رحلة بالقارب إلى المدينة الغارقة في كيكوفا من أنطاليا: المسار والتوقيت والقواعد

A Kekova sunken city boat trip from Antalya is a full day: Demre is about 143 km from Antalya's old town by road, our tour itinerary allows 2.5 to 3 hours each way with hotel pickups, and the boat section over the ruins takes about 2 hours. You cannot swim over the sunken city itself, but our day trip with lunch stops for a swim nearby. Our Kekova sunken city, Demre and Myra day trip with lunch starts from $120 per person. This page explains the route, the timing, the swimming rules, Simena and Kaleköy, and how to choose between a group and a private day.

What the Kekova day actually covers

Our three Kekova day tours from Antalya all combine three stops along the Lycian coast west of the city:

1. Demre and the Church of St Nicholas, the bishop whose life later gave rise to the Santa Claus story. The church is named in the itineraries of our day trip with lunch and our private tour; on the 06:30 group tour, ask us to confirm it is on the route.
2. Myra, the ancient city with Lycian tombs cut into the cliff and a Roman theatre below them.
3. The Kekova boat trip, which passes over the remains of a settlement that lies partly along the shore and partly under the water. Our day trip with lunch adds a swim stop.

We cover the history of Myra and the church on our page for Myra and the Church of St Nicholas, so this page sticks to the practical side: how long it takes, what you see from the boat and what the rules are.

The sunken city is on the north side of Kekova Island. Wikipedia's summary of the island's history says the ancient town there, known as Dolichiste, was destroyed by an earthquake in the 2nd century. Our tour page notes roof arches and stairways that can still be traced beneath the surface. The island itself is small, about 4.5 km² according to the same source, and it gives its name to the whole stretch of coast and bays around it.

How far is Kekova from Antalya, Kemer, Side and Kaş

Kekova is much closer to Kaş than to Antalya, even though many visitors come on a day tour from the Antalya area. The distances below come from OpenStreetMap route data. They are road distances, and on a shared tour the drive takes longer because the vehicle collects guests from several hotels.

Demre to Üçağız, a harbour village on the Kekova coast, is about 20 km. The itinerary of our day trip with lunch allows 2.5 to 3 hours for the drive to Demre along the coast road, including pickups, and about 3 hours for the return.

From Side or Alanya, Kekova makes a very long day: on routing times alone, before any hotel pickups, you would spend more than six hours in a vehicle. Our Antalya day trips page shows which excursions suit each resort better. If you are staying in Kaş, Üçağız is only about 32 km away, so a local boat trip is the shorter option.

A typical day, hour by hour

Here is the plan on our Kekova, Demre and Myra day trip with lunch, as set out on the tour page:

1. Pickup and drive to Demre, about 2.5 to 3 hours along the coast road.
2. Church of St Nicholas, guided, about 1 hour.
3. Myra ancient city, guided, about 1 hour.
4. Lunch at a local restaurant, about 1 hour. Lunch is included.
5. Kekova boat trip, about 2 hours, passing over the sunken city.
6. Swimming break, about 30 minutes, in the sea.
7. Return to Antalya, about 3 hours, with drop-off at your hotel or a set point.

Our other group option, the Demre, Myra and Kekova tour from Antalya, starts with pickup from central Antalya hotels at 06:30 and brings you back at about 19:00. That is a realistic length for a Kekova day from Antalya: around twelve hours door to door.

Opening hours are rarely a constraint on a day tour, but they change by season. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism lists Myra and the St Nicholas Museum, which is the church, as open every day. On 6 November 2026, muze.gov.tr showed Myra from 08:00 to 19:00 and the St Nicholas Museum from 08:30 to 19:00, with both ticket offices closing at 18:30, while the Turkish Museums portal (turkishmuseums.com) gives shorter winter hours for both, 08:30 to 17:30 from 1 November to 31 March, with the ticket office closing at 17:00. Check the current hours before an independent visit.

Can you swim over the sunken city?

No. GoTürkiye states that no swimming or diving is allowed at the sunken city, and that you see the ruins from a boat. The Kekova area was declared a specially protected area on 18 January 1990. Under that decision, all diving and swimming were at first prohibited, and the ban was later lifted except at the sunken city, according to Wikipedia's account of the protection rules.

In practice, this means:

• The boat passes along the ruins, so you see them from the deck through clear water.
• The swim stop is away from the ruins. On our day trip with lunch it lasts about 30 minutes.
• Snorkelling over the ruins counts as swimming there, so it is not allowed either. Do not jump in when the boat is over the sunken city, even if the water looks inviting.
• Canoeing is another way to see the coast. GoTürkiye's page on Kaleüçağız village lists boat tours and canoeing among the things to do there. Canoe and kayak trips are a separate activity and not part of our day tours.

A note on diving: in 2020, Hürriyet reported that a scientific commission had identified three possible points for controlled diving in the Kekova sunken city area under a new regulation, with the exact locations to be set later. We have not found an official notice opening them to recreational divers, so treat Kekova as a no-dive site unless a licensed dive centre shows you a current permit.

Simena and Kaleköy: what you see from the water

Opposite Kekova Island is the village of Kaleköy, built on the ancient site of Simena. GoTürkiye describes the ruins below the ramparts of a castle that houses a small theatre cut into the rock, with sarcophagi scattered on the hills. The Turkish Museums portal gives the theatre 7 rows of seats and room for about 300 people, says Lycian sarcophagi, a jetty and building ruins are easy to see in still weather, and calls Simena one of the rare settlements in Türkiye that can only be reached from the sea.

On a day tour from Antalya, Simena is mostly seen from the deck. None of our three tour pages lists a landing at Kaleköy, so whether the boat stops there depends on the tour and the day's schedule. Simena is a ticketed archaeological site on the Turkish Museums portal, so if you want to climb to the castle, ask us before booking whether your tour includes the stop and the ticket.

Nearby Üçağız stands on the ancient port of Teimiussa, which the Turkish Museums portal calls the first entrance to the Kekova region by land.

Group tour or private day: how our three options differ

We run the Kekova day in three formats. All three include Demre, Myra and the Kekova boat, and all start from your hotel.

The private tour is the better choice when:

• you are staying outside central Antalya, for example in Kemer, Belek or Lara (send us your hotel name so we can confirm the pickup),
• you are travelling with small children or older relatives who need a slower pace,
• you want extra time at Myra or the church, for example for prayer on a pilgrimage,
• you would like to ask about adding the Lycian Civilisations Museum at Andriake, the old harbour of Myra, which the Ministry recommends visiting while you are in Demre.

The group tours suit travellers who are happy with a fixed timetable and want lunch arranged.

Best time of year for a Kekova boat trip

The boat trip and the swim stop are a large part of the Kekova day, so the season matters. Long-term averages for Antalya from the Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM) give a useful guide, although Demre is further west along the coast.

• May and June: average highs of 25.7°C and 30.8°C, with about 5 and 2.5 rainy days a month on average.
• July and August: average highs of 34.2°C and 34.1°C. The boat breeze helps, but the sites at Myra are exposed, so bring a hat and water.
• September and October: 31.2°C and 26.6°C on average, comfortable months for this combination of ruins and sea.
• November to March: average highs from 21.4°C in November down to 15.0°C in January, and more rain (about 12 rainy days in December and January). Confirm with us that the boat section is running on your date, and expect a short or cold swim stop, if any.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism gives 6 December as the date of St Nicholas's death, which is also his feast day. If you are planning a visit around it, see our Christian tours of Turkey and Turkey Christmas vacation packages.

What to bring and practical tips

• Swimwear and a towel, worn under your clothes so you can change quickly on the boat.
• Modest clothing for the church. Shoulders and knees covered is a sensible rule at a place of worship.
• Sun protection: hat, sun cream and sunglasses. Myra has little shade.
• Cash for drinks, which are not included on our group tours.
• Motion sickness tablets if you are prone to it, both for the coast road and the boat.
• A light jacket outside summer, for the boat ride back to the harbour.

Tours that cover this

• Kekova sunken city, Demre and Myra day trip from Antalya with lunch: group tour with a licensed guide, entry to Myra and the Church of St Nicholas, lunch, the boat over the sunken city and a swim stop. From $120 per person.
• Demre, Myra and Kekova sunken city tour from Antalya: group tour from central Antalya hotels, 06:30 to about 19:00, with lunch, boat cruise and entrance fees. From $103 per person.
• Private Demre, Myra and Kekova sunken city tour: your own van and local guide, museum tickets included. From $140 per person.
• Suluada Island and Adrasan boat tour from Antalya: a swimming-focused boat day closer to Antalya. From $50 per person.

More options are on our Antalya tours page and in Mediterranean Turkey tours. For the wider region, read the Mediterranean Turkey destination guide and things to do in Antalya.

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