Oludeniz

Oludeniz (Dead Sea), 8.5km southeast of Fethiye, is not devoid of life like its biblical namesake. Rather, it is a sheltered lagoon hidden from the open sea. The scene as you come down from the pine hills is absolutely beautiful: in the distance open sea, in the foreground a long strip of sandy beach. Ruining the scene somewhat is the tightly packed belt of hotels behind the beach. Oludeniz, the lagoon, and Belcekiz, the nearby beach resort, used to be one of the highlights of independent travel in Turkey, but tourism development in the direction of identical aircon hotels, loud bars and overpriced restaurants haven’t bolstered its appeal.

The beach is very much the center of things. To your right, on the road from Fethiye, you pass a jandarama post, a PPT and the entrance to the lagoon. The road continues behind the park to several camping grounds and expensive hotels. To your left as you drive, the beach promenade is closed to traffic and backed with restaurants and a tightly packed cluster of hotels. To the east the road passes through the beautiful Kidrak Forest Park.