Kas is a stunning place and a must-visit when you come to Turkey. Especially if you’re in Fethiye or Antalya, make sure you budget a few days to come to Kas. Kas is nestled right in between the coast and the mountains, and has a ton to see and do. The town is picturesque and very walkable. There are a lot of out-of-this-world beaches in the area to see, as well as a ton of history from the Roman Empire and before. You can also do a day trip to Kastellorizo (Greece) which is only 20 minutes by boat. Don’t miss Kas when you come to Turkey!
🇹🇷 Things to Book NOW for Kas 👇
- Kekova Sunken City & Simena Castle Tour 🛶 (Viator)
- Rental Car 🚙 (Discover)
- Neva Kas Hotel 🏨 (Booking)
- Express VPN 🛜 (crucial – a LOT of websites are blocked in Turkey!)
Top 10 Things to Do in Kas Turkey
There is a lot to do in Kas, which can make it hard to decide what to do in the few days that you visit. Here are the top sights in the area, in the order that we would prioritize them. The ones at the top are must-do’s, and the ones at the bottom you could skip, depending on how much time you have in the area.
If you’re looking for a Sample 3 Day Itinerary for your trip to Kas, we’ve included one at the bottom of this post as well.
Here are our TOP things to do when you come to Kas… 👉
1 – Visit Kaputas Beach
This is the most epic beach in Turkey, and a must-visit when you come to Kas. If you are driving to Kas from Fethiye, about 25 minutes outside of Kas you’ll see a random spot on the coastal highway with a bunch of cars parked in the area near a huge gorge. “Why are there so many cars parked here?!” You literally can’t see the beach at all … but it’s there.
This is probably the most beautiful beach I have ever been to … anywhere in the world. The view from the top is amazing (see the photo above). Then when you head down to the beach, the water is a beautiful shade of blue. The sea is pretty rocky here so you’re gonna want sandals or water shoes.
Get there early in the morning or late in the afternoon to make sure you get a parking spot, and you’ll be graced by quite possibly the most beautiful beach in all of Turkey. When we visited the beach, we went around 6:00pm. Part of the beach was already shaded since the sun was setting, but there was still plenty of space on the sunny side before the entire beach was shaded.
The parking lots near here are known to fill up quickly in high season. We’ve found that it is easier to snag a spot when you are driving from Kas to Kaputas beach rather than the other way around, because the bigger parking lot is on the side of the mountain (not the water).
🚗 We recommend to rent a car through Discover Cars. Book your rental car here!
2 – Visit Kekova Sunken City and Simena Castle
The second thing you must do when you come to Kas, is visit the Kekova Sunken City and the Simena Castle.
The city of Simena was a small Lycian city founded around the 4th Century BC and consisted of two parts. It was an island as well as the coastal part of the mainland. (This will make sense once you see it) The coastal part of the mainland is still standing, and is where you can visit the Simena Castle, which is a beautiful castle a top the hill which has been standing for a couple thousand years! As for the island, an earthquake hit about two thousand years ago and caused the city to fall into the sea. You can visit this “underwater city” nowadays with a kayak and check out the ruins from above the sea. You can also visit via boat, but its pretty hard to see the ruins as the boats can’t dock above the underwater city. Both the kayak tour and boat tour will stop to see the Castle as well.
We did the boat tour and really enjoyed our time! We especially enjoyed climbing to the top of the Simena Castle and taking in the epic views of the surrounding islands and sea. Kelsey got to take some epic pictures that you can check out more in our Simena post.
🚣 Book Your Tour to the Sunken City and Simena Castle HERE!
3 – Sunset at Kas Amphitheatre
This is THE place to watch sunset if you stay in Kas or on the Kas Peninsula. Tons of people sit at the top of the Amphitheater every evening to watch the sunset over the hill behind the theatre. There’s usually a local playing music for everyone there, and it’s just a really peaceful way to end a day in Kas. We would say this is a must-do when you come to Kas. Depending on where you stay in the town, it’s only about a 10-15 minute walk. We were lucky enough to find parking right by the entrance, but would recommend you simply walk to avoid the hassle of people and cars nearby. As the sun sets, it does get cold so be sure to bring a sweater!
➡️ Read: ☀️ 8 Things to Do in Antalya ✨
4 – Sleeping Giant Hike
This is also a must-do when you come to Kas. The hike is about 1.2 miles up the mountain right behind Kas. It took us about 1 hour to get to the top, then 45 minutes to come back down.
The views you get from this hike are incredible, and it’s quite easy and not too long of a hike. We liked how this hike allows you to get a great view of the area. You can clearly see Kastellorizo (Greece), the Kas Peninsula, and the multiple harbors around Kas.
Walking to the trailhead from Kas will take you about 20 minutes, depending on where you are staying.
➡️ See our detailed post on how to do the Sleeping Giant Hike in Kas here. ⬅️
5 – Belediyesi Beach on Kas Peninsula
The exact location of this beach is here. This is a beautiful, calm beach where you will be staring directly at Kastellorizo (Greece). There are hardly any waves here which makes it a perfect place to relax in the water and go for a swim. The beach is rocky so bring water shoes. (like almost every beach in Kas)
This beach is open from 9 AM – 7 PM, and is free to enter. (There’s a gated entrance that closes at 7 PM) There’s a restaurant and cafe here as well to buy food and drinks. There is also a really nice grassy area right on the beach where you could picnic. We saw a big family post up here with hammocks, picnic blankets and food. You could easily spend a few hours here.
🛌 Here are all your hotel options in KAS 👈
6 – Walk the Town and Shop
Kas is known for its shopping. There are a ton of trendy, quaint, little clothing and jewelry shops in the town. Walking around at night in the town is a sight to be seen. We recommend stopping by a cafe or having some dessert in the square to pass the time. Spend some time playing with all the cats and dogs in the area!
A famous dessert place in Kas is Tatli Dükkani (Dessert Shop). Known for Baklava and plenty of other things, come here to enjoy some Turkish desserts for a fair price. We recommend you try the Pistachio Baklava!!
➡️ Read: 🪂 Top 12 Things to Do in Fethiye in 2024 ✨
7 – Buyuk Beach (Big Pebble Beach)
The closest “real” beach to town. Little Pebble Beach is technically closer but it’s hardly a “beach”. It’s really just a small swimming area. Big Pebble Beach is a decent beach to swim and watch the sunset. You can easily walk here from the town in 15-20 minutes, which many people do who visit Kas.
➡️ Read: Complete Guide to Visiting Pamukkale in 2024 🇹🇷 ✨
8 – Kastellorizo Island (Greece) Day Trip
Kastellorizo Island is only a 20 minute boat ride from Kas. (1 mile from the coast) We didn’t do this during our time in Kas because we were headed to Rhodes (Greece) by boat from Fethiye after our time in Turkey, but this would definitely be worth it if you have the time. Here is a good post on the day trip with logistics so you can decide if its worth it for you.
👉 Check out our Greece Island-Hopping Itinerary for the Cyclades! 👈
9 – Seyrek Beach
This can be paired with Kaputas Beach, as it’s only 5 minutes away. This one is much less crowded than Kaputas, and very peaceful. If you are coming from Kas, you will pass a much less crowded and smaller beach about 5 minutes before you reach Kaputas … this is Seyrek.
🚤Book the best Kas tours HERE ⬅️
10 – Kucuk Beach (Little Pebble Beach in town)
Small area to take a swim, very close to town. Not somewhere to spend a few hours, but very accessible to take a dip in the ocean if you want to!
💡 We highly recommend you have a VPN when you come to Turkey 🇹🇷, because tons of important websites (like booking.com) are blocked here. We use Express VPN and highly recommend them. Sign up for Express VPN Here! 🛜
Where to Stay in Kas
There are tons of places to stay in Kas. Kas is a small town built into a hill, so keep this in mind. It would be very ideal to get a room with a balcony where you can see the ocean. In general, Kas would be a good place to splurge for a nicer accommodation (balcony with a view of the sea) as it really is quite amazing.
There are a lot of hotels located on the peninsula, but we wouldn’t recommend it. You’re just a bit far from the town and whenever you want to eat or shop it would be a pain to come into the town. But, if you’re looking for peace and quiet, consider staying on the peninsula. You’ll definitely get more peace and quiet out there.
We stayed at Neva Kas and would highly recommend it. We paid about $60 per night. The hotel is a 5 minute walk from the center of Kas which was nice because its in a quiet area a little bit up the hill, but still easily walkable to all the shops and restaurants. The hotel comes with a beautiful breakfast served on the rooftop with a view of Kas and the sea. The rooms are very modern and new. This was by far the nicest place we stayed at in all of Turkey. Highly recommend!
Sample Itinerary for Kas
Day 1 – Visit Kaputas Beach and the Amphitheatre for Sunset
Day 2 – Sleeping Giant Hike and Belideyesi Beach (on Kas Peninsula)
Day 3 – Kekova Sunken City/ Simena Castle Boat and/or Kayak Tour
Option to switch out a day trip to Kastellorizo Island (Greece) if you don’t like one of these days planned above.
Where to Eat in Kas
Redbox Meze & Cafe – Amazing fresh food for a great price. We think this is the best value meal in Kas. A very peaceful environment a few blocks out of the chaos that is the center of town.
Dessert Shop – Amazing Baklava and other Turkish desserts
➡️ Read: 🇹🇷 The Perfect 2 Week Turkey Itinerary ✨
How to Get to Kas
Most people come to Kas from either Antalya or Fethiye, both of which have airports. There is no airport in or near Kas.
There are mini-buses that go from Fethiye and Antalya. However, we recommend renting a car and driving to get the full experience. You are no doubt going to want to stop along the way to appreciate the unbelievable views along the coastal highway.
🚗 We recommend to rent a car through Discover Cars. Book your rental car here!
From Antalya
Kas is 3 hours from Antalya. You can easily pick up a rental car at Antalya airport then drive to Kas in 3 hours.
You can also take a mini-bus to Kas from the Antalya bus station. The buses are said to leave every hour on the hour. To get from the Antalya airport to the bus station is quite easy as you just hop on the tram (right at the airport) and it takes you right to the bus station.
From Fethiye
Kas is 1 hour 45 minutes from Fethiye. The last 45 minutes of the drive along the coast are absolutely stunning. You’re driving right on the coast on the edge of the cliff overlooking the sea. There will no doubt be many spots you want to pull off and take pictures, or visit some of the beaches along the way. (You will pass the amazing Kaputas Beach about 30 minutes before you get to Kas) We rented our car from Fethiye and drove to Kas.
There are also mini-buses to Kas from Fethiye. The journey should only take a few hours.
Do I Need a Car for Kas?
This will depend on personal preference. The drive from Antalya or Fethiye will be much quicker and much more comfortable, plus you can pull off at the spots during the drive along the sea for pictures. Once you get to Kas, a lot of the spots are a bit outside of the city, so it will be inconvenient to take a bus to get to Kaputas Beach, a boat to get to Simena (Kalekoy), etc…
However if you want to save money, we recommend taking the mini-bus to Kas from Fethiye/Antalya, then renting a motor-bike for the days that you want to explore the spots outside of Kas. Plus, a motor-bike is much more convenient to get around in the streets of Kas. (very narrow and crowded) You won’t be paying the $15-$30 per day for a car that you don’t use every day, and instead will be paying the $5-$10 per day for a motorbike and only when you know you’re going to need it.
➡️ Read: Renting a Car in Turkey – Everything You Need to Know 🚗 ✨
Things to Do in Kas – Summary
Kas is probably our favorite spot to visit in all of Turkey – which is currently our favorite country that we have ever visited! The views of the coastline on the way to Kas are absolutely STUNNING. We’ve never seen anything quite like this anywhere else in the world.
Enjoy your trip to Kas!
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