Antalya Airport to Olympos Ancient City Transfer

Olympos (Olympos Antik Kenti) was a Lycian city that rose to importance around the second century BC and later flourished under Rome, when it lay on busy trade routes and was sometimes troubled by pirates. Unlike the open ancient cities of the plain, its ruins are scattered through a shaded valley, so a visit feels more like a walk in nature than a tour of a monument.

Following the streambed toward the sea, you pass carved Lycian sarcophagi, a Roman theatre built into the slope, a temple gateway, bath buildings and a Byzantine basilica, many wrapped in greenery. The path ends at the beach, where the river meets the Mediterranean between two headlands.

Above the valley, the natural gas vents known as the Chimaera (Yanartaş) have burned on the mountainside for thousands of years and inspired ancient legend. The flames are most striking after dark, so you can enjoy the ruins by day and the hill by evening.

Antalya Airport sits east of the city, and Olympos lies southwest down the Kemer coast, so your driver crosses the Antalya area and then follows the scenic coastal highway toward Kemer and Kumluca. For much of the way the Beydağları mountains rise steeply on one side while the Mediterranean opens up on the other.

The distance is about 80 km and the usual private-transfer time is around 75 minutes. The final stretch leaves the main road and winds down a narrower valley lane to Olympos, so the last few kilometres are slower but very pretty.

Door to door, your driver meets you inside the terminal, helps with the bags and takes you straight to your pension in the Olympos valley, to Çıralı, or to the site entrance. There is no changing of vehicles, and because the fare is fixed per car you pay nothing extra if traffic is slow.

Two vehicle types serve this route. An economy car costs from €33 one way and suits a couple or small family with normal luggage. A Vito minivan costs from €43 one way and gives more room for larger groups, extra suitcases or a buggy.

Prices are per vehicle rather than per person, and they are fixed for the journey, so the figure quoted is the figure you pay no matter how many seats are filled. No prepayment is needed; you settle directly with the driver in cash or by card at the time of travel.

Every booking includes a free meet and greet with a name sign at arrivals, flight tracking so the driver adjusts to delays or early landings, and free child seats on request. The service runs around the clock, so late-night and very early flights are covered.

Pack light and bring sturdy shoes, as the Olympos valley is reached on foot over uneven ground and the ruins are spread along a streamside path. Swimwear, water and sunscreen are worth having, since most visitors end the walk with a swim at the beach where the valley meets the sea.

Many guests stay a night or two in the wooden pensions and tree houses of Olympos or in the quieter resort of Çıralı next door, so book your return transfer for the airport at the same time and give your pickup address and flight number. The driver will allow enough margin for check-in.

Olympos pairs naturally with the Chimaera flames above the valley, best seen after dusk, and with the long Çıralı beach, a protected nesting site for sea turtles. Spring and autumn are the most comfortable seasons, while summer is hot but ideal for combining ruins and swimming.

Olympos grew as a Lycian port and later passed through Roman and Byzantine hands, and most of what survives dates from these later centuries. The valley setting means the ruins are not laid out in neat rows but appear among the trees as you follow the path, from carved tombs to the theatre and the old harbour area near the shore.

Because the site is part walk and part swim, allow a relaxed two to three hours, or longer if you plan to climb to the Chimaera in the evening, a separate short uphill hike above Çıralı. Wear shoes you can walk and scramble in, and carry water as there is little shade in places.

Entry tickets are bought at the gate or online and are separate from your transfer, and the Chimaera has its own small fee. Combining both in one day, with a beach break between, makes for a memorable outing on the Kemer coast.