← Runtalya Marathon·Day trip

Perge: A Roman City on the Plain East of Antalya

A flat Roman and Hellenistic city on the plain at Aksu, with a towered gate, a water channel down the main street and a stadium, easy on tired legs.

DurationDay trip
TransitTaxi or arranged car, about 15 to 17 km east of central Antalya
DepartsAntalya

After the Runtalya Marathon: Perge

The Route: Antalya → Perge (Aksu) → Antalya Logistics: A short drive east across the coastal plain. Ask your hotel to book a taxi that waits, and agree the return fare before you leave. Marathon Month: April Duration: Day trip

Antalya (Cam Piramit area) ──(15-17 km east, taxi)──> Perge, Aksu
                                                         │
Antalya hotel ◄──────────(same taxi, or flag one down)──┘

The race finishes on a Sunday, so Monday is the day for Perge. The site is flat, the paths are wide and nothing demands a climb. That matters on the morning after 42 kilometres of tarmac.

April in Antalya: the mean temperature is 16.4°C, with an average high of 21.4°C and about 48 mm of rain across the month. Shade on the site is thin, so bring a hat and water.

Getting there

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism describes Perge as about 17 km east of central Antalya, and other sources give about 15 km. Either way it is a short drive, and a taxi is the least fiddly option for sore legs. Ask your hotel whether a municipal bus or minibus serves Aksu and how often it runs. Agree a waiting time with the driver, because few taxis cruise past the ruins.

The day at Perge

The official page gives daily opening from 08:00 to 19:00, with the last ticket sold at 18:30. Check the current hours and admission at the Ministry's museum page before you go. The Roman theatre is temporarily closed for restoration, so do not plan around it.

Go early. The city was already ancient when Alexander the Great was welcomed here in 334 BC, and the Hellenistic walls date from the 3rd century BC. The south gate is the part to see first: two towers with conical roofs flank a horseshoe-shaped courtyard, and in AD 121 a triumphal arch for the emperor Hadrian was built into the courtyard's north wall.

From the gate the main street runs through the city. A long central channel with cascading pools ran down its length, which is unusual for a Roman town and easy to read on the ground even where the water is long gone. The south baths, from the 1st century AD, are among the best preserved buildings on the site, and the stadium lies just outside the walls beside the theatre.

The ground is uneven in places, with worn stone and loose gravel. Walk slowly, take the shorter loop and sit when you want to. Two hours covers the main street, the gate and the baths at a recovery pace.

Back in Antalya

Return for a late lunch. The restaurant 7Mehmet in Atatürk Kültür Parkı is listed as open from 11:00 to midnight, which suits a day with an uncertain return time. Its cookbook, 7Mehmet: Stories, Products and Recipes by Mehmet Akdağ and Sinan Hamamsarılar, is a reasonable souvenir if you want to cook the menu at home.

Getting home

Antalya Airport has AntRay and city bus services, and the correct one depends on your terminal. Check the current route and fare, and keep a taxi in reserve for an early or late departure.