacasu Cennet Bay - KEMER

“Cennet” means “heaven” in Turkish, and this bay lives up to its name. It is located inside Beydağları National Park, and it’s so untouched that there are no businesses operating here. Click here for the location.

Source: https://www.bizevdeyokuz.com/