2 Best Sights in Tlos Ruins, The Turquoise Coast

If you continue south from Tlos, you'll reach this spectacular gorge. It's a popular spot for picnicking and a wonderful place to cool off on a hot summer's day. Children especially love wading up through the icy stream at the bottom of a deep rock crevasse. The first section goes over a walkway above the torrent to a pleasant leafy tea garden, beyond which the adventurous can cross the glacial water and continue up the canyon. The first 30 minutes are straightforward; then the wading gets deeper and the rock scrambles more difficult, so know your limits—and expect to get wet. The road here heads south to Çavdır, which is just across the highway from Xanthos. If you don't have your own car, plenty of tour operators offer day trips. You need water shoes for this adventure; you can buy an inexpensive pair for 30 TL near the tea garden.

From the acropolis of Tlos, you can glimpse the Xanthos Valley to the west—a rich agricultural area both in ancient times and today. Mountains cradle Tlos's Roman theater, with an 18th-century Ottoman mansion at the summit, reached via a narrow path that goes past a cluster of rock tombs. Below the acropolis is a large flat stadium, with seats on one side from which spectators watched footraces. Just up the road are the remains of Tlos's agora, basilica, and Roman bath.