Patara is in Lycia on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. In ancient times it was an important city, birthplace of St Nicholas, but was abandoned and lost under sand dunes until rediscovered in the 1980s. Its 8 km-long beach is a nesting site for loggerhead sea turtles. Accommodation and other facilities are in the nearby village of Gelemiş, which in 2022 had a population of 859.

Understand

Patara in mythology was a son of Apollo, and the city had a cult and oracle of Apollo to rival that of Delphi. It was at the mouth of the Xanthos River, with a sheltered harbour and large tracts of good level farmland a few km inland, rare along this rugged coast. Its heyday was from about 180 BC as a principal city of the Lycian League, and it was a provincial capital under the Romans. St Paul passed through, changing ships in Patara on his return towards Jerusalem. However its most famous son, born here in 270 AD, was Santa Claus: St Nicholas was Bishop of Myra (nowadays Demre, 80 km east) and supposedly worked various wonders, but none more amazing than his metamorphosis from scholarly cleric into the rubicund deity of Christmas merchandising.

The city compacted in the 5th century AD, taking down outlying buildings to build walls around a smaller centre. It waned in importance as the harbour silted up and sand dunes engulfed it, until about 1340 AD it was abandoned and forgotten. The site was only rediscovered during excavations in the 1980s around the village of Gelemiş, and these continue.

Patara's other claim to fame is its 8 km-long beach, a nesting ground for the loggerhead sea turtle (Caretta caretta). This species is endangered throughout the Med and all sorts of protections and regulations were announced for Patara, but are poorly enforced. A rash of holiday homes is engulfing protected areas and creating greater human pressure on the habitat, the east end of the beach is strewn with cigarette butts and other trash that the turtles eat and choke on, and jocks in jeeps practise skid-turns scrunching everything beneath their tyres.

Get in

The nearest airport is Dalaman, 115 km northwest. The airport bus can take you as far as Fethiye.

D400 is the coast highway from Bodrum and Fethiye to Antalya and away east. After Kınık heading towards Kalkan, take the turn-off for Patara / Gelemiş. This is Adnan Menderes Cd, which after 2 km winds through village centre, where all the accommodation and restaurants are found. Continuing 1 km south brings you to the toll gate, and another 2 km passes the ancient city to end at the beach.

Long-distance buses run several times a day down D400 to Kalkan, and can drop you at the turn-off. You might negotiate a pick-up from your accommodation, else await a dolmuş plying to the village from Kalkan, Kaş or Fethiye.

The Lycian Way is a long-distance hiking trail which bypasses Patara to the west on its approach to Letoon from Pydnai. A 16 km side-trail links the east end of the beach and ancient Patara to the main trail between İslamlar and Akbel.

Get around

Walk: from Gelemiş via the ancient city to the beach is 3 km, which might take 30 min.

See

• A temple tomb ruin stands by Adnan Menderes Cd going south from the village, just before you reach the toll gate for the ancient city and beach.
• 1 Patara Ancient City. Apr-Oct 08:30-18:30, Nov-Mar 08:00-17:00. The main structures within the ticketed area are the triumphal arch, amphitheatre, council house and stoa. These have been restored, some would say over-restored, and parts are replicas.

- A small ruined chapel and graves stand on the lane 100 m south of the toll gate.

- Mettius Modestus Triumphal Arch or City Gate is a triple arch on the lane 200 m south of the chapel. It was built around 100 BC and named for Lycia's Roman governor. Foundations of city walls, a watchtower, an aqueduct and fountains lie alongside.

- Tepecik 200 m west of the gate is the hillock site of the city's original Acropolis, inhabited since the Bronze Age.

- Harbour area is overgrown, and it's difficult to imagine these sullen pools ever being a reach of the sea. There's thermal baths.

- Scrappy ruins of a basilica are by the lane just before you reach the main group of buildings.

- The amphitheatre is from the 3rd century BC, rebuilt in the 2nd century AD under Emperor Hadrian and seating 6000. It was damaged by an earthquake in AD 141 but repaired.

- Kursunlutepe the hill south of the amphitheatre has an ancient cistern near its crest and a temple tomb 100 m west.

- The council house or Bouleuterion was the parliament of the Lycian League for over 500 years. Built in the 1st century AD, it resembles a small amphitheatre and seated 400.

- A stoa or colonnaded street leads north from the council house to the agora or market square then to the harbour. Its north end is flooded.

- Two bathhouses stand by the agora, the Central or Market baths and the south baths named for Nero or Vespesian.

- A Corinthian temple stands 100 m north of the agora, but the area is overgrown.

- The lighthouse is 500 m west of the agora. Originally 26 m tall, it was built in 60 AD under Nero.

- Hadrian's Granary 500 m north of the lighthouse was built in 131 AD and held grain awaiting export to Rome.

Excavations continue on the site. Adult 750 TL. (updated May 2024)

Patara Amphitheatre

• 2 Patara Beach is an 8 km sandy beach backed by dunes. You access via Adnan Menderes Cd and must pay the same toll (and keep the same hours) whether you're seeing the ancient city or going to the beach. There's a parking lot at the bottom then a boardwalk onto the beach. This first area has a cafe and sunbed / parasol rental shop, and can be grubby even if not crowded. The further west you walk the quieter and cleaner it gets, and restricted areas for turtles are clearly signed. The far west end can also be accessed from Kumluova near Kınık.

Do

• Beach activities are simple strolling, sunbathing and swimming. There's no landing area for boats.
• Hike the Lycian Way, which ambles through the coastal hills from Bodrum to Antalya.

Buy

• The AVM (which means "shopping centre") is on Merkez Sk 28A, open daily 8:30-22:30.
• Ekonomi Market just south is smaller but stays open past midnight.

Eat

• Eating places in village centre include Sailing, Tlos, Carpe Diem, Ayse Pancake House, Buse Gözleme Evi, Durak Lokantası, Patara Inn and Gipsy Ocakbaşı.
• Faik Usta is a cafe on the main highway D400 at the junction for Gelemiş, open daily 07:00-00:00.

Drink

Patara City Gate

No free-standing bars, the cafes serve alcohol.

Sleep

Large hotel blocks are not permitted. Lots of small family-run hotels and pansiyons; otherwise try Kalkan east along the coast.

• 1 Akay Hotel, Cumhuriyet Cd, ☏ +90 532 410 2195. Charming inexpensive place near the bus station. B&B double 1800 TL. (updated May 2024)
• 2 Patara Delfin Hotel, Delfin Hotel 07965, ☏ +90 242 843 5120, delfinhotel@hotmail.com. Cheap friendly place with pool, sometimes noisy from nearby bar. B&B double 1500 TL. (updated May 2024)
• Patara Viewpoint Hotel is 100 m south of the Delfin.
• 3 Ferah Hotel, Tömler Sk, ☏ +90 242 843 5180. Great reviews for this small hotel up a hill at the top end of the village. B&B double 2000 TL. (updated May 2024)
• Zeybek 2 Pension, Tömler Sk 28A (opposite Ferah Hotel), ☏ +90 532 683 5845. Friendly family-run pansiyon at top end of village.. B&B double 1500 TL. (updated May 2024)

Respect

The colonnaded street

Do your best to protect the turtles, even if it looks like no-one else much cares:

• Don't enter any area signed as restricted. If in doubt, stay within 5 m of the high-water mark.
• Don't be on the beach out of hours, and don't show any static light (such as car headlights or barbecue fires) behind it. The hatchlings crawl towards the brightest light source, which ought to be the moonlight reflected on the water.
• Never touch newly hatched turtles.

Connect

The village, beach and approach roads have 4G from all Turkish carriers. As of May 2024, 5G has not rolled out in Turkey.

Go next

• Kınık nearby is the service village for the ruins of Xanthos and Letoon.
• Saklıkent Gorge is a dramatic but touristy canyon to the north.
• Fethiye is a large bustling resort further north.
• Kalkan is a pleasant small resort 20 km east.

Routes through Patara

Marmaris ← Kınık ←	W  E	→ Kalkan → Antalya
Fethiye ← Xanthos ← Üzümlü ←	W  E	→ Akbel → Kalkan → Antalya