Wide, protective sandy beaches and a deep Mediterranean bay helped make Patara the wealthy capital of the Lycian-Pamphylian province during the Roman Empire. Those same attributes have attracted developers who today are eager to exploit this portion of the southern Turkish coast. Patara itself has so far resisted tourist development but hotels have been built on its periphery. (...)
Wide, protective sandy beaches and a deep Mediterranean bay helped make Patara the wealthy capital of the Lycian-Pamphylian province during the Roman Empire. Those same attributes have attracted developers who today are eager to exploit this portion of the southern Turkish coast. Patara itself has so far resisted tourist development but hotels have been built on its periphery. Most of Patara remains unexcavated, though many monuments are visible, including a bouleuterioN (council building), Roman baths, a granarium, a theater, a stone itinerarium listing distances and directions to other cities, and a Corinthian-style temple. Exposure to sand and ground water infiltration, in addition to tourist pressures and seismic activity have sped their decay.
