Antalya facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Antalya
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Metropolitan municipality
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| Nickname(s):
Capital of Tourism
(Turkish: Turizmin Başkenti) |
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 Antalya
Location in Turkey
Antalya
Location in Mediterranean
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| Country |  Turkey |
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| Region | Mediterranean | |
| Province | Antalya | |
| Government | ||
| • Type | Metropolitan municipality | |
| Area | ||
| • Metropolitan municipality | 20,591 km2 (7,950 sq mi) | |
| • Urban | 1,417 km2 (547 sq mi) | |
| Elevation | 30 m (100 ft) | |
| Population
(2019)
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| • Urban | 1,344,000 | |
| • Metro | 2,619,832 | |
| • Metro density | 122/km2 (320/sq mi) | |
| Demonym(s) | Antalyalı | |
| GDP | ||
| • Metropolitan municipality | ₺ 506 billion US$ 31 billion (2022) |
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| • Per capita | ₺ 192,980 US$ 11,643 (2022) |
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| Time zone | UTC+3 (TRT) | |
| Postal code |
07010 to 07320
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| Area code(s) | (+90) 242 | |
| Vehicle registration | 07 | |
| Website | ||
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Antalya is a large and lively city in Turkey. It is the fifth-most populated city in the country. Antalya is known as the "capital of tourism" in Turkey. It is a very important part of the Turkish Riviera, a beautiful coastline.
The city is located on the southwest coast of Anatolia, with the Taurus Mountains behind it. Over 2.6 million people live in its wider area. This makes it the biggest city in Turkey's Mediterranean Region, right by the Mediterranean Sea.
Antalya was founded around 200 BC by King Attalus II of Pergamon. It was first called Attalia. Later, the Romans took over, and the city grew. Many new buildings were made, like Hadrian's Gate. Over time, Antalya was ruled by different groups, including the Seljuk Empire and the Ottoman Empire. After World War I, Italy occupied the city for three years. But it was taken back by Turkey during the Turkish War of Independence.
Antalya is Turkey's largest international beach resort. Many new buildings and government support have made it a top place for tourists. In 2023, over 16.5 million foreign visitors came to Antalya. This makes it the fourth-most visited city in the world.
Contents
What's in a Name?
The city was first called "Attaleia." It was named after its founder, King Attalos II of Pergamon. This name changed over time in Turkish to Adalia, and then to Antalya. The name is still used in Greek today.
A Look Back in Time
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King Attalus II of Pergamon founded Antalya around 150 BC. It was called Attaleia or Attalia in his honor. The city was an important naval base for his ships. Some discoveries in 2008 suggest that Attalea might have been built on an older town from the 3rd century BC.
In 133 BC, Attalea became part of the Roman Empire. This happened when King Attalus III left his kingdom to Rome. The city grew and did very well during Roman times. It was part of the Roman area called Pamphylia Secunda.
Christianity began to spread here in the 1st century. Paul of Tarsus and Barnabas visited Attalea. This is written in the Acts of the Apostles.
In the 13th century, the Seljuk Turks took over the city. They built the first mosque in Antalya. The city was also briefly ruled by Cyprus. The famous Arab traveler Ibn Battuta visited Antalya between 1335 and 1340. He wrote that it was a very beautiful and busy city. He noted that different groups of people, like Christians, Greeks, and Jews, lived in their own walled-off areas.
Later, the Ottoman Empire took control in 1391. This brought peace and stability for about 500 years. In the 19th century, Antalya was known for its cotton factories.
In the early 20th century, more people moved to Antalya. Many Muslim refugees came from the Caucasus and the Balkans. The city's port was very important for trade. Antalya exported things like wheat, livestock, and timber. It imported manufactured goods.
After World War I, Italy occupied Antalya for three years (1919-1922). But Turkey took it back during the Turkish War of Independence. Since the 1970s, Antalya has grown a lot. It changed from a quiet town into a big city, mainly because of tourism.
Antalya hosted the G-20 summit in 2015 and the EXPO 2016.
Where is Antalya?
Climate
Antalya has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate. This means it has hot, dry summers and mild, rainy winters. Even with rainy winters, Antalya is very sunny. It gets almost 3,000 hours of sunlight each year.
It rarely snows in Antalya. The highest temperature ever recorded was 45°C (113°F) in July 2000. The lowest was -4.6°C (23.7°F) in February 1950. The sea temperature is usually around 16°C in winter and 27°C in summer.
| Climate data for Antalya (1991–2020, extremes 1930–2023) | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 23.9 (75.0) |
26.7 (80.1) |
28.6 (83.5) |
36.4 (97.5) |
41.7 (107.1) |
44.8 (112.6) |
45.0 (113.0) |
44.6 (112.3) |
42.5 (108.5) |
41.2 (106.2) |
33.0 (91.4) |
25.4 (77.7) |
45.0 (113.0) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 15.0 (59.0) |
15.9 (60.6) |
18.4 (65.1) |
21.8 (71.2) |
26.4 (79.5) |
31.6 (88.9) |
34.9 (94.8) |
34.9 (94.8) |
31.7 (89.1) |
27.3 (81.1) |
21.6 (70.9) |
16.7 (62.1) |
24.7 (76.5) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 9.8 (49.6) |
10.8 (51.4) |
13.1 (55.6) |
16.4 (61.5) |
20.9 (69.6) |
25.7 (78.3) |
28.9 (84.0) |
29.0 (84.2) |
25.6 (78.1) |
20.9 (69.6) |
15.3 (59.5) |
11.4 (52.5) |
19.0 (66.2) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 5.9 (42.6) |
6.5 (43.7) |
8.3 (46.9) |
11.3 (52.3) |
15.7 (60.3) |
20.1 (68.2) |
23.4 (74.1) |
23.7 (74.7) |
20.1 (68.2) |
15.9 (60.6) |
10.7 (51.3) |
7.5 (45.5) |
14.1 (57.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −4.3 (24.3) |
−4.6 (23.7) |
−1.6 (29.1) |
1.4 (34.5) |
6.7 (44.1) |
11.1 (52.0) |
14.8 (58.6) |
13.6 (56.5) |
10.3 (50.5) |
4.9 (40.8) |
0.0 (32.0) |
−1.9 (28.6) |
−4.6 (23.7) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 210.6 (8.29) |
112.7 (4.44) |
94.5 (3.72) |
63.1 (2.48) |
37.0 (1.46) |
10.1 (0.40) |
4.0 (0.16) |
5.0 (0.20) |
22.0 (0.87) |
76.6 (3.02) |
152.2 (5.99) |
262.2 (10.32) |
1,050 (41.34) |
| Average precipitation days | 11.50 | 9.60 | 7.60 | 6.43 | 4.97 | 2.13 | 0.67 | 0.60 | 1.93 | 4.87 | 7.07 | 10.00 | 67.4 |
| Average snowy days | 0.13 | 0.38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.13 | 0.64 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 65.8 | 64.8 | 65.4 | 67.4 | 66.8 | 59.6 | 58.0 | 59.7 | 59.7 | 60.4 | 63.6 | 68.0 | 63.3 |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 151.9 | 161.0 | 201.5 | 231.0 | 291.4 | 330.0 | 344.1 | 325.5 | 273.0 | 232.5 | 177.0 | 145.7 | 2,864.6 |
| Mean daily sunshine hours | 4.9 | 5.7 | 6.5 | 7.7 | 9.4 | 11.0 | 11.1 | 10.5 | 9.1 | 7.5 | 5.9 | 4.7 | 7.8 |
| Source 1: Turkish State Meteorological Service | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: NOAA (humidity, 1991-2020), Meteomanz(snow days 2000-2023) | |||||||||||||
| Climate data for Antalya | |||||||||||||
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average sea temperature °C (°F) | 17.7 (63.9) |
16.8 (62.2) |
17.2 (63.0) |
17.9 (64.2) |
21.1 (70.0) |
25.1 (77.2) |
27.8 (82.0) |
28.8 (83.8) |
27.4 (81.3) |
24.7 (76.5) |
21.1 (70.0) |
18.8 (65.8) |
22.0 (71.7) |
| Average Wind Speed m/sec (Kph) | 3.5 13 |
3.4 12 |
3.3 12 |
2.8 10 |
2.6 9.4 |
2.9 10 |
2.8 10 |
2.6 9.4 |
2.7 9.7 |
2.7 9.7 |
2.7 9.7 |
3.1 11 |
2.9 10 |
| Mean daily daylight hours | 10.0 | 11.0 | 12.0 | 13.0 | 14.0 | 15.0 | 14.0 | 14.0 | 12.0 | 11.0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 12.2 |
| Average Ultraviolet index | 2 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 5.9 |
| Source #1: NCEI(Wind speed) | |||||||||||||
| Source #2: Weather Atlas | |||||||||||||
| Source #3: Average sea temperature: | |||||||||||||
How Many People Live Here?
In 2010, the city had over 1 million people. As of October 2022, about 120,000 foreigners live in Antalya.
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1530 | 3,450 | — |
| 1811 | 8,000 | +131.9% |
| 1870 | 11,000 | +37.5% |
| 1889 | 25,000 | +127.3% |
| 1911 | 25,000 | +0.0% |
| 1927 | 17,000 | −32.0% |
| 1935 | 23,000 | +35.3% |
| 1940 | 25,000 | +8.7% |
| 1945 | 26,000 | +4.0% |
| 1950 | 28,000 | +7.7% |
| 1955 | 36,000 | +28.6% |
| 1960 | 51,000 | +41.7% |
| 1965 | 72,000 | +41.2% |
| 1970 | 95,000 | +31.9% |
| 1985 | 258,139 | +171.7% |
| 1990 | 378,208 | +46.5% |
| 2000 | 603,190 | +59.5% |
| 2007 | 775,157 | +28.5% |
| 2010 | 1,001,318 | +29.2% |
What Does Antalya Make?
Antalya is a major center for tourism. In 2012, it attracted 30% of all foreign tourists visiting Turkey. In 2022, 13.4 million foreign tourists arrived by air.
The city also produces many farm goods. These include citrus fruits, cotton, cut flowers, olives, and bananas. Shipyards in Antalya build pleasure yachts.
Corendon Airlines and SunExpress have their main offices in Antalya.
City's Look and Feel
Most of Antalya's old buildings are from the medieval Seljuk period. These include mosques, schools (madrasahs), and baths. The old city, called Kaleiçi, has narrow, cobbled streets and historic Ottoman-era houses. It has been restored and is now full of hotels, bars, and shops.
Kaleiçi is surrounded by two walls, one along the sea. These walls were built over many centuries. The historic harbor is also in this part of the city. Cumhuriyet Square is the main square, popular with both tourists and locals.
Antalya has beautiful beaches like Konyaaltı and Lara. The mountains of Beydağları and Saklikent are used for winter sports.
Historic Sites in the City Center
- Hadrian's Gate: Built by the Romans in the 2nd century. It honors Emperor Hadrian.
- Hıdırlık Tower: An ancient tower that offers great views.
- İskele Mosque: A mosque from the 19th century, near the marina.
- Karatay Medrese: An old Islamic school built in 1250.
- Kesik Minare (Broken Minaret) Mosque: This building was once a Roman temple, then a Byzantine church, and finally a mosque.
- Tekeli Mehmet Paşa Mosque: An 18th-century mosque.
- Yat Limanı: The city's harbor, dating back to Roman times.
- Yivli Minare (Fluted Minaret) Mosque: Built by the Seljuks. Its unique minaret is a symbol of Antalya.
- Murat Pasha Mosque: A historic Ottoman mosque.
- Aya Yorgi Church (Saint George Church): An old church now used as a museum.
- Saint Alypius Church: A small, historic Greek Orthodox church that is still used today.
- Sultan Aladdin Mosque: Built as a Greek Orthodox church in 1834, it became a mosque in the 1950s.
- Ahi Yusuf Mosque: A very old mosque, possibly built in 1249.
- Ahi Kizi Masjid: A historic small mosque in the old town.
- Kara Molla Masjid: A tiny historic mosque from the 14th century.
- Balibey Mosque: Built by the vizier Bali Pasha.
- Müsellim Mosque: A small historic mosque built in 1796.
- Antalya Synagogue: A historic Jewish house of worship, now a house.
- Mevlevihane (Dervish lodge museum): A former Dervish lodge that is now a museum about Dervishes and Sufism.
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Hadrian's Gate
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Yivli Minare
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Antalya Karatay Medrese
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Kesik Minare
Main Sights
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- Akdeniz Kent Parkı
- Antalya Aquarium
- Arapsu Bridge
- Atatürk Culture Park
- Düden Waterfalls
- Heart of Antalya
- Karaalioglu Park
- Konyaaltı Beach
- Tünektepe
Green Areas and Fun Places
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Antalya has many parks and natural areas for people to enjoy. These include city forests, parks, and areas around lakes.
Some main green areas are Antalya City Forest, Atatürk Park, and Kepez City Forest.
The biggest amusement park is Aktur Park. There are also three water parks, and the Konyaaltı and Lara beaches are great for summer. In winter, you can ski at Saklıkent.
Protected nature areas include Güllük Mountain National Park and Mount Olympus National Park. You can also visit the Düden and Kurşunlu Waterfalls. Other natural spots are the Damlataş and Karain Caves, and the Guver Cliff.
You can find many picnic spots around the city. There are also rafting facilities at Köprülü Kanyon. The Feslikan Plateau offers nature walks and sports.
Antalya also has many modern shopping centers. These offer places to relax and shop. Some of the main shopping centers are Antalya 5M Migros, Terra City, and Mall of Antalya.
Sports in Antalya
Antalya's football team, Antalyaspor, plays in the top league, the Süper Lig. Their home stadium is Antalya Stadium, which can hold 33,000 fans.
The city hosts many international sports events. This is because of its long period of warm weather. Since 2006, part of the Archery World Cup has been held here. Antalya also hosted the European Weightlifting Championship in 2012 and the World Kickboxing Championships in 2013.
Since 2010, a long-distance running race called the Lycian Way Ultramarathon takes place here. Runners follow the historical Lycian Way for about 220-240 km over six days.
Learning in Antalya
Akdeniz University is in Antalya. It has over 60,000 students and 4,000 staff members.
Culture and Food
Delicious Food
Antalya has its own special dishes. These include:
- Piyaz: Made with tahini, garlic, walnuts, and boiled beans.
- Şiş köfte: Spicy meatballs cooked on a stick.
- Hibeş: A spicy dip with cumin and tahini.
- Tandır kebap, domates civesi, and şakşuka.
- Cold Mediterranean dishes made with olive oil.
A local snack is tirmis, which are boiled lupin seeds. "Grida" (also called Lagos) is a common fish in local meals.
Festivals and Events
- Antalya Golden Orange Film Festival: A national film festival held in autumn.
- Kaleiçi Old Town Festival: Held in October.
- Miss Aura International: A beauty pageant.
- Sandland: A sand art festival at Lara Beach.
Museums to Visit
- Antalya Ethnographic Museum: Shows Antalya's culture, clothing, and old buildings.
- Antalya Museum: Houses many important historical items.
- Antalya Toy Museum: Opened in 2011, it has a collection of toys.
- Atatürk's House Museum: The house where Mustafa Kemal Atatürk stayed.
- Bir Zamanlar Antalya Müzesi: Shows items and documents about Antalya's modern history.
- Kaleiçi Museum: Opened in 2007, focusing on Mediterranean cultures.
- Kepez Araba Müzesi: Displays historical vehicles.
- Kepez Open Air Museum: Has small models of famous buildings in Turkey.
- Mevlevihane Museum: A former Dervish lodge with Sufi and Islamic cultural items.
- Suna & İnan Kıraç Kaleiçi Museum: Another ethnographic museum.
Getting Around Antalya
You can reach Antalya mainly by air and land. The city has a main port for sea travel. In 2007, the airport added a new terminal.
Buses
Antalya has a network of minibuses called Dolmuşes. The city also has a public bus system run by Antalya Ulaşım. You can pay for public transport using a special card called Halkkart.
Light Rail
A tram system opened in 1999. It runs through the city center, passing by Hadrian's Gate.
In 2009, a light rail line called Antray opened. It connects the city center to suburban areas and the zoo. An extension to the Airport and Expo 2016 site was finished in 2016.
Main Roads
Antalya is the end point of European route E87. This road connects to other cities in Turkey and countries like Bulgaria and Ukraine. It is also the end of Turkish Highway D650.
Airport
Antalya Airport has two international terminals and one domestic terminal. In 2020, it became the "capital of Turkish tourism" because it had more international passengers than Istanbul's airports.
City Friends Around the World
Antalya is twinned with these cities:
Famous People from Antalya
- Tarık Akıltopu, architect, historian, poet, writer
- Cafercan Aksu, football player
- Athenaeus of Attalia, a doctor from the 1st century AD
- Michael Attaliates a Byzantine lawyer from the 11th century
- Attalus II Philadelphus King of Pergamon and the founder of Attalia
- Deniz Baykal, a former political leader
- Yağmur Sarıgül, musician and composer for the band maNga
- Ahmet Sendil, music producer and DJ
- Ahmet Sonuç, video game streamer known as Jahrein
- Musa Uzunlar, actor
- Burak Yılmaz, football player
- Levent Yüksel, musician and composer
Images for kids
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Statue of the Roman emperor Hadrian in the Antalya Museum
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A panoramic view from Karaalioğlu Park with Historic Hıdırlık Tower
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Mark Antalya shopping center
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Antalya Aquarium
See Also
In Spanish: Antalya para niños
