Private Daily Xanthos, Letoon, Patara Ancient City Tour

It sits on a prime spot above a twist in the Xanthos River and has stunning views of the valley that is surrounded by the Taurus Mountains.

Xanthos means yellow in ancient Greek. The foundation of the city goes back to the end of the 8th century BC. It was the ancient capital of Lycia. The most imposing monument at Xanthos is the theater, which was founded during the Hellenistic period and renovated by the Romans. Next to the theater there is the Lycian tomb standing over a pedestal. The stele at the northeast corner of the agora is an important monument with an inscription in the Lycian language. Lycian alphabeth was basically Greek.

The recent history of Letoon has parallels with Xanthos. It was discovered by European travellers in the nineteenth century. O. Benndorf visited the site in 1840. Systematic excavations were started in 1962 by French archaeologists. Hundreds of incriptions and ceramics which date back to the eighth century BC were found. The most famous of the incriptions is the one in three languages which dates from the fourth century BC .The site was deserted after the seventh century.

The two sites were included on World Heritage List in 1988.

Patara is in the heart of the Lycian region, 2000 years ago Patara was the largest and most important sea port of the Lycian civilization. According to Mythology Apollo was born here and it is also recorded as the birthplace of St. Nicholas.The old city now forms part of a protected area,18 km of golden sands backed by the dunes and the Taurus mountains and regularly featured as one of the Mediterranean’s most beautiful and unspoilt beaches.The beach of Patara is so large that it never feels crowded.The beach is one of the few remaining beaches in the world, where the Loggerhead turtles still come to lay their eggs between May and October.

End of the Tour.