Fethiye

Last updated 27 February 2026, Travel Guide for Fethiye

FETHIYEBoth thrilling and tranquil, this is one of the resort towns in the Turkish Riviera that you will return to again and again. As being one of the most popular destinations on the Turkish Riviera, Fethiye is also the largest town in Muğla province, is the meeting point of the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts. Fethiye is one of the biggest ancient cities in Lycian civilization which is also known as Telmessos.
Today, Fethiye is one of the main hubs on the Turkish Turquoise coast where famous Turkey sailing trips start or end. Turkey sail is also known as blue cruises Turkey or Blue voyages Turkey. Every year Fethiye accommodates thousands of Turkish gulets as well as private yachts and superyachts in her 2 huge harbors. People from all over the world are choosing Fethiye for their Blue cruise holidays in Turkey. Fethiye with her stunning bays and coves all around offers amazing stops for travelers with Turkish-made traditional gulets. The turquoise water in the tranquil bays is passionately loved by all sea enthusiasts. As soon as you start your blue cruise holiday in Fethiye you will start enjoying vibrant turquoise sea against the hills which are covered with pine trees all around the Gulf of Fethiye, or the Oludeniz region known also as Blue Lagoon with its numerous bays boasting awe-inspiring natural beauty, by setting out with your blue cruise charters Fethiye.
Bays of Fethiye are the most known bays on the Turkish coastline, where all young travelers from especially Australia, Uk, New Zealand, the USA, and many European countries stop during their Turkey sail adventure.  Some of those bays are Bedri Rahmi Bay, Cleopatra’s bath, Tersane Island, St Nicholas Island, an abandoned island that has the ruins of an old Greek village, including stone houses and monasteries. 
Oludeniz (blue lagoon) which is just 20 munites drive from Fethiye also offers gorgeous swimming and sunbathing spots at the Blue Lagoon Bay, Belcekız beach, Kumburnu beach, and Kıdrak beach. It is also a paragliding heaven where 60.000 people doing tandem paragliding from Baba mountain raising straight from Ölüdeniz beach. Blue lagoon itself is a protected area and as a result gulets or other yachts to are prohibited to enter. But those Turkey sail gulet boats must anchor at the entrance of the lagoon where sea lovers on Blue Cruise tours can still swim and enjoy a jump off from a high cliff. 
Other must-see bays in Turkey sailing tour itineraries are Kabak Bay, Butterfly Valley, which is surrounded by approximately 350-meter-high steep rock walls and gets its name from the more than 80 different butterfly species that live in a certain time of the year, Sovalye Island right across Fethiye harbor, Samanlık bay, Aquarium bay, and Red island.
Fethiye is easily accessible from Dalaman Airport with roughly 40 munites drive which makes it a great spot for Turkey sailing holidays. There are lots of direct international flights from Europe and The Uk in the summer season to Dalaman airport.

Amazing Historical sites in Fethiye where the Mediterranean and the Aegean meet…

Letoon Ancient City

Letoon ancient city is about 40 munites drive from Fethiye downtown and about 4 km south of another ancient city Xanthos. It was an important religious shrine for Lycians. Letoon was dedicated to three god and goddesses Lycia – Leto, Apollo and Artemis. During archaeological studies, some ruins of a church have been found from the early Christian era.

Tlos

Tlos, near Fethiye, was also one of the most important pilgrimage centres in the Lycian region. According to Lycian mythology, the hero Bellerophon and his winged horse Pegasus used to live here. History of Tlos dates back to 2000 B.C. The necropolis, situated on the rocky outcrops of the city acropolis, have some of the most preserved house-type tombs of Lycian burial tradition. The temple-shaped tomb in the necropolis is dedicated to Bellerophon.

Kayakoy

Kayakoy, as an old Greek town, has over 1200 abandoned Greek-style houses and few churches which date from the 1700s. That’s why it is also known as a Ghost town by the visitors. After the establishment of the Turkish Republic, a population exchange agreement was signed in 1923 between Greece and Turkey. Most Greek Christians left Kayaköy and being resettled in Greece. This and the town itself features in the famous novel Birds Without Wings by Louis de Bernieres which is an excellent overview of the 20th Century history of the region after WW1.

Telmessos Ancient Theatre

Telmessos was the largest city in the ancient Lycian league and its remains are all over the modern town of Fethiye. This typical Roman type theatre of Telmessos is located right across the Fethiye harbour where all Turkey sailing gulets departs from. It was built in the 2nd century and has a capacity of 5,000 people. The Fethiye Archaeology Museum displays numerous archaeological finds from the Lycian, Hellenistic, Roman as well as Ottoman era.

Xanthos Ancient City

The ancient city of Xanthos is situated in the hills above a plateu located in the southeast of Fethiye. It is the site where more than 900 Lycian rock tombs were found. Definitely worths visiting.

Göcek

Gocek is a pretty harbor town which is also a famous destination for blue cruise holidays in Turkey Inspite of its being a small town, it has 6 large marinas which attract thousands of people to come over and start their blue cruises from Göcek. The town center is within walking distance from the port e and has lots of fancy cafés, restaurants, and places for fine dining with a great view of the Mediterranean. To enjoy unforgettable town seeing and dinners in Göcek, explore other unique bays along the coast, feel free to check out our Fethiye to Marmaris Cabin Charter program.

Just like Fethiye, Gocek is also the starting point for many Blue Cruises gulets where you can charter a whole gulet for a private sail Turkey tour or just join one of the amazing Goturkeysail tours for 4 days sailing adventure or a weeklong. To get more information and book amazing Turkey sail trip, you can contact with us !

Also you can check our all Cabin Tours