How to spend 3 days in Fethiye
Three days in Fethiye will be more than enough to cover the most popular activities which are the boat tour to Butterfly Valley and St Nicholas Island, paragliding in Oludeniz, and visit ancient Lycian tombs in Kaunos. There will be time left to relax on the beach and try amazing Turkish cuisine at the cozy restaurants by the shore.
Oludeniz Boat Trip to Butterfly Valley and St Nicholas Island from Fethiye
The must do activity in Fethiye is the full-day tour around the islands, beaches and caves of Ölüdeniz. Swim in the glittering lagoon of the Blue Cave, take in the views from the hilltop monastery of St Nicholas Island or dive into the crystalline waters of Cold Spring Bay. The pick up boats are lined up at the Ölüdeniz Beach and they are magnificent, if you have seen and liked the Pirates of the Caribbean you will like the design of the tour boats: Dragon, Black Pearl, Robinson are the prettiest. On the tour you will visit several beautiful islands, please look for the details on the tour website. Come prepared having a hat, sunglasses, iPhone charger, sun screen (it is a full day boat tour), snorkeling masks, towels. For those who wants to explore the St Nicholas island be careful of the rocks entering the beach and under the surf are very skippy and treacherous. Same applies to the waterfalls of Butterfly Island i would recommend wearing hiking shoes because the trail was rough. During the trip expect great music, dancing, food and drinks will be catered on the tour.
Paragliding in Oludeniz
Launch yourself off Mt. Babadag, one of the world's best paragliding spots! It has the incredible thermals and ideal conditions for paragliding flight. Oludeniz is reputedly the best site in Europe, if not the world, for this kind of sport. The experience is very well organized with professional instructor, expect timely and clear communication via WhatsApp. The team was very friendly and welcoming, many people were trying for the first time and instructors are very understanding and know how to calm down the nerves of the tourists and encourage during the flight. The season begins the third week of April and finishes the first week of November.
Fethiye Lycian Rock Tombs (Tomb of Amyntas)
You can enjoy views of the tombs for free, they are quite visible from the streets of the Fethoye or you can make it a full experience and enter for a fee to visit the Tomb of Amyntas. Fethiye Lycian Rock Tombs are located just south of the main town and the only way to reach them is on foot. It’s a 15-minute uphill hike from the central bus station, followed by 296 stairs to get to the Tomb of Amyntas at the highest point.
The Kings Garden Restaurant stands at the foot of the Tomb of Amyntas, where you can pause for refreshments before continuing to the top.
Where to stay
We stayed at the 📍Mykonut Boutique Suites: https://www.booking.com/hotel/tr/mykonut-boutique-fethiye.en.html?aid=7942827&no_rooms=1&group_adults=2
Very affordable place, I believe we paid around $80 per night in September, prices vary during high and low seasons. Apart hotel was located very close to the shore and had an amazing view of marina, had a pool and our room had a balcony. It did not have a restaurant but we wanted to explore places by the shore therefore it did not matter to us. Marina is short 15 minutes walk from the apart hotel along with the restaurants, supermarkets and offices of the tour operators. We were pleased with our stay and highly recommend it! I’m including the view from our balcony below.
Another hotel where my sister stayed is very beautiful, pet friendly and famous for it’s modern design:📍Flamingo Hotel & Spa: https://www.booking.com/hotel/tr/flamingo.en.html?aid=7942827&no_rooms=1&group_adults=2
Hotel is located in the heart of Ölüdeniz just a short walk from Belcekiz Beach. Average price is $150 per night. Guests have access to the wide range of outdoor activities, including horse riding, canoeing, scuba diving, bicycle rental and a playground. Hotel has an adults pool and a kids pool. The spa is lovely and worth the price. There are also honeymoon suites available.
Restaurants
My favorite places for dinner during the short visit to Fethiye were Yengec Restaurant: http://yengecrestaurant.com.tr/ and Locanta Fethiye: https://www.lokantafethiye.com/ .
Yengec Restaurant is located by the marina and we were enjoying dinner with the view of the Karagozler Bay and the boats, very romantic experience. Also the fish comes very close to the shore that you see and can feed them with the pieces of bread.
Locanta Fethiye was fabulous for their unique decor and the authentic atmosphere. The menu was different from the other places in the area and we loved it, everything was fresh and absolutely delicious. Place was full when we arrived therefore i recommend calling in advance for reservation.
