Again, we arrived in the night at the Anemurium’s sprawling and eerily quiet ruins, the gate was closed, so we parked at the nearby wild pebble beach with crystal clear waters. Founded by the Phoenicians in the 4th century BC, Anemurium suffered several devastating setbacks, including an attack in AD 52 by a vicious Cilician tribe. Archaeologists have also uncovered evidence that an earthquake destroyed the city in about 580. The most visible ruins date from the late Roman, Byzantine, and medieval periods. The ruins stretch down 500 meters to a beach, with mammoth city walls scaling the mountainside above. There is a vast necropolis area with 350 tombs, a 4th-century basilica with a leopard mosaic, and a kid flanking a palm tree. Above the church is one of two aqueducts. The best-preserved structure in Anemurium is the 3rd-century baths complex, with a palaestra (training area) with a mosaic floor. Also worth seeking out is the theatre dating from the 4th century AD and, opposite, the best-preserved odeon in Turkey, with 900 seats and a tiled floor dating to the 2nd century AD. Nearby is the only lovely family-run garden restaurant Dutalti (Chicken steak – 80 TRY, Salad – 60 TRY, Potato chips – 60 TRY, Efes beer – 0,5 l / 50 TRY).
Parking location – Anemurium: 36.031737N 32.810716E