Bathe In The Travertines Of Pamukkale
Still to do
Walk barefoot up a hillside of white stone pools filled with warm, turquoise spring water.
The adventure
From a distance it looks like a snow-covered hill in the middle of summer. Close up, the white is stone: terraces of travertine, built up over thousands of years by mineral-rich water flowing down from hot springs above, each one holding a shallow pool of warm, sky-blue water.
Shoes come off at the bottom, and you walk up through the pools, the stone surprisingly grippy and the water warm around your ankles. At the top is Hierapolis, a Greco-Roman spa city with a huge theatre and a necropolis full of tombs. Its Antique Pool lets you swim among fallen marble columns in the same thermal water the Romans bathed in nearly 2,000 years ago.
Why it’s epic
- White travertine terraces filled with warm spring water.
- The Roman theatre and necropolis of Hierapolis.
- Swimming among submerged columns in the Antique Pool.
What it is
Pamukkale, or Cotton Castle, is a hillside of white travertine terraces formed by calcium-rich hot springs, with the ruins of the Roman spa city of Hierapolis on top. Together they're a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
How to do it
Visit from Denizli or on a long day trip from the coast. Walk up the terraces barefoot, then explore Hierapolis.
Top tip
Stay to the end of the day: the terraces turn pink and gold at sunset, and the coach tours have gone.
Need to know
- Shoes aren't allowed on the terraces, to protect them.
- Some pools are dry at times as the water is rotated.
- The Antique Pool has a separate entry fee.
Plan this trip
- Rough cost
- Under £750 per person, including flights from the UK
- Time needed
- A day
- Best time to go
- April to June and September to October
- Fly into
- DNZ airport
Entry is modest; the Antique Pool costs extra.
Make it happen
Why it’s on my list
Not done yet. If you’ve done it and have tips, tell me about it.
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