Antalya

Antalya is the closest airport, served by inexpensive flights from Istanbul. As low as $50, early booking is also available for lower prices.

By plane

Being 10 km from the city from Antalya, Antalya Airport (http://www.antaliaairport...) IATA: AYT; ICAO: LTAI caters for the charter flights full of holiday makers. Airlines that serve Antalya include: Transavia.com (http://www.transavia.com/...) and charters from Netherlands, France and Denmark, AtlasJet (http://atlasjet.com/) domestic flights, SunExpress (http://www.sunexpress.com.tr/) dozens of flights from all over Europe, Turkish Airlines (http://www.thy.com/) plenty of flights from Ankara and İstanbul-Atatürk, Aeroflot (http://aeroflot.ru/eng/ma...) daily flights from Moscow-Sheremetyevo, Ukraine International Airlines (http://www.flyuia.com/eng...) several charter flights a week from Kiev to Antalya. Britain is also represented by numerous Charter firms such as Thomas Cooks and Airtours.

As of March 2011, a taxi ride between the airport and the city centre will set you back € 18 38 TL (http://taksiyle.com/en/40814) during the day. You can also prefer transfer companies (http://transfertaxi.com) in order to avoid any scam. Other, more wallet-friendly options for the airport transportation include: Havaş buses can be used which are less expensive but more frequent, and they are departing on the hour from "Güllük PTT" 10 TL. There are public buses from the airport line 600, "Terminal-Otogar" which leave on the hour and some half hours and cost 1.75 TL. To catch the public bus from the International Terminal you have to go to the domestic terminal 300m, just turn right when you leave the International Terminal, there is a small blue "D" sign next to a larger ficus tree. The blue "D" sign next to the taxi stand in front of the International Terminal won't get you anywhere; waiting there usually attracts taxi drivers telling you truthfully: "There is no bus leaving here!" offering a ride.

To avoid taxi scams and learn routes in Antalya, you can use this up-to-date cab fare estimation tool: (http://taksiyle.com/en/antalya)

By train

The nearest train station is in Burdur, 122 km north. Although Turkish State Railways TCDD (http://www.tcdd.gov.tr) ceased to operate direct passenger trains to Burdur from Istanbul, you can still buy a ticket for Pamukkale Express, which has sleeper berths as well as a coach car. You should get off the train in Dinar station and transfer to the connecting bus provided by TCDD no extra payment other than your train ticket. Once in Burdur, all you need is to catch a minibus for Antalya, which takes one and a half hour and costs 9 TL/person one-way. All this may seem a bit of a hassle, but it is still an option if you are on a tight budget, keen on reducing your carbon footprint or hold an Inter Rail pass.

The Pamukkale Express is NOT operating as of April 2009 and it is unclear when or IF it will resume service.

By bus

The Turkish bus system is comprehensive and you can get about anywhere from anywhere. Better spend a few more liras and you will have an unforgettable journey. Ulusoy has buses with seats that resemble business class in airplanes. There are also other bus companies, including Kamil Koc, Truva and Varan. Some companies have an onboard WLAN.

Fares are low. Simply show up at the bus station “otogar” and announce your destination. From most cities, there are an overnight bus options with Antalya (http://www.antalyasitesi.com). There are regular buses destined for Anatalya that run along the coastal roads and stop at tourist towns such as Kas and Fethiye.