Lake Salda Visit

Lake Salda is a lake which is about 60 kms away from Burdur, to the west. Lake Salda is said to have similar soil qualities to that of the planet Mars. It presents a view where green and blue come together; the forest in the slopes of the mountain to the south and the deep, clean blue water of the lake. You can watch the sunrise and sunset, or have a picnic on the shores of Lake Salda, which brings the magnificent view of nature to your feet.

Kibyra

Kibyra or Cibyra also referred to as Cibyra Magna, is an ancient city and an archaeological site in the south-west Turkey, near the modern town of Gölhisar, 20 km awayf from Tefenni Province. It was the chief city of a district Cibyratis.

The first traces of the old city, which are visible when climbing a hill where Kibyra once proudly stood, are the tombs, located on both sides of the access road. These are the remains of the city necropolis, where magnificent friezes depicting gladiatorial combat were discovered. They are now on display in the Archaeological Museum in Burdur.

Systematic archaeological work aimed at the thorough study of Kibyra has been conducted continuously since 2006. Initially, it was managed by the Museum in Burdur. Since 2010, the work is coordinated by the Archaeology Faculty of Mehmet Akif Ersoy University in Burdur.  Şükrü Özüdoğru is the current director of excavations at Kibyra. Since the site is located in a challenging and vast place regarding excavation technique, the primary objective of the current work is to reveal the monumental buildings from the period of the Roman Empire. So far, the team managed to uncover a stadium, an odeon, an agora, a complex of Roman baths, and a necropolis.

Because of archaeological excavations that are being conducted on Kibyra, the situation and conditions of visiting this place may change rapidly. New structures are regularly discovered, and some places may not be available due to ongoing excavations, etc. This site will most likely become one of the tourist hits of western Turkey. Therefore, it is worth visiting it before the crowds arrive.

Sagalassos

Here is another antique city from our recent tour, but this one should be in the MUST SEE list, if you are interested in Roman and Greek archeological sites. It is located in the city of Burdur at the Toros Mountain range at an altitute of 1450 -1700 m. The ancient city, which is on UNESCO's Temporary World Heritage Site List, had one of the five ceramic production workshops of Rome. Sagalassos is generally referred to as "the favorite city of emperors" and "the city of love and desire." This year the city was visited by 22,000 people.

While it is featured on Unesco’s Tentative List, we have a feeling it won’t stay there forever, and may well be rewarded with a World Heritage status within the following years. As time progresses, huge efforts are made to bring back to its former glory what used to be the most important city of ancient Pisidia. During your visit, you will be wowed by the former city agora, bordered by the reconstructed and functioning Antonine Nymphaeum. This richly decorated fountain of monumental proportions is the showpiece of Sagalassos.

İnsuyu Mağarası

İnsuyu Mağarası (Cavern) is in the Lakes Region of the West Taurus Mountains on the highway from Antalya to Burdur, and it is 1200 m above the sea level. The cave is 11 km away from the city centre of Burdur province. The length of the cave is 597 m, and it is the first cave system officially opened to tourism. The walkable length of the cave is 525 m, and it is a visual feast of the structure of stalactites and stalagmites. There are 9 small lakes in different sizes in the cave. The biggest of those “Büyük Göl” is the largest known underground lake in Turkey.

There is a clean and cool air in the cave, and it is believed that the water of the cave is good for diabetes and gastric diseases. İnsuyu Cave has started to lose its attractive feature in recent years. Lake Dilek and Lake Gazlı dried out. Lake Büyük also lost more than half of its level. In past it was approximately 20 m deep, and it could be visited by boat until the 1980s. Now it turned into three different small lakes.