Kemer - district of Turkey

Kemer is a city in Lycia, Turkey.

Understand

Kemer is a coastal city with some beaches, and mountains (up to the elevation of 2200m) close by. Surrounded by large resort hotels on northern and southern sides, this city is a much preferred destination for Russians on package holidays—ands Western and Northern Europeans—and one of the few towns in Turkey with a welcome sign in Russian (in addition to the usual Turkish, English, German, etc.)

Kemer district (ilçe) includes several neighborhoods (mahalle):

• Kemer proper has the government offices (including immigration office Göç İdaresi serving the whole part of Antalya province West of Antalya city), banks, shops, supermarkets, resturants, nightclubs, many small hotels and a string of resorts along the coast north of the city center.
• Kiriş to the south of Kemer right across the Çalıştepe is a town mostly with large resorts.
• Çamyuva is a beach town 5 km south of Kemer, with both large resorts and smaller hotels, as well as a huge residential area. The area further from the beach is popular among Scandinavians who own many apartments for summer retreat.
• Göynük is a town 5 km north of Kemer, with a few resorts, big shopping centers, a very big residential area and a canyon.
• Beldibi is the northernmost town in the district, closest to Antalya. It consists mostly of large resorts and few infrastructure beyond that.
• Tekirova is 15 km south of Kemer, with some large resorts, as well as the access to the attractions of Mount Tahtali and Phaselis
• Çıralı is the most distant and hard to access village in the southern direction, with a backpacker feel.
• Arslanbucak and Kuzdere are two residential areas directly west (inland) of Kemer.
• Ovacık is a village high in the mountains, along the upper Lycian way.

Get in

By air

Antalya Airport, the nearest international one, is about 42 km to the north-east, about an hour away by car. There is no airport shuttle service to Kemer but you can easily go by tram or Havabus to the Antalya otogar and from there take one of the buses (TA08, TA07) along the D400 going west. Total trip time should be between two to three hours.

• Taxi will ask approximately 40-50 euro from the airport. The minimal price one could find is ~30 euro or 550 TL.
• Scandinavian charter operator Tyrkiareiser run coaches between Kemer and the airport when they have flights arriving/departing. Quoted at 150 Norwegian Kroner NOK per person, (about 32 TL) or 200 NOK including pickup in Arslanbucak. Tyrkiareiser Kemer office phone: +90 242 814-66-10

By bus

• Bus TA08 goes from Antalya bus station (Otogar), passing Migros 5M Mall directly to Kemer, then on to Çamyuva, Phaselis and Tekirova. As of January 2023, cost to Kemer is 32 TL, to Camyuva 36 TL, to Tekirova 40 TL
• Bus TA07 goes from Antalya bus station (Otogar), passing Migros 5M Mall to Kemer, driving through the villages of Beldibi and Göynük along the way.
• Buses going further south to Kumluca, Demra, Kaş do not go to the center of Kemer, but can be stopped on the highway near Kemer Otogar.

By car

• The wide highway D400 with separated lanes per each direction, which passes by the town, connects it with north (Antalya) and south.

Get around

• Bus service (dolmuş) is available in Kemer. All the buses stop in the center near the clock tower (Saat Kulesi), local buses terminate near the Marina.
  • Bus 08 goes between Antalya to Tekirova, passing Kemer, Çamyuva and Phaselis. Fare between Kemer and Çamyuva is 14 TL.
  • Bus 07 goes to Antalya via Göynük and Beldibi
  • Bus 05 goes from Kemer Marina to the residential neighborhood Arslanbucak
  • Bus 04 goes from Kemer Marina to the neighborhood of Kuzdere across the river from Arslanbucak
  • Bus 01 goes from Kemer Marina to the beach of Kiriş
  • Bus to Çıralı departs roughly once an hour (possibly less frequently off season) from the highway junction. To get to the junction one has to take a long distance bus going from Antalya to Kumluca or further west.
• Yellow taxis are common. The far is approximately 10 TL start + 10 TL per kilometer.
• Some of the restaurants and beaches offers to pick you up, and return you home, for free.

See

Kemer center

• Saat Kulesi (Clock tower), 36.6009348°, 30.5599569°. Standing on the central square together with two Ataturk<nowiki/>'s monuments. All local buses stop near it. 2023-02-18
• Çalıştepe, 36.587738099404525°, 30.572707170989187°. Large hill on the shore south of Kemer's center. There is an unpaved road all the way to the top and several steeper hiking trails from Kemer and Kiriş 2023-02-18
• Kemer public beach, 36.60451333761074°, 30.566312784810236°. 2023-02-18
• Moonlight beach, 36.598208515477026°, 30.575325006563883°. 2023-02-18

__Ç__amyuva

• Çamyuva public beach, 36.56056697012609°, 30.572428221340573°. Has umbrellas, beach chairs and barbecue facilities. 2023-02-18
• Abandoned hotel, 36.54700152357509°, 30.55671047696979°. On a hill in the southern part of the town. 2023-02-18
• Alacasu (Cennet Koyu, Paradise bay), 36.53605866157074°, 30.556828494222717°. A secluded beach. The main path starts right before the tunnel leading to Tekirova. In summer it is possible to see bioluminiscent plankton at night. 2023-02-18

Arslanbucak

• Twin rocks of Kuzdere (Ikiz Kayalar), 36.56931041240518°, 30.528202683225935°. Two huge rocks clearly visible from the highway. 2023-02-18
• Kemer canyon, 36.601259517049805°, 30.48562723222974°. A beautiful canyon. There is a road parallel to the river, leading up into the mountains. Near the place where the road goes steeply up, there is an old Roman bridge and a scenic cafe. 2023-02-18
• Gedelme cave, 36.61319642881976°, 30.441703375710684°. 20 TL 2023-02-18
• Gedelme castle, 36.614229840698606°, 30.44189649474725°. A small ruined castle, the only castle in Kemer district. 2023-02-18

Tekirova

• Phaselis (Faselis). 1 Apr - 1 Nov 08:00-19:00, 1 Nov - 1 Apr 08:00-17:30. Very dilapidated ruins of what once was the major harbor of the region, lost under a dense pine forest. Nice beaches with a mixture of gravel, rock and sand. 90 TL 2023-02-18

• Sea to Sky/Olympos Teleferik ('Tahtalı Teleferiği'), Yeni Mah. Atatürk Bulvarı 2/1, Kemer (their office in downtown) (access to lower station is from a 7-km surface road that branches off from the main highway between the towns of Çamyuva and Tekirova , 8 km south of Kemer; shuttles are also available from Kemer downtown and from the highway junction.), 36.5412419°, 30.485137°, +90 242 814-30-47, info@tahtali.com. Every half an hour daily 09:00-19:00 in high season, 10:00-17:00 daily in low season. Cable car connecting to the 2,365 m summit of Mt Tahtalı. A trip takes 10 minutes. $30 for foreigners, $22 for locals 2023-02-18

Göynük

• Göynük canyon, 36.68324691144794°, 30.534270107168044°. A beautiful canyon. You can choose between a boat tour and swimming on your own. You can get much further upstream if you opt for swimming, but the water is cold. The entry fee includes a shuttle from the entrance uphill that brings you to the start of the boat tour, or you can walk and enjoy the views. 20 euro for foreigners, 185 TL for locals 2023-02-18

Beldibi

• Beldibi cave, 36.744521713052926°, 30.569229752053705°. Contains some rock paintings. Next to it is an abandoned highway tunnel. 2023-02-18
• Secluded beach, 36.74606918163754°, 30.570002228199964°. 2023-02-18

Çıralı

• Çıralı beach, 36.41766269705125°, 30.484300287793324°. A long beach famous also as a place where caretta caretta turtles nest. 2023-02-18
• Olympos ruins, 36.396213847921594°, 30.47262731429947°. Ruins of an ancient city. Access by road is from Kumluca only, but it can be reached after a short walk along the beach. 90 TL 2023-02-18
• Mount Chimaera, 36.43225212804285°, 30.45683446856473°. Mountain famous for its eternal burning fires. 2023-02-18

Do

• Hiking
  • Calistepe area
  • Tekirova to Camyuva
  • Tahtali summit
  • Mount Chimaera to Ulupinar
• Snorkeling and diving
• Fishing
• Boat rides
• Dolusu park, 36.565654062692836°, 30.57394802585647°. Water park located in Kiriş. 2023-02-18
• Dinopark Antalya, 36.67639727885809°, 30.557824783073247°. Theme park located in Göynük 2023-02-18

Buy

Eat

Cheap

• Kemer pastanesi, 36.59997639882049°, 30.560357208254604°. The most popular cheap place in town, packed during breakfast and lunch time. They serve breakfasts, borek, some meat dishes (but no grill) and of course cakes.
• Tadim kebap, 36.602468435678006°, 30.558598413923637°. Cheapest place in the city center, in front of the Clock tower.
• Aspava kebap, Çamyuva, 36.56809400926657°, 30.556492652673924°. Cheap place with Turkish food in Çamyuva.
• Kardelen, Arslanbucak, 36.59530499560991°, 30.531105467084483°. Pide and kebap place.

Mid-range

• Balıkçı Faruk, 36.601404720191205°, 30.55524833487219°. Best seafood in Kemer. In the basement there is a wholesale store that supplies other seafood places in the town.
• Paşa kebap, 36.598477670142586°, 30.562245483278797°. Large kebaps.
• Georgian house (Заходи, генацвале!), 36.59767661356542°, 30.5633720109921°. Authentic Georgian cuisine.
• Monte Kemer, 36.59800392797726°, 30.566601390800283°. Montenegrin/Bosnian cuisine. Their signature dishes are pleskavica and Bosnian cevapcici.
• Naturel balık evi, 36.5986444708428°, 30.563495381775567°. Affordable seafood restaurant in the city center.
• Steak house for you, Çamyuva, 36.56375960816838°, 30.55902465788533°. Best steaks in Çamyuva.

Expensive

• Merhaba Garden, 36.59770245422999°, 30.562642450187298°. Steak restaurant popular among Norwegians. Pickup service at tel +90 242 814 5594 or +90 535 554 3661
• Qualista, 36.599432824200626°, 30.571076720815434°. Poshest place in town.

Drink

Night clubs, 36.605190640746635°, 30.564513355461088°. Kemer has four night clubs: Aura, Kristall, Inferno and Tropicana, They are all next to each other. The night clubs in town are open till 04:00 daily (closed during winter). Live performances are held on some days.

Sleep

Connect

Dial +90 242 xxx xxxx (from out of Turkey) or 0 242 xxx xxxx (within Turkey) to call local phone numbers.

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