Pamukkale
Pamukkale, which means "cotton castle" in Turkish, is a natural beauty in southwestern Turkey. The area is famous for carbonate mineral deposits remaining on the rocks by the running thermal spring water. It is a very famous destination for those who want to extend their holidays after Turkey sailing tours.
The ancient city of Hierapolis was founded on top of the white Calcium terraces which is in total about 2,700 meters (8,860 ft) long, 600 m (1,970 ft) wide and 160 m (525 ft) high. Known as Pamukkale (Cotton Castle) or the ancient city of Hierapolis, this area has been attracting visitors because of its thermal springs since ancient times. The Turkish name refers to the surface of the snow-white limestone, shaped over thousands of years by calcium-rich springs. Running slowly down the mountains, spring waters collect in and cascade down the white terraces, into pools down below. According to the legend, the White terraces are solidified cotton which was left out to dry by giants.
People from all over the world have been visiting the area for thousands of years, due to the benifits of the thermal pools. There are very well-preserved Roman ruins such as Baths, Amphitheatre,Apollo Temple etc… Pamukkale was added as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988 with Hierapolis.
Pamukkale's white terraces are made of travertine, a sedimentary rock deposited by the hot springs. In the area, there are 17 hot springs with different temperatures from 35 °C to 100 °C. The mineral water that comes from the spring is flowing down from 320 meters to the head of the white terraces and deposits calcium carbonate on sections 60 to 70 meters. When the spring water with calcium carbonate reaches the terraces and meets oxygen, carbon dioxide disappears, and calcium carbonate deposits remain. Calcium carbonate deposits are just like a soft gel that eventually gets solid on the surface of terraces.
The ancient city of Hierapolis was built as a sanitarium in the 2nd century BC by the Seleucid Empire. Most of the Ruins that remained in the area today are from the time of Romans who took over the city in the 2nd century AD. Hierapolis became a healing center after that where The Roman doctors used the thermal springs as a treatment for their patients.
Today Pamukkale gets millions of visitors as its being one of the highlights in Turkey. That’s why it is highly recommended for our guests to visit this breathtaking site before or after sailing in Turkey. It is quite accessible from Fethiye where we start our gulet cruise from. You can also book a day trip to Pamukkale with us before you finish your sail Turkey adventure. We will take care of the rest.