Logistics

Sunset from Antalya looking at the hills you will reach in the last week. 

I am assuming a West to East direction, and that the reader is visiting Turkey from elsewhere. The logistics are very simple:

• Get to the start: Fly to Istanbul. Fly to Dalaman. Bus to Fethiye.
• Walk from Fethiye to Geyikbayiri. Hitchhike to Antalya.
• At the end: Fly to Istanbul from Antalya. Fly home. Optionally spend time in Istanbul en route.

However...

Having said that, it turns out that I am going to do something quite different. As I will be on an extended and somewhat indefinite journey, I will fly to Antalya, stay for a couple of nights, leave some travel stuff at the hostel for later in the journey and then take a bus to Fethiye from Antalya. The bus takes only 4 hours via the mountain route. The coast route is longer, and I would rather see it when on the trail itself.

Istanbul has two widely separated airports. Therefore it is worth choosing flights that both arrive and leave from Ataturk airport (the main international airport). Otherwise it is a lengthy trip between the two (one in Europe, the other in Asia) and means an overnight stop is inevitable in most cases. 

I am allowing 5 hours between my flights. Being on different airlines, they are not connected. This should be ample time to arrive, pass through immigration*, collect baggage and then check in to the onward flight. 

An alternative transit time of 2h:40m might well be fine right up to the moment that the first flight departs an hour late. This seems like a recipe for getting stressed for the first flight and potentially missing the second one. The adaptation to slowing down and taking one’s time might as well start on the first day.

* There is a very simple and clear online visa process. Many people will get a 90-day multiple entry tourist visa to be used within a 180-day period. It costs about $20.

Update: This went entirely as planned, though the wait in Istanbul airport was tedious and not especially comfortable. Getting into the centre of Antalya is quite simple by tram (I think it’s daytime only) or by bus. 

However you need a scannable card to pay for a bus or tram ride (which I hadn’t realised). I was very lucky and a kind local person paid for me on the bus (about €0.50). 

I did not see where one could buy the disposable (but rechargeable - three times) travel cards at the airport. During daytime there might be a kiosk, but my flight had landed late at 22:00. 

In town these cards can only be refilled at kiosks which close at 6pm. This is not very user friendly. The automatic machines only recharge permanent cards. There is one 150m south of Ismetpaşa tram stop, near where the two tram lines are closest to each other. 

Getting to Fethiye was simplicity itself. I took a “new tram” to Otogar station. I found a bus leaving at 10am and was there by 2pm (30TL).

Hitching back from the trail head at Geyikbayiri was relatively quick - maybe a 15 minute wait then a 45 minute ride to Antalya.

So that only leaves you the walking section to deal with...

Planning

Spring Flowers

I plan to walk this trail in Spring specifically to catch the flowers. This was on the advice of a friend who walked it in December a few years ago. I plan to start in mid March and finish in mid April. 

I am hopeful this will work well as far as the weather is concerned. The temperatures should be up to 18-23º in the daytime and down to 8-12º at night. This would be ideal. 

In summer it would be much too hot. Additionally you would need more water just at the time when there are fewer sources. Autumn also sounds like a good time, but in Spring there is a higher chance that water sources actually have water in them.

The walk is meant to take about 27-30 days. I am looking forward to an unhurried time.  It would be an understatement to say “there is plenty to see along the way”. 

It seems like a good idea to have some knowledge of what one is looking at , so I am reading Freya Stark’s “The Lycian Shore” as part of my preparation.

Profile of the Lycian Way from Fethiye (L) to Gayikbayiri (R)

Just a quick glance at the profile tells me that it is better to walk West to East. The first half is flatter than the second. Also I would rather have the afternoon sun behind me, though the importance of this rises with higher temperatures and longer days. A final reason is that the Guide Book describes it that way. Probably not a coincidence.

Update: see My Top Tips for some comments on Timing and Direction. I started on the 12th March and finished in the 12th April.