Tlos ancient city, Fethiye

Tlos entrance fee and opening hours

Foreign visitors pay €3; children under 8 go in free. Turkish citizens pay 200 TL. There is one ticket booth at the entrance and one ticket for everything — fort, tombs, theatre and baths.

Tlos is open every day: 8:30–19:30 in summer and 8:30–17:30 in winter, according to the Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism's museums portal, which lists the site under the Fethiye Museum. The portal gives a garbled date for the winter switch, so from November to March plan on a 17:30 close.

Carry some Turkish lira in cash — card machines at rural ticket booths are not always reliable.

Is Tlos worth visiting?

Yes, if you are heading to Saklıkent anyway or you like ruins without the crowds. Few places put Lycian rock tombs, Roman baths and an Ottoman fort in one frame, and you may well have the hillside to yourself. Entry costs less than a coffee on the Ölüdeniz seafront.

Not as a day trip on its own. The site is spread out, much is still unexcavated and signage is thin. If you only have time for one Lycian city, Xanthos or Patara make a fuller day. And if you've already seen the Tomb of Amyntas in Fethiye town, Tlos shows you the same kind of tombs in a wild cliff, with a fort on top.

What to see at Tlos

• The Tomb of Bellerophon — a temple façade carved into the cliff and a relief of the rider on winged Pegasus. Reaching it means a steep scramble down from the fort; the view of it from below is good too if you'd rather not climb.
• The rock necropolis — dozens of Lycian house-tombs cut into the sheer face under the acropolis, best lit in the morning.
• The Kanlı Ali Ağa fort on the summit — the widest view over the Xanthos valley and the Akdağ range.
• The theatre on the eastern slope — restored with its own stones, about 8,500 seats, lit at night by solar lamps.
• The Roman baths, with big arched windows looking out over the valley — the most photogenic spot after the tombs.
• The stadium — a long run of seating at the foot of the hill, with the market and a basilica nearby.

Tlos and Saklıkent in one day

This is the classic pairing and the best way to see Tlos. Do the ruins first, from opening time, while the hillside is still cool. Drive about 20 minutes to Saklıkent and wade into the icy river when the heat peaks.

On the way back, stop in Yaka for lunch: the village is known for trout restaurants set over cold mountain streams — the “Yakapark” on many tour itineraries. Add Xanthos and sunset at Patara if you have a car and the energy.

A short history of Tlos

Tlos is among the oldest cities in Lycia. Hittite records of the 2nd millennium BC call it Dalawa in the “land of Lukka”, and the Lycians knew it as Tlawa. Persians, Macedonians and Ptolemies followed, and in AD 43 Lycia became a Roman province.

It was one of the six leading cities of the Lycian League, each holding three votes, and in Roman times styled itself “the very brilliant metropolis of the Lycian nation”. Most of what stands today — theatre, baths, stadium — dates from that era.

Legend tied the city to Bellerophon, slayer of the Chimera, which is how the finest rock tomb got its name; it belonged to a Lycian noble, not the hero. The last lord of the rock was the Ottoman strongman Kanlı Ali Ağa — “Bloody Ali” — who built his fort on Lycian foundations. Akdeniz University in Antalya leads the excavations.

Tlos vs Xanthos vs Patara

Tlos is the one to fit in on the way to Saklıkent. If you'll see a single Lycian city, pick Xanthos or Patara.

Historic sites around Fethiye compared

Every historic site around Fethiye rated by YesGo. Tap a column heading to sort.

How to do it right

• Start at the fort on top — you see the whole site and can plan your way down.
• The cliff tombs catch the morning sun; by late afternoon the façades are in shadow.
• Don't leave the Bellerophon tomb until closing time — the path is steep and no fun at dusk.
• Visiting Saklıkent? Stop at Tlos on the way rather than making a separate trip.
• With small children, keep hold of hands near the drop below the fort — there is barely any railing.

Questions