Dalyan's story begins with the ancient city of Kaunos on the opposite bank of the river. Founded on the border of Caria and Lycia, Kaunos became an important harbour city and bears traces of the Persian, Hellenistic and Roman periods.
The rock tombs
Carved into the cliffs in the 4th century BC for the city's nobles, the temple-fronted tombs are now the symbol of Dalyan and can easily be seen from the riverside.
From fishing village to holiday town
As the harbour silted up, Kaunos was abandoned and the area became a quiet village living from fishing and farming. When Iztuzu Beach was protected for loggerhead turtles in the 1980s, Dalyan became an example of nature-friendly tourism.
Çınar Sahil Hotel watches this story unfold from right on the riverbank.
