The beaches of Antalya
6 h route4 stopsBest: The sea is fine from May to October, and in October it’s still warmUpdated July 2026
The most common confusion about Antalya: the city has two very different urban beaches and neither is the postcard you’ve seen. Konyaaltı, west, is pebbles with the Bey mountains behind it. Lara, east, is sand and it’s where the big resorts are.
If you came looking for turquoise coves among pines, that’s outside the city, to the south-west. Here’s the difference, so you don’t book the hotel in the wrong place.
The route, stop by stop
4 STOPS- 01
Konyaaltı: the city’s own beach
Seven kilometres of pebbles west of the centre, Blue Flag, a long promenade and the beach park behind. This is the locals’ beach: you can walk or take the tram from the centre and it’s full of Antalya people, not only tourists.
The Bey mountains make the picture, dropping into the sea right alongside and still holding snow in spring while you swim. The pebbles are awkward getting in: water shoes or flip-flops and the problem goes away.
In exchange, the water is far clearer than on a sand beach.
- 02
Lara: sand and resorts
East, past the cliff, the coast changes and the sand appears. Lara is the big-resort beach, the Kundu strip is a row of themed hotels, and it’s where almost everyone who buys a package to Antalya ends up. There’s a public beach as well as the hotel ones, and the Lower Düden drops into the sea right here, off the cliff. The price of the sand: you’re a good twenty minutes from the old town and every trip into the centre is a taxi.
- 03
Kemer and the western coves
The good coast starts once you leave the city to the south-west. Around Kemer (Beldibi, Göynük, Tekirova) the mountain comes down to the water, pines run to the shoreline and the beaches are small pebbled inlets with clear water. It’s a different kind of trip: fewer giant hotels, more coves. Phaselis, with its three ancient harbours among the pines, falls on exactly this stretch, so you can put ruins and a swim in the same day.
- 04
Çıralı and Olympos
The antithesis of Lara and, for many people, the best beach in the province: a long pebble beach with mountains above, not a single high-rise because it’s protected, loggerhead turtles nest here, and the ruins of Olympos in the woods at one end.
The lodging is guesthouses and wooden cabins, not resorts. And up on the mountain are the Yanartaş flames for the evening.
If you have a spare day and want to see the other Antalya, it’s here.
Frequently asked
Which is better, Konyaaltı or Lara?
Depends what you want: Konyaaltı is pebbles, with cleaner water, mountains behind and a step from the old town. Lara is fine sand but a good twenty minutes from the centre, and it’s the big-resort strip.
Is Antalya’s beach sand or pebbles?
Both, depending on the side. Konyaaltı, west, is pebbles, Lara, east, is sand. For the pebbles bring water shoes, in exchange the water is considerably clearer.
Where are the best beaches near Antalya?
Outside the city, to the south-west: the pine-backed coves around Kemer, 40-60 km out, and above all Çıralı, about 80 km away, a long protected beach with no high-rises and the ruins of Olympos next door.