Mediterranean Region Attractions

Alanya Castle (Alanya Kalesi) is a medieval castle in the southern Turkish city of Alanya. Most of the castle was built in the 13th century under the Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm following the city's conquest in 1220 by Alaeddin Keykubad I as part of a building campaign that included the Kızıl Kule. This castle was built on the remnants of earlier Byzantine era and Roman era fortifications. After the area was pacified under the Ottoman Empire, the castle ceased to be purely defensive, and numerous villas were built inside the walls during the 19th century. Today the building is an open air museum. Access to the seaward castle is ticketed, but much of the area inside the wall, including the landward castle is open to the general public. The castle is located 250 metres (820 ft) high on a rocky peninsula jutting into the Mediterranean Sea, which protects it from thr...

Above the river's sheer cliffs are the weathered façades of Lycian tombs cut from rock, circa 400 BC. The ruins of the ancient trading city of Kaunos are a short boat trip across the river.