Kemer is a seaside resort and district of Antalya Province on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey, 40 km (25 mi) west of the city of Antalya.
Kemer is on the Gulf of Antalya, 53 km (33 mi) of sea coast with the skirts of the western Taurus mountains behind. The coast has the typical Mediterranean hot, dry weather and warm sea. Until the early 1980s this was a quiet rural district but today the town of Kemer and coastal villages in the district play a very important part in tourism in Turkey.
History
Research shows only that Kemer was the Lycian town of Idryos.
Kemer was called Eski Köy (old village) until in 1916 - 1917, a 23 km (14 mi) long stone wall was built to channel the mountain stream water and protect the town from flooding, which until then had been a persistent problem. The name Kemer refers to those walls.
Until the 1960s there was no coast road and the district was accessible only by boat. Then a road was built and from the 1980s onwards this was followed by a great investment in infrastructure, planned by the state and funded by the World Bank, aimed at developing a large tourist trade.
Tourism in Kemer
One of the major attractions of Kemer is its natural beauty; sea, mountains and pine forest combine in harmony. The shore from Beldibi to Tekirova consists of unspoilt beaches in bays of various sizes, mostly stoney rather than sand. With easy transportation, good communication and other municipal services Kemer has a large proportion of the hotel bed capacity of the Antalya region, and is a comfortable and peaceful holiday coast with internationally accepted reputation, attracting large numbers of visitors from countries such as Germany, The Netherlands and in recent years predominantly families from Russia. Many of the visitors come as part of low-cost all-inclusive package deals but tourism is still the mainstay of the local economy. There are so many visitors that most shops in Kemer are set up to sell things like leather jackets to overseas visitors and trade in the euro as well as the Turkish lira.
Turkiz Kemer Marina Kemer's 320 berth marina offers several restaurants for the tourists as well as being an important wintering-over marina for liveaboard sailors from the USA, England and most of Europe.
Goynuk Canyon, Ulupınar, Olympos, Chimera, Phaselis, Three Islands and Eco Park are the touristics points of Kemer Region.
The town of Kemer is vibrant with clubs, bars and restaurants, blue flag beaches and a 320 capacity yacht marina. Popular coastal villages include Beldibi, Kiriş,
Cayova, Aslanbucak, Kuzdere, Beycik, Camyuva, Goynuk, and Çıralı.
Annual events in the area include art exhibitions in Phaselis, boat races, WRC (World Rally Championship), Turkey Offshore Championship, Turkey Motocross Championship,
Phaselis Art Festival, and Kemer Carnival. International pop stars and Djs, such as Tarkan and Dj Tiesto, give summer concerts on this coast.
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