Kaş by Day Boat, the Bays Around Town and the Channel at Kekova

Boats lie stern-on along the quay at Kaş with the gangplanks down, a crate of fruit going aboard and wet towels already hung over the rail. A deckhand calls out a bay name and a few heads nod. Then the lines come off, the engine finds its note and the town shrinks to a white slope behind the wake.

Day boats from here follow one of two routes. One stays close and works through the small bays and islets near town. The other goes east for the Kekova boat trip, a calm channel with a drowned city on its shore. Both fill the day, and they ask different things of you.

Ufakdere, Çoban and the rest

The bay route is the easy one. The boat leaves Kaş harbour around ten and anchors for a swim at each bay in turn, usually Islands Bay, Ufakdere, whose name means small stream, Çoban Bay and, last, Limanağzı, a rocky bay with sunbeds on wooden platforms. The water is clear and the boat sits a few strokes away.

Lunch is cooked while you swim. You climb the ladder and the meal is on deck, with fruit to follow. A day like this lasts six to eight hours and never takes you far from the harbour.

A drive before the boat

The Kekova day starts on land. Many trips sold in Kaş include a transfer to Üçağız, about 45 minutes away, where the boat is waiting. Others go on their own, by car or dolmuş, and board there. The boat sets off around half past ten, and the same road brings you back at the end. Count that drive into the day.

Stops change with the operator, but the list is short. Aquarium Bay comes first, for a long swim in clear water. Tersane Bay follows, with the ruin of a Byzantine church above the shore. Then comes Kaleköy, where you get about an hour on land. A castle stands over the houses and a Lycian sarcophagus sits in the water off the quay.

The staircase under the hull

Somewhere in the middle the engine drops to a murmur and everyone moves to the rail. On the north shore of Kekova Island, a few metres down, lie stairs, a quay and house foundations. The ruins belong to Dolichiste, which an earthquake dropped into the sea in the second century AD.

Boats cross the site slowly, and nobody swims over it. The area has been a protected zone since 1990, and swimming, snorkelling and diving above the ruins are banned. The swim comes at Tersane Bay.

Editor's picks

• Choose the route before the boat.The bays near town make an easy day close to the harbour. Kekova is the longer day, with ruins in it.
• Ask what is included.Lunch, snorkel gear and, on a private boat from Kaş, whether Kekova is part of the price or a fuel supplement on top.
• Swim at Tersane Bay, look at the sunken city from the rail.The rules keep the two apart.
• Use the hour at Kaleköy for the castle.The view back over the channel is the best seat of the day.
• Bring a layer.The breeze fills in after midday and the ride back is cooler than the ride out.
• Give Meis its own day.It needs a passport and a different quay (see Meis).
• Want the boat to yourself?Sailing from Kaş covers the private day.

Insider notes

Ask where the boat really leaves from. A Kekova trip listed "from Kaş" often means a minibus first and the boat at Üçağız, so check the pick-up time and when you will be back at your hotel.

The sea is usually flattest in the morning, which is why the swims come early. Boat crews know the boundaries at the sunken city and will tell you where the swimming stops.

On a clear day Meis shows on the horizon from the bay route, close enough to read as part of the coast.

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How to get to Kaş

Dalaman is the closest airport, about two hours by road along the D400 through Kalkan. The bay boats leave from Kaş harbour in the middle of town, so the car can stay parked, and for Kekova the operator's transfer, a dolmuş or your own car covers the 45 minutes to Üçağız. Flights from Europe and Istanbul are covered in Getting there.

The crate that came aboard full of fruit goes back ashore empty.