Stage 17 · Route 16
Aperlai to Üçağız and Simena: the Kekova shore on foot
Updated: 2026-09-07
The stage that explains the name of this site. From Aperlai the path follows the shore of the Kekova roads, rough with boulders and thorn, with the long island of Kekova and its drowned town across the channel the whole way. It arrives at Üçağız, a fishing village built on the Lycian town of Teimiussa with tombs standing at the water’s edge, and then continues two kilometres to Kaleköy, the castle village of Simena that has no road and a sarcophagus in the sea.
Aperlai to Üçağız measures 7.7 km, Üçağız to Kaleköy 2.2 km; together about three hours of walking with only 130 m of climbing but slow, awkward ground. Most people arriving from Aperlai stop for the night in one of the two villages.
Want this walked with bags moved and beds booked? Plan it with us ↓
- Distance
- 9.9 km
- Ascent
- 130 m
- Descent
- 130 m
- Time
- 3 h
- Grade
- Moderate
- Terrain
- Boulders and thorn along the shore of the Kekova roads, into the fishing village of Üçağız, then a further 2 km of rocky path to Kaleköy under its castle.
- Sleep at the end
- Pensions in Üçağız and in Kaleköy; both villages are used to walkers and both have restaurants
- Water
- Very little between Aperlai and Üçağız; village water at both ends
- Getting there
- Üçağız is on the road with a car park; taxi or transfer to Kaş in about 40 minutes. Kaleköy is reached by boat or the 2 km path
- From Kaş
- Üçağız is about 40 min by road from Kaş; this is where the Kekova boats leave from
Ghost cities on this stage
- Teimiussa — the Lycian town under Üçağız, with house-tombs standing on the shore by the harbour and a necropolis on the hill behind.
- Simena — the castle village of Kaleköy, with a Lycian sarcophagus standing in the shallows, a tiny rock-cut theatre inside the walls, and no road. Castle entry about €4.
- Kekova (Dolchiste) — the sunken city on the island opposite, visible from the path and from every boat. Swimming over it is forbidden; see why.
Highlights
- Kekova island and the sunken city across the water for the whole afternoon
- Tombs standing in the harbour at Üçağız
- The sarcophagus in the sea at Simena and the castle above it
Üçağız or Kaleköy for the night?
Üçağız has the road, the car park, more pensions and the boats. Kaleköy is the prettier place and the one with the castle, and it is reached by the path or by a short boat hop. Sleep in Kaleköy if you can: waking up under the castle with the sunken city across the water is one of the best mornings on the trail. Sleep in Üçağız if you need to be on a bus or a boat early.
Everything about the boats here, including why the tour you were sold in Kaş probably leaves from this village and not from Kaş harbour, is in our Kekova guide.
The ghost cities stage, as a package
Kaş to Limanağzı, on to Boğazcık, down to Aperlai and along to Simena is three or four days of walking through five Lycian towns, four of them without a road and one of them under water, with a bed every night. It is the section we build most often for people who write to us: bags moved by car and boat to the villages that have roads, beds in Boğazcık, Aperlai and Kaleköy, a guide for the ruins if you want one, and a boat back to Kaş at the end. Email us your dates and we will put it together.
Plan this with us
Tell us your dates, how many of you there are and how far you like to walk in a day. We reply within a day with a plan and a price from a licensed local agency — guided or self-guided, luggage moved, beds booked. No payment on this site.
Questions people actually ask
Can I swim over the sunken city from the path?
No. Kekova is a protected archaeological zone and swimming or snorkelling over the ruins is forbidden. You see them from the shore and from boats.
How do I get from Kaleköy back to Kaş?
Boat to Üçağız and then taxi or transfer by road, about 40 minutes. In season the Kekova day boats also return to Kaş.
Is there a fee for Simena castle?
Yes, around €4 for foreign visitors on the 2026 published list. The village and the sarcophagus in the sea are free.