Kalamaki (Kalkan)

Kalkan, which is connected to Kaş, is a popular tourism spot although it doesn’t have any historical sites. Kalkan is on the Kaş-Fethiye highway and its old name is Kalamaki. It is 25 kilometers away from Kaş. During the population exchange in 1922, some of the people living here emigrated to Greece and Australia. Those who emigrated to Greece set up a village for themselves near Athens and called it Kalamaki. These people still inhabit this village. The offspring of these people visit Kalkan from time to time when they miss home.

Soap-making and olive oil production were the main sources of income for the people of Klakan until recently. In recent years, Kalkan became an attractive spot for people who take the blue sea voyage tours. Kalkan has a recently built yacht dock and several clean “pansion” guest houses and hotels along with restaurants serving delicious seafood.

Boats find shelter in Kalkan, which is a very safe port. They can meet their all needs here and also they can visit Patara, Letoon and Xanthos, the three important cities of Lycia, in just one day.

Tourists staying in Kalkan can visit the Kaputaş Cave, located just 6 kilometers from Kalkan. The cave is 50 meters long, 40 meters wide and 15 meters high. When you walk into this cave, you will be mesmerized by the spectacle formed by all the shadows of green and blue formed by the interacting reflections of the sunlight. The interior of the cave is large enough to accommodate a boat. Next to it there is Kaputaş Beach, which is an ideal place to swim.

The Güvercinlik Sea Cave (Pigeons Cave) is home to a large number of pigeons, and it is two kilometers away from Kalkan, behind Cape Ince. Güvercinlik Sea Cave is only 100 meters away from the Güvercinlik Cave. There is a road that goes all the way to Inbaş Cave on the coast of Kalkan’s Bezirgan village.

Kalkan is a great resting place on balmy winter days or in spring with its pansion guesthouses among purple and red begonias and white buildings, many of which have been turned into restaurants. You can also make trips to nearby places during your stay in Kalkan. For example, the Bezirgan valley, right above Kalkan, is an ideal place for walking. From the hills above the village of Bezirgan, you can see the remains of an ancient city called Pirha. After walking 15 minutes from the village, you’ll reach the ruins, which stand 850 meters above sea level. The slope of the mountain is full of rock tombs. There are also sarcophagi scattered around. There are rock tomb with regular decorations in the Göldağ area, which is on the border of the Bezirgan and Islamlar villages. On the way to Gömbe, while leaving the village of Bezirgan, a Lycian house-type tomb stands carved into a rock across from a plane tree. Both the inside and the outside of the tomb is decorated with reliefs, but unfortunately the tomb itself is falling into pieces.

İlhan Aksit's book "Işık Ulkesi Lycia" (Lycia, Country of Light) and web site of Ministry of Culture & Tourism was used as a source for this webpage.