VERY TURKEYSUMMER 2014

Everything You Need To Know About İstanbul

GÖCEKFETHİYE

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CAPPADOCIA

TOP 5 BEACHES TURKEYPARAGLIDING IN FETHIYE

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Issue 1 - Summer 2014

Publisher

VeryTurkey.Com

Editor in Chief Anıl ACAREditorsDr. Beste ACARDeborah WESTAnıl ACARProofing Dr. Beste ACARLayout and Design Murat ÖZTÜRK

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Index

ISTANBUL

23 Göcek

27 Top 10 Things To Do in Fethiye

31 Paragliding in Fethiye

Saklikent GorgeCalis BeachKayakoyÖlüdenizLycian Rock TombsFethiye MuseumBoat TripsGemile IslandKabak CoveSelale Yaka Park

25 FethiyeHome of Turquoise

Sailors Paradise

3 İstanbul

9 Top 20 Things To Do in İstanbul 7 Top Tips for İstanbul

Everything you need to know about İstanbul

Taksim Ciragan PalaceBuyukada IslandTopkapi PalaceYildiz ParkKapali Carsi Cagaloglu Hamam

Visit the Topkapi PalaceHaggle at the Egyptian BazaarRide a Ferry on the BosphorusVisit Hagia SophiaWalk along the City WallsGrand Bazaar or KapalicarsiTake tea at the Galata BridgeVisit the Church of St. Saviour in Chora or Kariye Museum

5 Places To Visit in İstanbul

21 Top 5 Beaches in TurkeyBlue LagoonButterfly ValleyKaputas BeachIlıca BeachCleopatra Island

19 Cappadocia The Fairy Chimneys

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Everyting You Need to Know

İSTANBULI stanbul is a very attractive city to visit, receiving

8 million foreign tourists each year. It is the only city in the world that connects two continents,

Europe and Asia. Istanbul provides a unique expe-rience as it offers a modern European city, as well as an ancient culture with Eastern-style bazaars and Ottoman architecture.

Istanbul is the only city in the world, which has been the capital city of both Muslims and Christian Empires. It was the pearl of the Byzantine Empire, known as Constantinople. It was known as the most important city of the Christian world for more than 1000 years. The city was known as ‘Istanbul’ during the Ottoman Empire and it was home to the Ottoman Sultans.

Istanbul owes its historical importance to its stra-tegic location and access to the Bosphorus. The French discoverer, Pierre Gilles, wrote in his book in the 16th century: “Though all other cities have their periods of government and are subject to the decays of time, Constantinople alone seems to claim a kind of immortality and will continue to be a city as long as humanity shall live either to inhabit or rebuild it.” Pierre Gilles was right as Istanbul still is a strategic location even today. Although Ankara is the capital city of Turkey, Istanbul is the biggest and most crowded city of Turkey as it is home to the most important trade centres, busiest port and the largest Turkish companies.

Istanbul has large number of expensive apartments, boutiques, elegant cafes, mainly in sections such as Bebek, Nisantasi, Arnavutkoy, Goztepe, Caddebostan and Bagdat Road. However, the most expensive houses in Istanbul are the Bosphorus villas located along the coastline, selling well over $120 million.

For those who will travel to Istanbul as a tourist, the most attractive places to visit are the historical centres, such as Sultanahmet Mosque, Topkapi Palace, Dolmabahce Palace, Hagia Sophia. Three great civilizations, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Empires, shaped Istanbul, making it a multi-cultural and unique place to visit. The most famous places to visit from the Byzantines include: Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya), the impressive mosaics of the Kariye mosque (Kariye Museum) and Theodosius Walls. Istanbul has numerous buildings and mosques from the Ottomans. Out of all the mosques, Suleymaniye and Sultan Ahmet (Blue Mosque) is probably the most popular ones. Topkapi Palace, which was the residence of the Ottoman Sultans, is the museum attracting the highest number of visitors.

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Places to Visit

Text Jane Doe Photo John Doe

Old Istanbul used to be built on seven hills, close to Sarayburnu

and Sultanahmet . This area is home to the majority of the

touristic areas that you might like to visit, such as Hagia Sophia, Kapalicarsi (Grand

Bazaar), Sultan Ahmet Mosque (Blue Mosque), Suleymaniye

Mosque, Caria or Kariye Mosque (Kariye Museum), Yerebatan

Sarnici (BasiI lica Cistern) and Topkapi Palace.

T he palace was built when Sultan Abdulmecid decided to

move out of Dolmabahce in 1855. It was fully completed in 1874 during the time of Sultan Abdulaziz , who either was killed or committed suicide here. Later, Murat V was imprisoned here by his brother. In 1991, the build-ing was restored and opened as a hotel, Ciragan Palace & Kempinski Hotel.

TAKSIM

T aksim Square is located on the northern end of Istiklal Caddesi. Taksim is known

as the business area however it is also home to many restaurants and bars.

It has a stone reservoir constructed in 1732 to distribute water brought from the Belgrad Forest. The area also has small stone birdhouses above the doors, constructed in the style of miniature Ottoman houses.

CIRAGAN PALACE

L ocated opposite Ciragan Palace, Yildiz Park offers a nice walk through man-

sions, lakes, gardens and pa-vilions. The park was very im-portant during the Ottoman Empire, especially during Ab-dulhamid II. The park is worth visiting for fresh air and to have a nice day out as it is lo-cated on a hill, with stunning views over the Bosphorus and Istanbul.

YILDIZ PARK

T opkapi Palace, located in Istan-bul Sarayburnu , was the gov-ernment building for 400 years

during the Ottoman Empire, as well as being the home of the Ottoman sultans. In total, 4000 people used to live in this building.

The building was constructed in 1478 by Fatih Sultan Mehmet ( Mehmet the Conquerer ). Although the palace used to be built on 700 acres of land, it currently occupies 80 acres. When the sultans started to move to other palaces, such as Dolmabahce Palace and Yildiz Palace , Topkapi was left to the government. Sultan Abdulmecit opened the building as a museum so that public and foreigners can view the wealth of the Ottoman Empire. During 1985, Topkapi Palace was chosen as the UNESCO World Heri-tage Site.

CAGALOGLU HAMAM

C agaloglu Hamami, on Kazim Ismail Gurkan road, is famous for its

beautiful hararets or steam rooms. It was built in 1741 by Mahmut II to pay for the upkeeping of the library in Ayasofya Hagia Sophia . The bath featured in several mo-vies, including Indiana Jones.

Take a Bosphorus Tour by Boat: There are many places that you can take a Bosphorus boat tour, however the most famous location to get onto a boat is in Ortakoy, next to the Ortakoy Mosque.

TOPKAPI PALACE

B uyukada is the larg-est and most famous one out of the Istan-

bul islands (Adalar). You can have a daily trip to this island, offering a tranquil and relaxing atmosphere. The boats travelling to Buyukada are available from Eminonu.

BUYUKADA ISLAND

Y ears ago, shops on each street was sell-ing only one good,

and the name of the street was reflecting the goods being sold. However, as some of the goods avail-able during the Ottoman Empire time are not avail-able anymore, this concept has shifted. The Bazaar used to have strict rules to support fair-trading and to reduce competition.

GRAND BAZAAR

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TOP TIPS

- Always haggle if you are shopping at Kapalicarsi (Covered or Grand Bazaar) or the Misir Carsisi (Egyptian Bazaar).

- As Istanbul is very large, do your research on the places that you would like to visit and book a hotel close to these places. Due to the distance and the traffic, you might lose half a day only travelling from your hotel to the touristic areas.

- Before going into a restaurant, you might want to check the menu for prices as Istanbul has restaurants a lot more expensive than London and New York.

- If you want cheap and quick transportation, you can use the metro. If you are at the Ataturk Interna-tional Airport, you can take the Ataturk Airport

– Aksaray route, which stops at Istanbul Expo Cen-ter, Yenibosna , Atakoy Sirinevler, Bahcelievler, Bakirkoy , Zeytinburnu , Merter , Davutpasa , Tera-zidere , Otogar Bus Stop, Kocatepe , Sagmalcilar , Bayrampasa , Vatan, Topkapi , Fatih and Aksaray . There are eight more metro routes in Istanbul that you can use.

- If you would like a cheap transportation, you can use the ferries, which also offer stunning views.

İSTANBUL

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For over three hundred years this was the heart and part command centre of the huge Ottoman Empire – this

sumptuously decorated palace needs at least half of a day to visit – if time is short make sure you do see the Harem, Imperial Treasury and take in the stunning views from the innermost courtyard. As it charges a high entrance fee, we recommend you spend the whole day touring this wonderful part of Turkish culture.

This Byzantine treasure is a little out of the way but more than worth the trip to visit. I t is home to some of

the most beautiful and important surviving mosaics and frescoes that date from the early 16th century and are in excellent condition.

This is the place to find perfume and cheap gold, is full of hust-ling and pushy vendors and has the most delicious treats that

you will find. “Erzincanılar” which is shop No. 2 and has to be one of the best delicatessens in the world, particularly for its Turkish cheese and honeycomb. For the best Turkish delight or ‘ lokum’, head for “Pınar” at shop No. 14 and the most delectable dried figs stuffed with walnuts and other dried fruits and nuts are at “Antep Pazarı” shop No. 50.

VISIT THE TOPKAPI PALACE

VISIT THE CHURCH OF ST. SAVIOUR IN CHORA OR KARIYE MUSEUM

HAGGLE AT THE EGYPTIAN BAZAAR

The bridge is the crucial link between the European and Asian sides of Istanbul and spending an hour or two for a visit is

recommended. Check out its lower deck – underneath the walkway – for its restaurants, bars and tea houses that give you a water-front seat to watch the boats cruise by whilst you sip a nice cold drink or refreshing cup of tea.

The place for some serious shopping and we re-commend at least a 3 hour visit and make sure

you hone your bartering skills before you arrive there. With over 5,500 vendors all of who will be competing and vying you to buy from a choice of carpets, handbags and purses, coats and jackets and all kinds of jewellery. Whilst you trying to get the price down bear in mind the vendor has pays his rent in gold, around 7 kilos every year, so hag-gling here may be tough but certainly worthwhile.

This sacred building was first a Byzantine church, an Ottoman mosque and is now

a wonderful Turkish museum. The stunning mosaic walls and vaulted chambers give visitors an idea of its former beauty and its historical significance is a very worthwhile sight.

RIDE A FERRY ON THE BOSPHORUS

TAKE TEA AT THE GALATA BRIDGE

GRAND BAZAAR OR KAPALICARSI

WALK ALONG THE CITY WALLS

VISIT HAGIA SOPHIA

This is one of the busiest waterways in the world and offers a surprisingly relaxed way

to take in some of the best sights. Ferry services from Eminonu leave every half hour and you can disembark at Besiktas , Ortakoy and Bebek as you cruise along and taking in lush green parks, palaces and waterside mansions.

TOP 20 THINGS TO DO

Istanbul’s city walls stretch 6.5km from the Gold-en Horn to the Sea of Marmara and encompass the

old city in a huge semicircle. Built in the reign of Theodosius II (408-450) the walls are the largest Byzantine structure to survive in modern times and are feat of engineering. There are inner and outer ramparts with a terrace in between and restored sections, although disapproved of for using modern day materials, remains unquestionably impressive.

İSTANBUL

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Located on the waterfront of Karakoy this former customs warehouse has exhibition space of 8,000sqm housed over

two storeys. The museum mainly showcases Turkish art and the glass staircase that hangs from steel chains and books sus-pended over the library are two of the main attractions in this cutting edge museum. The restaurant here is very popular with spectacular views across the Bosphorus and out to the Marma-ra Sea and taking in the minarets on Sultanahmet.

MOSEY TO THE ISTANBUL MODERN MUSEUM

The whirling dervishes sect was outlawed and is now rarely seen in Istanbul. The Galata

Mevlevihanesi Dervishes perform twice a month, three times a week and exclusively for tourists at the busy waiting room of Sirkeci Train Station.

GALATA DERVISHES

The tower was built in 1348 was the

highest point of the city walls and called the Tower of Christ. In Ottoman times it was used to detain prisoners of war and later became an Observatory. The viewing gallery at the top gives fantastic 360˚ views of Istanbul and it also has a nightclub and a rather touristy restaurant.

CLIMB THE GALATA TOWER

SHISHA

Turks call it a Nargile and have been smoking different types of tobacco in these since the early 17th century. It was a very

popular pastime for the high societies of the late 19th and early 20th centuries but lost its appeal when Turkey became a republic and taken up by the peasants of Istanbul. Once again popular, there are many Nargile cafés at the pedestrian strip by the Ame-rican Pazari where you can sit and smoke and drink a traditional Turkish coffee that has been boiled in a small copper pot, served in a china cup and is the equivalent of a double espresso. The touristy Enjoyer Café or the student friendly Erenler Çay Bahçe are good places that we recommend you try.

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This is the Turkish equivalent of a pub, brassiere, taverna or tapas bar. Meyhanes are where the locals go to drink Raki , the

Turkish national drink, whilst indulging in mezes and listening to traditional folk (fasıl) music. Most establishments have no menus, waiters will explain or show you what dishes they have to offer and the best place to find them is at the 19th century arcade off Istiklal Caddesi (Road) in the Flower Passage ( Cicek Pasaji ).

ExPERIENCE TURKISH MEYHANE

ISTANBUL NIGHTLIFE

There are rooftop bars and restaurants everywhere in Istanbul all competing with one another that

have extensive views across the skyline and offer you an array of exotic cocktails from their menus. A coup-le we recommend are the Beşinci Kat which is rather outlandish and has some great art deco and the dazzling and spacious Leb-i-Derya Richmond which serves excellent food.

Authentic Turkish - Ottoman food is very different from the greasy ke-babs served abroad and you are in for some culinary delights. Turk-

ish cuisine is a fusion of Central Asian, Middle Eastern and Balkan tastes. Anything from grilled and roasted meats, fish and seafood of all kinds, sweet and sour fruits, many vegetable and rice dishes or a dazzling array of hot and cold mezes will satisfy the palates of all food lovers.

SAMPLE DELICIOUS TURKISH FOOD

This opulent historical building with its outstanding white marble façade that you view from the water- side has an interior decorated by the Frenchman Sechan who helped design the Paris Opera House.

The 36m high Throne Room has a 4-tonne crystal chandelier, a gift from Queen Victoria along with alabaster baths and a stunning crystal staircase. This sumptuous building is a must see place whilst in Istanbul.

VISIT DOLMABAHCE PALACE

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Take a Steam Bath at a HamamHere you will be soaped, scraped, knead-ed and pummelled by a near naked person whilst laid out on a marble slab; this has to be one of the most self indulgent things that you can do and which we highly recommended. Originally the hamam was a place for Mus-lims to go to purify and cleanse themselves before praying. You will find the best hamam’s are the Cemberlitas Hamam , the Galatasary Hamam and the Cagaloglu Hamam . Click for Top 10 Hamams in Turkey

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Check out the Bosphorus ClubsTurks love to dance and party and if you do too we recommend you head for the flashy venues between Ortakoy and Kurucesme along the Bospho-rus. In summer the most popular are the ‘super-clubs’ Reina and Sortie that fill with C-list celebs, medallion wearing playboys , has enough bling wearers to blind you and the requisite very loud thumping music. The Anjelique club is probably the most tasteful of them all and there is a new upmarket club just opened called Blackk.

Boogie to Turk-Pop Music

Discover Princes’ IslandsThis is where most of Istanbul’s privileged non-Muslim’s have built their summer homes and mansions. The island has a mix of Greek, Armenian and Jewish residents with many churches and mosques and has managed to retain the ethnic mix and magnificence of old Istanbul.

Turks have combined Western pop and Turkish folk music together and musicians such as pop idol Tarkan have inspired a multitude of venues to open to accommodate the many new musicians. There are always gigs and concerts happening at any given time and information can be found in flyers along Istiklal Road or from cafés and bookstores.

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T hese formations have been used by many different cultures as dwellings along with underground cities they made from tunnels and caves. Largely ignored

by invading armies of great empires, the native people living there took full advantage of the regions natural re-sources as they continue to do so even today with the rock dwellings still being inhabited.

PLACES TO VISIT IN CAPPADOCIA

T he most visited sites by tour groups and the best known are Nevsehir , Ava-nos and Urgup (Ürgüp with the Turkish writing) whose connecting roads form a triangle and the valleys here hold the largest concentration of fairy

chimneys (Peri Bacaları), the rock-cut Churches of the Goreme Open Air Museum and the troglodyte dwellings and churches of the Zelve Monastery.

NEVSEHIR

Nevsehir is the largest town and the centre for travel in the region with the neighbouring Urgup , Goreme , Çavuşin Uchisar and Ortahisar as good bases to tour from but have little public transport.

AVANOS

Avanos is the centre for the local pottery industry and sits on the Kizilirmak River.Derinkuyu and Kaymakli Underground Cities

Heading south outside of the triangle are other popular destinations; the Derinkuyu and Kaymakli underground cities; the first of which has 8 levels and the second extending 55m down, were used by Christians escaping persecution in the 7th century and who created a self-sufficient living environment with kitchens, bedrooms, and rooms for storage.

IHLARA VALLEY

Further south near Aksaray is the Ihlara valley, a red coloured gorge 10km long and 80m wide, with 60 churches cut dramatically into its sides, 12 of which are open to the public, including the impressive Egritas Church. The valley is also popular with trekkers.

KAYSERI

The quiet provincial capital of Kayseri offers Selcuk architecture and bazaars, trips out to the Er-ciyes Mountain ski resort and the Sultansazligi Bird Sanctuary.

NIGDE

There are other attractions around the town of Nigde that include the Eski Gumusler Monastery with frescoes rivalling those famed at Goreme. One of the other most popular things to do whilst in Cappadocia is to take a balloon ride across the valleys

Cappadocia is one of the world’s most unique environments with hills, valleys and canyons, and great expanses of volcanic matter and rock formations that make up this fairy tale landscape with pillars, pinnacles, cones, mushrooms and chimneys that tower up into the sky as high as 40m (130ft).

The Fairy ChimneysCappadocia

Living in Cappadocia in the past

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TOP 5 BEACHES TURKEY

1 Oludeniz, ( Blue Lagoon ) and in Turkish it means “Dead Sea” is

one of Turkey’s most popular resorts.

3 Kaputas is voted as one of Turkey’s best beaches and sits between Kas

and Kalkan at a point of an extremely narrow valley with towering steep cliffs and forests that drop down to form its long stretch of sand and cove of the same name.

4 This is the longest beach in Cesme and one of only a few

that do not charge an admission fee. Ilica beach is famous for its white sand and crystal clear water. There are water sports, sun beds,umberellas, toilets and showers avalable for a price and although this beach is one of the favourites there are limited amenities available.

5 The ancient ruins of Cedrae, on the Island of Saray, date back to

Hellenistic and Roman times, and what are known as the City Islands comprise of the Orta and Kucuk Islands, and today, on the east side of Saray, you can still easily see the rampart remains from distance.

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2 Butterfly Valley (or Kelebekler Vadisi in Turkish) is one of the most

magnificent places in Fethiye ; a green valley surrounded by two high mountains.

Editor’s Pick

TOP 5

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BUTTERFLY VALLEY KAPUTAŞ BEACH

BLUE LAGOON

ILICA BEACH

CLEOPATRA BEACH

GÖCEKSailors Paradise

Göcek, on the far northwest corner of the Gulf of Fethiye, now very popular with both foreigners and Turks alike, is a stopping place for yachts and gulet tours, having six major marinas that serve the yacht tourism in the region.

Restaurants and Bars

Although a small place it has a good amount of shops, a traffic free landscaped boulevard, and one of the most popular evening prom-enades on this coast due to the many restau-rants, cafés, and bars here too. There are a few snack bars and campsite facilities available.

Accommodation in Gocek

A variety of pansiyons, hotels and apart-hotels are available from budget to high price.

Beaches in Gocek

There is no beach to speak of here but 10km to the east you will find two pebble bays, Gun-luklu Bay and Katranci Bay which are served by the Kargi , Yaniklar and Fethiye dolmus. Traveling from Gocek to Fethiye

Approximately six daily dolmus connect Gocek and Fethiye and take you to the main car park near the inland shopping street.

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Fethiye, named in honour of a local pilot and war hero in the 1930s, was originally called Anastasiopolis, honouring a Byzan-tine emperor, and changing again 100 years later to Makri (Meğri in Turkish) after the Greek people were ousted.

Fethiye is the largest town and centralised resort situated on the Turquoise Coast . The spectacular lagoon and beach of Ölüdeniz is nearby and has easy access to the renowned Lycian ruins of Telmessos . Fethiye offers something for everyone from sun soaked beaches to its dramatic coast line, caves and mountains. It has in recent years become a major real estate industry but manages to remain a Turkish market town.

Take a climb up to the main Lycian “rock tomb of Amyntas” and take in the amazing views of Fethiye marina and the whole of the bay. It’s a perfect base to visit the ghost town of Kaya Köyü or Kayakoy , the abandoned Greek Orthodox village, being a short drive away, or to take a boat trip from the harbour to any of the twelve islands in the Gulf of Fethiye (formerly the Gulf of Skopea) to fish and swim in their many secluded coves.

FETHİYEHome of Turquoise

Waters

Famous ForOludeniz Lagoon

The Lycian Way, the 500km footpath through the mountains of the Tekke Peninsula to Antalya

Patara Ancient Ruins - Kayakoy - the abandoned Greek Orthodox village

Tomb of Amyntas

The longest and best beach in Turkey

Breeding place of Loggerhead Turtles, i.e. Carretta carretta

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A very popular tourist attraction taking visitors into the dramatic geological formation that sits in the xanthos

Valley and is famed for being the second largest gorge in Europe. It has a 150m pedestrian walkway within the canyon walls that leads on to the Gokcesu/Ulupinar Springs you can see bubbling up from the base of the towering cliffs.

SAKLIKENT GORGE

For lovers of history, antiquity and archaeology these rock tombs are abso-

lutely fascinating giving insight to how people lived in ancient times. The highest and most significant of these tombs is the “ Tomb of Amyntas” and well worth the many steps its takes to reach it.

LYCIAN ROCK TOMBS

Visitors are spoilt for choice and can choose from a 12 Island Boat Trip, or take a large boat carrying lots of people and

playing loud music, or hire a quieter private boat tour, or take the Sunday Market boat trip to Gocek . They all visit different coves and bays have stops for swimming and are great value for money as almost all of them include lunch in the ticket price.

This famous “Blue Lagoon”

is a national nature reserve set within a secluded bay of beauti-ful turquoise and aquamarine colours, has an official Blue Flag beach that has been rated among the top 5 in the world. I t is also one of the best places in the world to paraglide and offers visitors fantastic panoramic views.

BOAT TRIPS

ÖLÜDENIZ

TOP 10 THINGS TO DOFETHİYE

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T his is the place to come to get away from the noisy

crowds of Fethiye and to a lovely beach with turquoise blue water that is nestled at the bottom of a valley. The huge cliffs rise up into the clear blue sky and are covered in lush pine forests. Visitors are guaranteed to relax and soak up the wonderful peaceful atmosphere found in a fantastic landscape.

Kabak Selale Yaka Park

T his lovely park has a an old watermill and stream and the restaurant next to it has fish in its centre where you can touch and stroke the them and then select the one you want to eat for dinner! It is a great

place to come to get away from the intense summer heat as the water is refreshingly freezing cold.

V isitor ’s flock to this beach for its crystal clear deep blue water and it is one of the most popular resorts on Turkey’s Turquoise

Coast. There are many restaurants here serving Turkish and inter-national fare and it ’s a great place to come in the evening to watch the stunning sunsets.

CALIS BEACH

This contemporary museum consists of two halls, Archaeology & Ethnography, housing

artefacts taken mostly from Fethiye or nearby that range from 3,000 BC to the end of the By-zantine era. The most significant item is a ‘stela’ that helped to decode and translate the Likian language and has text written in three different languages. Outside there are large stone blocked opuses, sarcophagus graves and the “Izraza Monu-ment” which is a part of the Lichean culture.

KAYAKOY

FETHIYE MUSEUM

GEMILE ISLAND

Set inside beautiful countryside this ghost

town once housed a large Greek population and was abandoned in 1923 when Turkey became a republic and underwent a population exchange with the Greek government. What remains today are 100s of partially ruined roofless, windowless houses that give visitors a very real atmosphere of how it once was.

This is mainly known as St Nicholas Island as in the past it was called Aya Nikola and believed to be where St Nicholas (Santa

Claus) lived for a period of time. Visitors will find many ruined churches, houses and roads covered with mosaics, and 1500m tunnel linking 2 churches that date from the 5th and 11th centuries. There are also submerged ruins 2m down that are visible when swimming.

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B abadag Mountain stands 1969m high and is one of the most important paragliding centres in the world; we highly recommend you to try it during your trip to Fethiye.

Babadag is located next to the popular village of Oludeniz and the take-off point is 20km from the centre of Fethiye at an altitude of 1700m. Climbing the mountain is only possible using 4x4 vehicles and the journey takes around 45

minutes. Due to weather conditions the best and safest time to jump is from the beginning of April until the end of October.

Jumping Points at BabadagThere are three jumping points used and the main one is at 1700m as it gets the south wind and is the largest with a capacity of up to 20 parachutes. If there is in-sufficient wind here it’s possible to climb up to 1800 or 1900m although at 1800m it’s very steep so 1900m is usually preferred.

Forbes Magazine listed paragliding in Fethiye

Fethiye has large number of paragliding companies that include:

Ikarus Sport AviationAltitude Action ParaglidingAventure Fly TravelBack PackersButterfliesEasy RidersEurogliding Tandem ParaglidingExtreem ParaglidingFocus ParaglidingOludeniz paragliding CenterSky sportsSport Flying Auia Sports

Paragliding Companies

“One Of The 10 Things That You Should Do Before You Die”

Paragliding in Fethiye

The View Just a few minutes after taking off you are rewarded with the magnifi-cent view of Oludeniz and Belcekiz, followed by Kayakoy, Ovacik and the bay of Fethiye. After flying for 40 or 60 minutes you come to land on Belcekiz Beach in Oludeniz.

Flying Solo

Although the majority of flights allowed are tandem flights using a professional trainer, qualified paragliders who hold an international certificate can fly solo and during the Air Festival held in October, Ba-badag hosts many professionals from all around the World.

Restrictions

The paragliding companies have a weight restriction of 110kg (17 stone).

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