We came across Daylan by searching the map along the route of our trip in order to discover interesting, less known places. This method has been working for us for years and thanks to it we came across real gems, and it was no different in the case of Daylan. When we saw the delta of the river next to the town from the satellite, we knew that it was the perfect place for drone shots. What to see in Daylan? We wrote about it a bit below…
The Turkish coast may seem touristy and completely discovered, but in fact there are plenty of untrodden places there. Daylan is not very well known among foreign tourists, but it is often visited by locals. We were a bit surprised by the prices, we expected low prices from a less touristy place, and the restaurants and bars were definitely one of the most expensive of all that we saw in Turkey. If you are planning a trip and do not want to get caught by surprise, we suggest you do a good research and find out where to eat. From well-stocked shops with affordable prices, we recommend you Migros.
As we have already mentioned, Daylan is located in a river delta, which is covered with river vegetation. The atmosphere of this place reminded us a bit of Lake Skadar, and a bit of one of the places in northern Thailand, where we also stopped by the river. We are letting you know because we know that such a landscape is not a dream vacation for everyone. Bird lovers will surely be delighted, from the terrace of our guest house we watched a pair of kingfishers every day. In addition, it is worth remembering to take something for mosquitoes, which are abundant on the river!
The drive to Daylan and the lush vegetation along the way reminded us of some Madagascar landscapes as well. Fertile river soil is an excellent field for crops, which are not lacking there, one of the leading products in the area are pomegranates, the juice of which you can drink practically anywhere.
After this long introduction you can discover what to see in Daylan and its surroundings with us!
Tombs of the Kaunos Kings – What to see in Daylan?
One of the main attractions of Daylan are the ancient tombs of Kaunos, which are clearly visible from all over the town, which add even more charm to this place. The tombs are carved in the rock and, despite the age of 2,400 years, the tombs are well preserved.
One of the best places to observe the tombs is a renovated piece of the river embankment, look for Dalyan Municipality Caunus King Playground on the map. Another great option is a guest house with a terrace by the river or going to such a guesthouse for a drink or something to eat, most of them provide terraces for free for guests, and by the way there is a bar that everyone can use.
River Cruises – What to see in Daylan?
As we have already mentioned, Daylan is located in the delta of the Daylan Bogazi River and you can go there for a boat trip surrounded by river reeds. We were not tempted to go on a cruise, because we wanted to rest a bit, and we had limited time, but in the past we had the opportunity to take advantage of a similar attraction in another place and we highly recommend it!
We saw a lot of birds next to our guest house, and going deeper into the wilder areas of the delta, there are probably even more of them. Prices in Turkey are changing like crazy due to the inflation, so we will not be focusing on them. How to organize a cruise? We recommend asking at the boat harbor in the center of the town or asking your guesthouse or hotel for help, we saw many people who were picked up straight from the terraces of the guesthouse.
Izutzu Beach – What to see in Daylan?
Izutzu is a five-kilometre long beach located on a spit, on one side there is a delta of the Daylan Bogazi River and Sulungur Lake, and on the other the Aegean Sea. The sand and water there may not have a heavenly turquoise color, but we still recommend going there due to the non-commercial nature of the beach.
There is a small beach club right next to the car park, where you can rent sunbeds (20TL per person in October 2022) and an umbrella for little money, otherwise there are not many amenities and it’s just wild. This is the only restaurant in this part of the beach and it is worth knowing that they do not sell alcohol there.
The beach is also known as Turtle Beach, because of the loggerhead turtles laying eggs there. For this reason, in the season of laying eggs and hatching turtles on the beach (May 1 to October 31), a number of rules apply – it is not allowed to use the beach at night, some areas of the beach are excluded from use due to the eggs in the sand, the beach cannot be reached by car.
We very much regretted that we are practically after the season and we will not see turtles. In the 1980s, the development of mass tourism and the construction of a hotel with 1,800 rooms were planned there, fortunately, nature conservationists reacted in time, took up the fight to kept the beach intact and the investment was blocked.
Iztuzu Beach View Point – What to see in Daylan?
Daylan and Izutzu beach look the most beautiful from above, and usually you need a drone, balloon, paraglide or helicopter to enjoy such a view. In this case, the landscape can be observed from a vantage point that few tourists know about. Izutzu Beach View Point is a place with such a view that we ran out of words – one of the best viewpoints we have ever visited. Getting there by car is not the easiest, if you do not have a 4×4 car or the ability to drive on demanding terrain, it is best to leave the car at the end of the asphalt and walk about 2.5 km.
Sulungur Golu – What to see in Daylan?
In addition to the river delta, nature has also formed the Sulungur Golu Lake that connects to it, which we also recommend to visit, because the views in Daylan are stunning from literally every side. And in addition, we found a restaurant located on the campsite, which serves tasty food, large portions and at affordable prices. We are talking about Ekin Kır Evi Restoran, where we managed to try delicious grilled fish!
Kapıkargın Kükürt Kaplıcası Thermal Baths – What to see in Daylan?
We know that there are some more popular places for mud baths and thermal baths near Daylan, but we managed to find a real gem. The thermal baths we are writing about are located next to the Dalaman airport, so not so close to Daylan itself, but it’s worth the trouble!
We got there on Republic Day, it was Saturday and the entrance to the thermal baths was free – but we don’t know if this is always the case, because no one spoke English. The water there is not as hot as you might expect from thermal baths and has a strong sulfur smell. You can take a bath in the Tersakan creek and two small lakes. Apart from us, there were no tourists there, but many locals.
On the way from the thermal baths to Daylan, we stopped at the Agora restaurant and ate one of the best kebabs during this trip!
Kaunos Ancient City – What to see in Daylan?
If you have a more time you can add Kaunos Ancient City to your list of ‘what to see in Daylan’. On the same side of the river as the ancient tombs is the ancient city of Kaunos. There are not many remainings and we gave up due to visiting Ephesus, which is much more impressive.
Where to stay?
We stayed in the Midas guest house, and the price included a delicious breakfast on the hotel terrace right by the river. The walk from the guest house to the river reminded us a bit of a tropical garden, and the terrace itself was a great place to relax and watch the birds. As we have already mentioned, most of these places also have a bar, so we could easily order drinks there, but as guests of the guest house we could bring our drinks and snacks as well.
