Kalkan Bay |
Kalkan. A quaint, charming, romantic, idyllic seaside village. Cobbled
streets lined with shops and outdoor cafes lead down to the transparent
azur waters of the Mediterranean and to Kalkan's small marina where you will find
gulets waiting to take you out for a day's excursion to swim and lunch around the nearby small islands and bays.
The village has a pebbly beach open to the public, but you may prefer swimming directly off the rock platforms available at the 'Yacht Club' on the far side of the marina. You will find it difficult to
resist the charms of Kalkan. Whole days can evaporate just browsing
the little shops or sitting in a cafe watching the world go by and taking
in the view.
One of the most pleasant things to do is to take a day trip in a gulet, a traditional flat-bottomed, motorized sailing
boat. You will find many gulets in Kalkan harbor taking small groups out daily to the coves
and islands near Kalkan. You will enjoy lunch onboard and have ample opportunity
to swim in the beautiful crystal clear azur water.
Two of the of fine sand beaches within 15 minutes' drive of Kalkan, Kaputas and Patara beaches,
are not to be missed. Patara especially has a beautiful setting, with its
lush, sheltered valley and 18 kms of glorious white sand offering safe bathing
in the transparent blue Mediterranean. Patara beach hosts only a small
cafe offering food and drinks on the beach, no hotels or commercial establishments are nearby. Just
vast stretches of clean sand and gently curving shoreline.
If you have a car, I recommend that you drive 8 kms up into the pine-forested mountain behind
Kalkan to Islamlar where you can eat fresh grilled mountain trout
at Mahmout's place. You'll sit in an open-air sheltered wooden restaurant atop
a mountain looking down the valley to the sea in the distance. The food and
the view are both spectacular, well worth the trip.
Kalkan Marina
