Photo: Ezzeldin.Elbaksawy (CC BY-SA 4.0) · Source Butterfly Valley (Kelebekler Vadisi)
One of Fethiye's natural habitats, the famous valley where butterfly species live.
View on map7 places to visit in the Fethiye district of Muğla: Butterfly Valley (Kelebekler Vadisi), Amintas Rock Tombs (Amintas Kaya Mezarları) and Saklıkent Canyon. Plan your trip to Fethiye with local food, practical tips and transport information.
Fethiye is one of the 13 districts of Muğla Province and is also the centre of the district of the same name. It is a well-known tourism centre in Türkiye and the world, and alongside world-famous bays such as Ölüdeniz it has natural beauties such as the Saklıkent Canyon. The district covers 875 km². The average altitude of Fethiye district centre above sea level is 14 metres.
History
Ancient Telmessos, believed to have been founded around the 2000s BC at Belen near today’s Fethiye, lay on the border between Lycia and Caria. After Alexander, who freed Anatolia from the Persian invasion in 333 BC, the Seleucids ruled, and later the city came under the Kingdom of Pergamon. It remained under Roman and Byzantine rule and began to be called Anastasioupolis in the 8th century. In 1282 it came under the Menteşeoğulları Principality. Over time the town took the name Meğri. In 1934 Mustafa Kemal Atatürk named it Fethiye, in memory of Tayyareci Fethi Bey, one of the first air martyrs, whose plane crashed in 1914.
Geography
Fethiye lies in the west of the Mediterranean Region. It is bordered by Seydikemer district to the east, the Mediterranean to the south, south-west and west, Dalaman district to the north-west, and Çameli district of Denizli to the north. Fethiye district, which hides the ancient city of Telmessos, lies at the eastern end of Fethiye Bay and to the south-west of Fethiye Plain.
Tourism
Fethiye, which has a beach like Ölüdeniz, is one of Türkiye’s leading tourism centres. It has diving sites such as Af Kule, and many caves have been opened to visitors. Its natural landscape also allows alternative sports such as paragliding. The ancient cities around Fethiye are Telmessos, Kaunos, Kadyanda, Tlos, Pınara, Letoon, Sidyma and Xanthos, and Fethiye Museum serves visitors with its rich collection.
History and Culture
Until the metropolitan municipality law of 2012, Fethiye was the largest district of Muğla. The district took the name Fethiye from Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1934. Museum work in Fethiye began in 1962.
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