We visited Antalya at the beginning of November and even though we stayed in this city only for 7 days, there were lots of places we managed to explore and activities to attend. First, we will list things to do in Antalya that we experienced ourselves and then other activities you can also enjoy at this place that we didn’t have a chance to try.
Take a Cable Car Ride To Tünektepe Hill and Enjoy Panoramic Views Of Antalya City
This is a must-attend activity for all – kids and adults. The cable car ride is an exciting experience itself, not to mention the breathtaking sea, mountain, and city views you can enjoy after you arrive on the top of the hill. You can ride on a swing, look through binoculars, drink some coffee, and observe picturesque views.
Spend at Least Half of a Day Exploring Old Town (Kaleici)
There are so many historical and tourist landmarks, so we truly recommend spending at least half to explore the Old Town. Besides Hadrian’s Gate, Antalya Saat Kulesi (Clocktower), and Old Bazaar, just take your time to stop at Republic Square or Cumhuriyet Meydanı (click here to open Google Maps Link) and enjoy mesmerizing views of Old Town from an observation deck.
We advise you to plan your route and itinerary in advance and study maps very carefully, since Old Town has so many narrow and winding streets, and loads of landmarks, so it’s quite easy to get lost and change your directions several times (like we did).
Click here to book Antalya city tour and explore Kaleici, Old Town Marina and waterfalls with a tour guide.
Take Your Time To Enjoy Mesmerizing Antalya Harbor (Old City Marina) Views
Even though this place is located in the Old Town area, it deserves special attention. Not only can you sit on the breakwater and enjoy stunning sea and harbor views, but also visit one of the restaurants and try fresh seafood or Turkish traditional cuisine or join one of the boat cruises that start at the Old City Marina.
Also, there’s a Mermerli Plajı which is a great place for swimming and snorkeling.
Explore Duden Waterfalls
We visited only the upper waterfalls and were quite surprised that this oasis is located among residential buildings since we thought this place was located somewhere outside of the city. If you do not participate in an organized tour, we recommend allocating half a day to explore this place. We took a VS18 bus from Liman Mh. and spent about an hour or an hour and a half to get there (including walking). The ticket price for foreigners (Yabanci) is 50 Turkish Liras.
Be sure to wear comfortable and non-slippery shoes as you will need to explore cave formation under the water stream and in many places the floor is wet and polished with waterdrops.
This is a very interesting place with picturesque bridges above the stream, ancient attributes, like olive processing areas, and caves (which are not allowed to enter, since quite large bats are living there and it’s advised not to disturb their daytime nap).
If would like to learn more about this place, you can read our detailed blog post about Upper Duden Waterfalls.
If you prefer your vacation hustle-free or would like to pack all of the activities mentioned above in one day (which is possible if you go around the city not on public transportation), or maybe you stay not in Antalya city itself, you can take a guided tour and explore Old Town, upper or lower waterfalls (by boat) and enjoy mesmerizing cable car ride.
If you would like to explore Upper Duden Waterfalls as a part of a guided tour, you can visit this page to get more info about itinerary and make your reservation.
If you would like to explore Lower Duden Waterfalls by boat, visit Antalya Old Town and take a scenic cable car ride as a part of a guided tour, please visit this page to get more info about itinerary and make your reservation.
Visit Antalya Aquarium
If you travel with kids or just enjoy observing marine life, we would recommend you to visit Antalya Aquarium. There are 40 thematic aquariums with marine species from all over the world, intelligent-looking stingrays, sharks, sturgeons, moray eels, koi fish, piranhas, and many other creatures. Even though we didn’t spend as much time as we expected in this place, overall it was a great experience.
If you would like to learn more about this place, read our blog post about How We Visited Antalya Aquarium.
Enjoy Fresh Seafood at one of the Many Fish (Balyk) Restaurants
We visited this restaurant İşliyen Balık Evi (click here to open Google Maps). We spend about 100 USD for three persons and we get 9 jumbo shrimps, fried mussels, crab meat, and 2 fresh oysters (only 2 because two of us never tried fresh oysters before, and before diving in we would just like to try them). After the
If you want to try fresh oysters we recommend visiting this place in the morning or afternoon, since when we came to this restaurant in the evening, they said that there are no more fresh oysters.
Take a Day Trip to Kekova Island, St. Nicolas Church and the Ancient City of Myra
It was a wonderful and memorable experience. If you, like us, are fond of ancient ruins, love to learn something new about history and of course do not have seasickness, we definitely recommend joining this trip.
We started our day at 6 AM, had breakfast, and at 7 AM our bus arrived at the hotel. There’s about a 2-hour drive to Andriake Harbour in Demre. The route is very picturesque and in some spots resembles Italy or Greece. If you’re lucky, you can even see sea turtles at Andriake Harbour.
We enjoyed our boat ride to Kekova Island a lot. The weather was great, we were able to observe ancient ruins, drains, and sarcophaguses – in the water and on the island itself. After that, we stopped for a 20-minute swim and continued our journey to Demre, where we visited St. Nicholas Church and the Ancient City of Myra.
Click here to book day tour to Ancient City of Myra and Kekova Island.
Go For A Shopping
There are quite a lot of Malls and Outlets in Antalya city, but since we were limited in time, we managed to visit only two of them – Migros Antalya (located near Aquarium Antalya) and MarkAntalya (located near the Old Town). Many local clothing brands have their boutiques there, like Koton, Desa, Derimod, LC Waikiki, and others. In Desa and Derimod boutiques you can buy locally manufactured leather products. Foreign clothing brands like HM, Zara, Bershka, Stradivarius, Nike, Adidas, and others also have their boutiques in these malls.
But besides clothing, we enjoyed our shopping experience at 5M Migros – we bought almost all of our souvenirs and presents for our families and friends there (jams, snacks, different types of tea and coffee, and other local food). We even got a Migros loyalty card.
Of Course, Spend At Least One Day Relaxing On The Beach and Dedicate Time to Snorkeling
Even though we visited Antalya during a low season, the weather was great. It was comfortably warm – not super hot. It was really important for us since in our country it’s very hot in summer and quite hot at the beginning of the fall, so we really enjoyed these mild conditions.
The water in the sea was also comfortable during our visit – not super warm, not cold – very enjoyable. If you have snorkeling gear with you – that’s perfect, as you can watch small and colorful fishes swimming along the coastline.
Konyaaltı Beach is a pebble beach, while Lara is a sand beach. We only get a chance to explore Konyaaltı Beach and would recommend wearing sandals or sea shoes, so you can walk comfortably there.
Visit Ancient Aspendos Theater
Aspendos is an antic theater located about 40 km to the east of Antalya Airport. We didn’t get a chance to visit this place, but taking into consideration stunning photos and loads of positive reviews, this historical landmark is a go-to.
Legendary dance show – Fire of Anatolia is also being held here, so do not miss your chance to watch one of the fastest dances in the world at the antique theatre.
If you would like to visit Aspendos Theatre and other ancient ruins of Antalya as a part of guided tour, click here to get more info about this activity and make your reservation.
Marvel at Ancient Statues at Antalya Archaeological Museum
This museum is located near the Old Town. Here you can learn about Anatolian history, marvel at Byzantine mosaics, antique statues, sarcophaguses, and many more.
We also didn’t get a chance to visit this place, but surely will take our time to explore this museum next time we visit Antalya.
Spend a Relaxing Day At Suluada Island – Famous Turkish Maldives
The island is located 60 km to the west of Kemer, and since it’s an… island, you can get there only by car and then by boat. Suluada is also often called Turkish Maldives due to the turquoise waters that surround the island.
While deciding where to go, we had to choose between Suluada and a day trip to Demre, and decided to go to Demre. But next time we are in Turkey, we will definitely explore Turkish Maldives.
If you would like to participate in a day trip to Suluada Island, click here to get more info about this activity and make your reservation.
General Tips and Advice
Due to high humidity and acclimatization, we struggled with swelling for the first three days. So make sure you are wearing comfortable and not too-tight shoes, and if you have a backpack, do not hesitate to take a pair of sandals with you. A pack of wound plasters is also a good idea to keep in your bag to protect from blisters.
Try to buy water and snacks in stores that are not located too close to the tourist spots, if you prefer not to pay for overpriced items. For example, we purchased a 1.5-liter bottle of water in the SOK grocery store near our hotel for only 5 Liras. While near every tourist spot, only a 0.5-liter water bottle can cost you 20 to 50 Liras.
