Alanya

Alanya is a seaside resort in the southern Mediterranean coast of Turkey, 135 km east of Antalya. It is located in the area bordered between the Taurus Mountains and Mediterranean Sea. Alanya is called the pearl of the Turkish Riviera and it has become a well-known holiday resort worldwide mostly because of its clean beaches, crystal deep blue water and wonderful climate.

With it's natural beauty, historical attractions, Alanya has become a popular spot for tourists. Alanya plays a big role in Turkey´s tourism sector and foreign purchases of properties.

The History of Alanya

The first settlement in Alanya dates back to Paleolithic age, 20 000 years ago. The first historcal name of Alanya was Coracesium, which was mentioned in the 4th century BC and that time it was a reagion under invasion of the Persians. This city became very important center of the Mediterranean pirates got really strong to resist the Roman navy. In 67 BC, the time of piracy had finished and the land had became a part of Rome after their attack. The last Queen of Egypt, Cleopatra, once had met Mark Antony and fell in love. They got married in Coracesium in 32 BC and Mark Antony gave this land to Cleopatra as a wedding gift.

The city's name changed to Kalonoros which ment “beautiful mountain” under the Byzantine Empire. The city resisted the Arabian raids in the 7th century by strengthening the walls surounding the castle. One of the lords of the Latin Empire that conquered Istanbul in 1204, took the control of Kalonoros. In 1221, the Seljuk Sultan Alaeddin Kayqubad seized the control of the city and had it reconstructed. Kayqubad had built many project, including city walls, cannons, the red tower, gardens and pavilions outside the walls and a lot of his work can still be seen in the city. Before he had died, he gave the city it's name Alaiye.

Alaiye

This city had the most brilliant era during the reign of Sultan Alaeddin Kayqubad and after the collapse of the Seljuks in 1293, it began to be controlled by Karamanids dynasty. They made Alaiye a part of the Memluk State in Egypt in 1427 to 1472. The Ottomans designated this city as a part of newly conquered province of Cyprus in 1571. In 1864 it was within the borders of Konya and later part of Antalya and in 1871 an official administrative part of Antalya.

After World War I, Alanya was given to Italy by an agreement in 1917 and in 1923 it returned to the Republic of Turkey. The city was given the name Alanya with a suggestion of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1935. It got its name by mistake of a radio officer that translated the Morse symbols for ''Alaiy'' wrongly into ''Alanya''. Atatürk enjoyed the sound of it that much that the mayor decided to call the city Alanya.

Alanya

Alanya is an agricultural city with citrus fruits and bananas in the first half of the 20th century and it became a center of national health tourism in the 1960s thanks to the Damlatas Cave. Today, Alanya is one of the biggest tourist centers of the Mediterranean. Alanya has lots of option for accommodation, facilities, places for entertainment and shopping and certified Blue Flag beaches.