Ancient Lycian road now has detailed map

Within the scope of the “Ancient Lycian Roads Map and Trekking Guide Project,” a detailed map of the Ancient Lycian Road has been drawn by the Antalya Governor’s Office and Culture and Tourism Directorate.

The road starts from the popular tourist town of Fethiye in the western province of Muğla and ends in the southern province of Antalya’s Hisarçandır village.

The road was established by the Lycians in 2000 B.C. and later used by many other civilizations, including the Romans. The historic route has so far only been used by professional outdoor sportsmen, but the directorate hopes it will now regain its former glory. The facilities, trekking routes and paths to the mountain are marked one by one in the map, which will allow tourists and nature lovers to travel on the route easily.

Culture and Tourism Provincial Director Ä°brahim Acar said the Teke peninsula was named Lycia in history, and the coastal cities were all connected through the roads of the time. With the project, he said the paths between the Lycian cities had been marked and the Ancient Lycian Road had come to light again.

Acar described the map, which has been approved by the Defense Ministry and the Tourism Ministry, as “a first of its kind,” adding that the main purpose of the project was to promote cultural values in rural areas as an alternative to coastal tourism. “With this map, visitors will be able to see the mountains easily by following the route,” he said.

“Besides cultural promotion, people living on the route of the ancient road will have chance to sell their natural products like milk, yoghurt, molasses to trekkers and contribute to their budget,” he added.
Some 8,000 copies of...