Alanya Turkey
Alanya was favored as a seaside resort by the Seljuk Turks 800 years ago, just as it is for the thousands of British and European visitors who pack its hundreds of hotels and villas today. For the Seljuks, the attraction was the mild climate, the good harbor, and its relative closeness to Konya, the Seljuk capital.
For today’s visitors it’s the l-o-n-g stretches of sand beach, the warm waters of Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, and the deep history of the town.
Alanya has grown incredibly during the past decade, and now boasts a population of more than 250,000, which must double during the summer tourist season. Many visitors fly into Antalya airport on inexpensive package vacations, then bus to Alanya. Lots of new hotels have been built to cater to the package trade.
While you’re here, visit the vast Seljuk fortress which dominates the town from its promontory; the tall, octagonal Seljuk Kizilkule (Red Tower); and the shipyard.
The dank atmosphere of Damlatas Cave, said to be beneficial to asthma sufferers, but with hordes of tourists exhaling hot carbon dio into the humid, already-stuffy atmosphere, but of course Alanya’s big attraction is its beaches, long swaths of sand to west (several kilometers) and east.
At the waterfront there are plenty of friendly bars, tea-houses, cafes and restaurants with an excellent range of international and traditional cuisine.High above Alanya you find an impressive 14-th century citadel. Within its walls are quaint houses, mosques and a Byzantine church decorated with frescoes.
There are twisting narrow alleyways tempting shoppers with their colourful boutiques and stalls of cheese-cloth dresses, carpets, copper and jewellery. Below the citadel you find sea caves and grottoes. Some can only be reached by boat but you can walk up to the most famous, Damlatas or “Cape of Dripping Stones”. The beautiful cave has a host of impressive stalactites and stalagmites with a moist warm atmosphere said to benefit asthma sufferers.
As well as its cultural and historical sights, Alanya has an unbeatable beach life too. Beautiful sandy Cleopatra beach lies to the west of the resort while the fine sands of Alanya beach stretch to the east.
A good range of water-sports are available too. The nightlife is easy-going and relaxed with a wide choice of night-spots located at the edge of town. Take your pick from lively bars to late-night discos for real night-owls.
The coast of Alanya consists of wide beaches and they have blue flag. Blue Flag is an international practice that determines and inspects the cleanness of the sea water and beach standarts.
Blue Flag is to the beaches that conforms with these qualities and it is valid for one year. Every fortnight microbiological and physiochemical analyses of the water is done. In Alanya the colour of the sea turns to turquoise from blue. In still weather it is possible to see the fish deep in the sea. It is common of fish wandering around your feet.
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