Walking the Lycian Way: Day Hikes on Turkey's Great Coastal Trail

The Lycian Way is one of the world's great long-distance walking trails, running for hundreds of kilometres along the coast between Fethiye and near Antalya, waymarked with red-and-white stripes. Thru-hikers take weeks over the whole thing — but you do not have to. The best individual day sections, walked on their own, are among the most beautiful and rewarding hikes anywhere, and they fit neatly into a holiday.

The trail links ancient ruins, mountain villages, pine forest, high headlands and hidden bays along the historic region of Lycia. It is a footpath rather than a manicured route, following old mule tracks and coastal paths, with the red-and-white waymarks guiding you. Its appeal is the combination: you walk through genuinely wild and beautiful scenery, but constantly pass ancient tombs, ruined cities and villages, so it is as much a cultural walk as a nature one.

The whole trail is a serious multi-week undertaking, but that is not how most visitors experience it. Individual day sections — a morning or a day along a particular stretch — give you the best of the trail without the commitment. Some sections are gentle coastal walks; others climb to viewpoints or link ruins; a few are more demanding mountain stretches. Choosing a day section that suits your fitness and interests is the way to enjoy the Lycian Way on a normal holiday.

The most rewarding day walks tend to combine sea views, a ruin or village to aim for, and a swim or a meal at the end. Sections around Kaş, near the ancient sites, and along the more accessible coastal stretches are popular for exactly this reason. The joy is walking a beautiful path with a destination — a cove, a viewpoint, a village café — rather than simply out and back.

The practical challenge of day hiking a linear trail is that you finish somewhere different from where you started. This is exactly where a private transfer transforms the day: a driver drops you at the start of your chosen section and meets you at the end, so you can walk one-way through the best scenery rather than doubling back. No arranging two cars, no walking the same path twice — just a beautiful one-way hike with a driver waiting at the finish, ready to take you home tired and happy.

• Choose a section that matches your fitness — some are gentle, some are serious climbs.
• Walk in the cooler months or early morning — midsummer heat makes long walks hard.
• Wear proper hiking shoes and carry water — it is a real trail, not a promenade.
• Bring sun protection and a hat; much of the trail is exposed.
• Plan a one-way route with a transfer meeting you at the end, so you never retrace your steps.

The Lycian Way brings one of the world's great trails to your doorstep, and you do not need weeks to enjoy it — a single well-chosen day section delivers sea, mountains, ruins and a swim in one walk. Pick a stretch that suits you, go in the cool of the day, and let a private transfer handle the point-to-point logistics, dropping you at the start and waiting at the finish. It is the finest way to trade the beach for the trail for a day.