Antalya in 7 Days on a Budget (Plus Day Trips)
Seven days: the full Turquoise Coast base loop, with a real landing pad
Seven days keeps the 6-day route intact, Perge/Aspendos/Side, Termessos, Olympos, a rest day, Pamukkale and Kekova, and adds a final recovery day rather than a rushed departure straight off two 12-hour tour days. This is the longest itinerary in the family; if a week feels like too much, the 4 and 5-day versions cut Kekova and Pamukkale respectively.
Book these before you go
- Perge, Aspendos and Side combo day tour : the day 1 anchor.
- Olympos and Chimaera jeep safari : day 3’s evening flames run.
- Antalya to Pamukkale day tour : day 5, book ahead in high season.
- Sunken City Kekova, Demre and Myra tour from Antalya : day 6, hotel pickup included.
| Day | Focus | Distance/drive time | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Perge, Aspendos and Side | 18-76km / 20min-1.25hr | ~10-17 euros a site, or a fixed tour price |
| Day 2 | Termessos, then Antalya beach | ~37-39km / 40-45 min | ~2-3 euros, cash only |
| Day 3 | Olympos, beach, Chimaera flames | ~80-85km / ~1.5hr | Entry varies by gate; jeep safari priced separately |
| Day 4 | Free day, no tour booked | - | Food and incidentals only |
| Day 5 | Pamukkale and Hierapolis | ~250-300km / 3.5-4hr each way | ~30 euros combined entry, plus ~6 euros for Cleopatra’s pool |
| Day 6 | Kekova, Demre and Myra by boat | ~130-145km one way / ~12hr round trip | Organized day tour, hotel pickup included |
| Day 7 | Recovery day, Antalya beach, departure prep | - | Food and incidentals only |
Day 1: Perge, Aspendos and Side
Perge (~18km/20-30 min), Aspendos (~47km/40-45 min) and Side (~76km/1-1.25hr) fill day one on the combo tour above; Perge and Aspendos are both covered by the regional Museum Pass if you’re hitting enough sites to make the math work.
Day 2: Termessos, then a beach afternoon
Termessos (~37-39km/40-45 min) runs roughly 100-120 TRY (about 2-3 euros), cash only; go early, since gates often close by mid-afternoon, then recover at Konyaalti or Lara beach back in the city.
Day 3: Olympos, a beach, and the Chimaera flames after dark
Olympos (~80-85km via Kemer, ~1.5hr) pairs a beach with ruins by day, then the Chimaera flames near Cirali after dark. The jeep safari above covers the evening drive if you’d rather not navigate it yourself.
Day 4: an actual day off
Book nothing. This is the buffer between the ruins-and-beach pace of days 1-3 and the two long-haul tour days that follow; the official Antalya travel guide is worth a browse for anything you skipped.
Day 5: Pamukkale, the honest version
Pamukkale and the Hierapolis ruins sit 250-300km away, 3.5-4 hours each way. The day tour above runs a 5am pickup and an 8pm return, roughly 12-13 hours door to door, for around 30 euros combined entry plus another 6 for Cleopatra’s Antique Pool. The 5-day itinerary has the full honest math on whether that trade is worth it.
Day 6: Kekova’s sunken city, Demre and Myra
Kas itself sits about 190km/3-3.5 hours away by car, too far for a comfortable round trip once you add boat time. What works instead is the organized tour above through Demre and Myra, closer at roughly 130-145km, ending in a glass-bottom boat ride over Kekova’s half-submerged ruins, hotel pickup from Antalya included, the whole day about 12 hours. The Turkish Riviera guide covers the wider Lycian coast if Kas itself tempts you into a future trip. Those two closing tour days both run close to 12 hours door to door, which is exactly why day 7 exists.
Day 7: the day this whole trip actually needed
Book nothing. After two straight long-haul tour days, this is a beach morning at Konyaalti or Lara, a slow Kaleici lunch, and packing done well before your flight rather than at the last minute. If departure timing allows, this is also the day to price a future Kas overnight, since visiting Kas itself, its harbor and restaurants rather than just the Demre-side boat, genuinely needs its own night away, not a spot on this itinerary.
Do you need a full day off after Pamukkale and Kekova?
Yes, if your schedule allows it. Days 5 and 6 both involve 7-plus hours of driving or boat transit; stacking a third early departure right after them is the scheduling mistake that makes a good trip’s last stretch feel worse than its first. A half day would technically work, but a full day off is the safer plan.
Should Kas itself be added to this itinerary instead of a rest day?
Not as a day trip, no. Kas is roughly 190km/3-3.5 hours from Antalya, too far for a comfortable round trip on top of an already 12-hour tour day. If Kas’s harbor and restaurants matter beyond the boat trip, treat that as a separate short trip with its own overnight, added before or after this itinerary rather than squeezed inside it.
Confirm your flight or next-leg departure time before locking day 7 in as a full rest day; if you’re departing that evening, move the beach morning earlier and keep the afternoon free for the airport run instead.