Kas is a small but picturesque town located in southern Turkey at the junction of two seas – the Mediterranean and the Aegean. Kas is quite a closed city, which is on three sides surrounded by mountains and forest. It’s quite difficult to reach, because it’s located between two major airports – 192 km from Antalya and 180 km from Dalaman. Kas is located on the very seacoast on mountain slopes descending to the sea. However, there are no usual sandy beaches here. That’s why there are almost no “package” tourists in Kas and no large all-inclusive hotels. There are no beaches we are used to and it’s quite far from all the airports.
Description of Kas town
“Kas” means an “eyebrow” in Turkish. Indeed, if you look at the town from above, you can see that it’s located along a curving bay. It looks like an “eyebrow” above an “eye” – a Greek island Meis (Kastellorizo in Greek). The island is located just 7 km from it, and ferries cruising between them. The town population is only 6 thousand people. Kas town is famous for its beautiful narrow streets descending to the sea, small white houses, and paved roads. The life is relaxed and calm here. The narrow streets of Kas with their beautiful pink hibiscus and bougainvillea flowers resemble the Greek ones. In fact, the Greeks used to live in Kas until 1923. And indeed, my first impression in Kas was that I was in Greece! This place doesn’t look like Turkey we are used to. And that’s why it’s even more interesting to visit.
Kas town on the map
How to get to Kas
Kas is almost equidistant from the famous Turkish resorts – Antalya and Dalaman.
- The most convenient way is by taxi. You can book it yourself in advance, take it at the airport upon arrival, or order a transfer from your hotel in Kas.
- You can also rent a car and they will bring it to you directly to the airport! But remember that this option isn’t suitable for those who arrive at night. We had the same situation, and no one wanted to bring us a car to the airport at night.
- And the most common way is a minibus or dolmush. Bus service in Turkey is well developed, and you can easily use this option. You can take a minibus to Kas not only from Antalya and Dalaman, but from Istanbul, Ankara, and Pamukkale as well.
We travelled to Kas by a rented car from Oludeniz. First, we stopped at Kaputas beach. After that we visited Kas and on the way back stopped at another famous Turkish beach – Patara. You can visit Kas town with a guided tour that includes the same places that we managed to visit.
Good hotels in Kas Turkey on Booking:
What to do in Kas town
If you came here for a couple of hours, the main sights you can visit is to walk around the town center, reach an embankment, eat in a cafe with a beautiful sea view (there are a lot of them here), and visit an ancient Greek amphitheater. It is located just next to the main street of Kas. And of course, just take a walk along its narrow streets. It’s a very picturesque place. You can’t but like it. We managed to have fresh seafood for lunch in a cafe by the sea. After that, we went to see the ancient amphitheater.
The amphitheater is working. A variety of events is often staged here. It still has excellent acoustics, and any word spoken on stage can be heard from everywhere at the amphitheater. The best time to come here is after 4 p.m. or at sunset, which looks magnificent from the upper circle of the amphitheater. The place is interesting. But we arrived in Kas in the hottest time and could stay here for 15 minutes only.
On the way to the amphitheater, we looked into numerous cafes located right by the sea. Narrow colorful paths often led to them. Everything is so nice and cozy.
There are a lot of small Greek-colored cafes in Kas – blue and white. A kind of small Greece in Turkey.
There are many small paths leading somewhere down right to the sea.
The sea in Kas is beautifully turquoise. It’s very clean and clear. There are no common beaches here. However, there are this kind of descents to the sea. In hotels, there are places with sunbeds and umbrellas to relax and sunbathe, as well as descent to the sea with small stairs. Also there are buoys in the sea that restrict free swimming.
So, don’t worry if you liked Kas – you can comfortably swim in the sea. If you are good at swimming, of course. There are no common beaches in Kas, but you can find a lot of cool diving places here! Underwater, you can see ruins of sunken ancient cities, as well as underwater caves and various bays. In Uluburun bay, you can see a sunken ship that sank over three thousand years ago. Just next to the Kas Bay, there’s a Douglas aircraft at a depth of 20 meters. There are so many interesting objects under the water near Kas town. Experienced and even novice divers will find interesting activities here!
Also, you can cruise to Greece from Kas. Just opposite the Kas Bay, there is Greek island of Meis. It’s only 7 km away. You need a valid Schengen visa to visit the Greek island.
On the main street of Kas leading to the sea, there’s a Waikiki branded store. There we spent about an hour and a half during the hottest hours, when it was just impossible to stay outside. Waikiki is a Turkish clothing manufacturer. The shopping center has 3 floors with children’s, men’s, and women’s departments. This brand is present in Russia as well. Which made it even more interesting to look at its store in Turkey, especially at the prices. During our stay, the Turkish lira’s exchange rate collapsed by 40%. So, all the goods had about the same discount if converted in the Russian rubles. It was a real bargain. Of course, we bought a lot of different things for ourselves and to give our friends and relatives.
We spent about three hours in Kas. But if we visit Turkey again in the future, I would really like to come here for a few days.