Kemer, A Tourism Center in Turkey
Kasım 18, 2010 | Cities in the Mediterranean, Holiday Resorts in the Mediterranean
HISTORY
The history of the town of Kemer is known to root back to 690 B.C.
The ancient city of Phaselis 15 km. away from the center of Kemer was founded by Oleios in 690.
The place is known to be a trading center in the past and the the ruins of the city have reached today.
The ancient city of Olympos about 25 km from the town center was built in the 2nd century BC. The excavation for the city which was captured by Romans in 78 BC is still continuing. The findings show that it used to be an important trade and shipping center, at the time.
Kemer was conquered by the Turks in 12th century. Inhabitants started to settle down in the town again in early 1900s.
TOURISM
Kemer is among the most popular tourism destinations in Turkey. It is a seaside resort, 40 km from Antalya on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey.
The town is located on the Gulf of Antalya with the Taurus Mountains lying behind and possesses the typical Mediterranean hot, dry weather.
It was not until the early 1980s that the city started gaining a very important place in the Turkish tourism sector to bring in substantial revenues.
The name Kemer (belt) comes from the walls which were built to channel the mountain stream water and protect the town from flooding, in 1916-1917.
Its natural beauty; sea, mountains and pine forest combine in harmony are among of the major attractions of Kemer.
Kemer is known to be a comfortable and peaceful holiday coast with internationally accepted reputation due to its easy transportation facilities, good communication and other municipal services.
The hotel bed capacity it possesses is good enough to accommodate the large number of crowds it attracts from countries such as Germany, The Netherlands and Russia in recent years
SITES OF NATURAL BEAUTY
ADRASAN Bay (with 2 km of beach), CIRALI Village (2 km beach) where part of Lycian way is located, THREE ISLANDS (3 Adalar) known for divers, The Canyon of GOYNUK, TWIN ROCKS (Ikiz Kayalar), ULUPINAR Village (mountain spring waters), caves at BELDIBI are among places worth seeing.
HISTORICAL SITES
The most popular spots are Chimaera – the natural burning rock of Greek mythology,
and the ancient cities of Phaselis and Olympos.