At Aventures Anatoliennes we run both. This guide sets the two side by side so that you can decide with the facts in front of you. If you are still choosing where on the path to walk, start with the Lycian Way map and sections, then come back here.
Two ways to walk it
Guided. You walk in a small group with a Turkish hiking guide who speaks the group's language. For an English-speaking group, that means a guide who speaks English. We offer two guided programmes on the Lycian Way:
- The Lycian Way: from Antalya to Kekova is a 13-day trek through the eastern part of the path. It crosses pine, cedar and juniper forests, the Göynük canyon and the passes facing Mount Olympos, and visits the ancient cities of Onobara, Olympos, Aperlai and Limyra. It ends with a boat trip over the sunken city of Kekova.
- The Lycian Way: Chimaera, Kekova & Termessos is an eight-day programme, with arrival and departure counted in. It is a selection of walks rather than one continuous line: the Chimaera flames at Çıralı, Maden Bay, Andriake, Simena and Aperlai, stages around Faralya and Ölüdeniz, and a visit to the ancient city of Termessos.
Self-guided. The Lycian Way, self-guided is a seven-day walk on the western part of the path, from Fethiye. You walk independently with a route book and GPS tracks. Village guesthouses are booked for you stage by stage, and your luggage is transferred every day. There is no guide on the trail.
The two options also cover different ground. The self-guided trip runs through the western coves and ridge villages (Ölüdeniz, Faralya, Kabak, Alınca, Gey and Patara). The guided programmes lean towards the eastern forests, bays and ancient cities, with the Faralya and Ölüdeniz stages added in the eight-day trip. If you want a particular landscape, that may decide the matter before anything else does.
What's included
The differences are clearest when you put the inclusions next to each other. Each trip page lists them in full; these are the points that matter most when you compare.
On the guided Antalya to Kekova trek, you walk with a Turkish hiking guide and your luggage is moved from one lodging to the next. The programme includes:
- accommodation in double rooms in hotels and guesthouses;
- sea transport on a wooden boat with its captain;
- mineral water with restaurant meals (roughly one bottle for three people).
The dinners in Antalya are not included. On the eight-day Chimaera, Kekova & Termessos trip, the boat return from Maden Bay to Çıralı on day two is included. For meals and the other details of each guided trip, read its page or ask us.
On the self-guided trip, the trip page lists:
- village guesthouse accommodation, booked stage by stage;
- daily luggage transfers;
- the route book and GPS tracks.
There is no guide, and the airport transfer on the last day is not included. Ask us which meals the formula covers before you decide.
Luggage transfer and daily distances
Luggage is the practical question that most walkers ask first, and the answer is the same in both formats: you carry a daypack, not your suitcase. On the guided Antalya to Kekova trek, your luggage is moved from one lodging to the next. On the self-guided trip, it is transferred daily between the guesthouses.
What changes is the effort of each day. These are the figures from the programmes.
Antalya to Kekova (guided, 13 days). Ten walking days of 3 to 7 hours each. The first half, in the Beydağları range, is the most mountainous; the end, around Kekova, is shorter and coastal, with 100 to 300 m of elevation change.
| Day | Stage | Walking time | Ascent / descent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Gedeller village, Onobara, Sarısu beach | 4–5 h | +300 / −515 m |
| 4 | Göynük canyon to Yaylakuzdere | 5–6 h | +1110 / −475 m |
| 5 | Yaylakuzdere, Mount Olympos pass, Ulupınar | 5–6 h | +925 / −980 m |
| 6 | Ulupınar, Maden bay, Çıralı | 5–6 h | +300 / −760 m |
| 8 | Olympos, Adrasan bay | 6–7 h | +730 / −730 m |
| 9 | Adrasan, Gelidonya lighthouse, Pirates' Bay | 6–7 h | +700 / −830 m |
| 10 | Kapaklı, Simena, Üçağız | 4–5 h | +100 / −175 m |
Day 4 is the hardest of the trek. Days 8 and 9 are the longest. Transfers are short and mostly serve to reach the trailhead in the morning.
Chimaera, Kekova & Termessos (guided, 8 days). The programme gives a distance for each day.
| Day | Stage | Distance | Time | Ascent / descent | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Chimaera flames, Maden Bay, boat to Çıralı | 11.1 km | 4–5 h | +350 / −570 m | Moderate |
| 3 | Andriake to Simena | 14.7 km | 4–5 h | +200 / −200 m | Difficult |
| 4 | Kılınçlı to Aperlai | 6.1 km | 3–4 h | +90 / −360 m | Moderate |
| 5 | Alınca to Faralya | 8.7 km | 4–5 h | +170 / −720 m | Moderate |
| 6 | Kirme to Faralya | 8.7 km | 4–5 h | +400 / −700 m | Moderate |
| 7 | Kozağaç to Ölüdeniz | 5.2 km | 2–3 h | +40 / −480 m | Moderate |
On day 7 a separate visit to Termessos (2.8 km, 1 h 30 to 2 h) follows. These are two separate routes, not one walk from Ölüdeniz to Termessos. The stage from Andriake to Simena is the longest in distance, and its grade is the one to keep in mind.
Self-guided (7 days). The stages are Ölüdeniz to Faralya, Faralya to Kabak, Kabak to Alınca and Alınca to Gey, followed by a day devoted to Patara. The programme does not give distances or timings for these stages in the same way.
Who each option suits
Guided may suit you if you are coming for the first time, do not want to spend your evenings working out the next day, or want the ancient sites explained as you reach them. The Antalya to Kekova programme, for example, passes through Onobara, Olympos, Aperlai and Limyra, and the guide explains each of them. It also suits anyone who likes the company of a small group.
Self-guided may suit you if you want to set your own pace, stop for a swim when the mood takes you, and are comfortable following a GPS track and a route book. The trip is designed for walkers who want to manage their own day without a guide on the trail. The seven-day format also asks for fewer days away.
A few questions can help you decide:
- Do you enjoy navigating, or would you rather not think about it?
- Would you like the history told to you, or are you happy to read about it afterwards?
- Do you want to walk with other people, or on your own schedule?
- Is your priority the eastern forests and ancient cities, or the western coves?
We do not rank one format above the other. Each trip lists a difficulty rating on its page; read it together with the daily figures above rather than on its own.
Seasons and forest-access rules
Both formats follow the same seasons. Our trips list April to June and September to October as the best months; for the Antalya to Kekova trek, autumn runs to November. For month-by-month detail on temperature, sea and daylight, see the Lycian Way by month.
Every year the provincial governorships set fire-season restrictions on entering forests, usually from May or June to the end of October. This matters most to anyone walking independently in summer and early autumn. The Lycian Way crosses two provinces; in 2026, for example, the governorships set these rules:
- Antalya province: entry to forests is banned from 1 May to 31 October 2026, except in areas listed in the circular's annex. The list includes the Geyikbayırı–Çıralı stretch of the Lycian Way.
- Muğla province: entry to listed forests is banned from 1 June to 31 October 2026. The list includes the Kayaköy–Ölüdeniz and Faralya–Butterfly Valley forests. Tourism and sporting activities may enter with the permission of the district governor and after informing the local forest directorate.
If you plan to walk on your own during the fire season, check the current year's circular for each stretch you intend to cover: each year's rules come from new circulars. The details and sources are in the month-by-month guide.
Next step. Read the trip pages for Antalya to Kekova, Chimaera, Kekova & Termessos and the self-guided Lycian Way, then write to us with your dates and the kind of day you prefer. We will help you choose.
How this guide was prepared
Trip facts (inclusions, daily walking times, distances and elevation) come from the programmes Aventures Anatoliennes runs on the Lycian Way and their day-by-day itineraries. The forest-access examples come from the Antalya and Muğla governorships' 2026 circulars, listed above.
Last updated: 22 October 2026.
