The Lycian coast: a week from Fethiye
8 days · 175 nm · starts in Fethiye · Turkey
Fethiye
Fly into Dalaman, an hour by transfer, and take over the yacht at Ece Marina or Fethiye Marina. Do the big shop in town — east of here there are no large supermarkets until Kaş.
Fethiye → Gemiler
A warm-up leg across the gulf. Gemiler island holds the ruins of a Byzantine town and four churches from the 5th and 6th centuries; the path to the top takes half an hour, and the sunset from there is reckoned the best on this coast.
Gemiler → Kaş
The first long day, along a sheer coast past Kalkan. Kaş is a small town on a Greek street plan with a Lycian sarcophagus standing in the middle of the road; the marina is a twenty-minute walk from the centre, and the evening belongs in town rather than on the boat.
Kaş → Kekova Roads
This is the day the whole route is built around. Along the north shore of Kekova island a city lies underwater, taken down by an earthquake in the 2nd century: steps, walls and foundations are visible straight from the deck. Spend the night in Üçağız below the castle of Simena or on a buoy in Polemos Bükü.
Kekova → Kalkan
Back west with a stop in Kalkan — a staircase of white houses and bougainvillea dropping to a small harbour. The marina is small and berths are booked ahead in season.
Kalkan → Gemiler
The second long day, along the cliffs again. An early start is not optional: it regularly pipes up after lunch here, and there is practically nowhere to shelter before Gemiler.
Gemiler → Kapı Creek
Into the Gulf of Göcek and a sharp contrast after the open coast: Kapı Koyu is a narrow bay in pine forest with a single restaurant pontoon and no road to it.
Kapı Creek → Fethiye
A last leg across the gulf, refuelling and handover.
The most mile-hungry of the Turkish routes and the only one where you genuinely sail a lot in a week. The coast here is different: mountains rise a thousand metres straight from the water, there are fewer bays, and stops are forty miles apart. In exchange you get Kaş, the sunken city of Kekova and water clear enough to see the bottom at twenty metres. About 175 nm; if the crew is not up for two long days, the honest version is one-way with a transfer back.
Practicalities
- Wind: the Lycian coast is exposed from the south and west, with 15–22 knots by day and a real sea, and almost no shelter between Gemiler and Kaş. Plan both long legs for the morning and only on a good forecast — that is what sets this route apart from the sheltered gulfs of Göcek and Marmaris.
- Kekova: the whole area is an archaeological reserve. Over the sunken city swimming, anchoring and stopping are prohibited and transit is only allowed along the marked channel; entry to the zone is paid. Nights are spent on buoys in Üçağız or Polemos Bükü.
- Berths: the marinas at Fethiye, Kaş and Kalkan are paid and fill up in season; Gemiler and Kapı Creek mean anchoring and restaurant pontoons. This is the most marina-heavy Turkish route — budget for berths separately from the boat.
- Formalities: the transit log and the deposit are handled at the base. Greek Kastellorizo lies two miles off Kaş, but calling there means leaving Turkish waters and clearing separately.
When to go and what it costs
Turkey is cheapest in winter — a median €252 per person per week; spring, by contrast, is the most expensive (€442) because of the May holidays. In summer reckon on about €350 per person, and two years of data show Turkish prices barely rising (+2% year on year).
RYC Rentals data, 2,062 offers from 2024–2026, as of 13 Aug 2026 · full breakdown →