Datça in 3 Days: A Suggested Itinerary

Three days is a good introduction to Datça. This plan spends the first day in the town itself, heads out to Knidos at the western tip of the peninsula on the second, and leaves the third for the sea.

Distances are short but the roads wind, so rather than cramming things in, sit out the midday heat in the shade and make the most of the mornings and evenings. The route assumes you have a car. If the meltem is blowing hard on the day you'd set aside for the boat, simply swap days two and three.

Start with breakfast by the harbour, then stroll the waterfront promenade as the fishing boats come and go. Take your first swim at Kumluk, the sandy beach right in the middle of town — an easy choice if you have children with you. Sit out the midday heat in the shade, or browse the small shops in town for local almonds and honey.

When the heat breaks in the afternoon, head a few kilometres inland to Eski Datça (Old Datça). Its stone houses draped in bougainvillea, cobbled lanes and the house where the poet Can Yücel lived deserve a slow wander, and nearby Reşadiye has a similar old-village feel. Have dinner in Eski Datça (in summer, it's worth booking), then end the evening with a tea or coffee back at the harbour.

Fill up the tank in town and head west early. First stop: Palamutbükü, whose long pebble beach and clear water are just right for a morning swim, when the sea is usually at its calmest and the beach at its quietest. Stay on for lunch at one of the fish restaurants along the shore.

Then continue to Yazıköy and stretch your legs among olive trees that have stood for centuries. Save the afternoon for ancient Knidos, roughly 35 km from town: a city of theatres and temple terraces set between two harbours, famous in antiquity for Praxiteles' statue of Aphrodite. Allow at least two hours to explore the ruins spread across the hillside; there's little shade, which is another reason to save the visit for later in the day. End the day watching the sun go down near the Deveboynu lighthouse on the cape. The drive back is winding and slower in the dark, so take your time.

Give your last day to the sea. One option is a day trip by boat from the harbour: the boats spend the day working their way along the coast, stopping to swim in coves that are hard to reach by land. Ask in advance which coves are on the route and whether lunch is included. Day boats usually leave in the morning and are back by late afternoon, which leaves time for the sunset.

If you'd rather set your own pace, hop between coves by car: start at Kargı, close to town, then head west to Ovabükü and Hayıtbükü. Lunch by Hayıtbükü's little harbour followed by a lazy afternoon at Ovabükü is hard to beat.

In the early evening, drive up to the Kızlan windmills, a few kilometres from town. Watching the sun set among the old stone mills on the hilltop is a fine way to close three days in Datça. Then head back down for a last dinner by the harbour.

A few things that make the route easier: