Üzümlü is a small rural village surrounded by olive groves and vineyards, situated in the foothills of the Taurus mountains, just above Kalkan and Patara. A stay here offers you a real taste of traditional Turkey where life continues as it has for generations. Originally a greek village named MARGAZ and famed for its wine ‘Margazi’, the village is still renowned for its extensive vineyards from which it gets its Turkish name ‘UZUMLU’
The village combines peaceful location with breath taking views and the convenience of being only a short drive from many places of interest along the Lycian coastline. The village provides an insight into traditional Turkish life which has remained unchanged for many years. Shepherds still tend to their goats and sheep, ladies still gather wood, villagers grow their own vegetables around their houses and village life continues at a slow and steady pace.
There are a couple of local village shops (known as Markets) where you can purchase many essentials including fruit and vegetables and fresh bread. There are a handful lokantas (simple turkish restaurants) offering traditional village meals and one restaurant which specializes in delicious Pide (Turkish pizza). For those men who fancy a traditional Turkish shave, there is barber.
Uzumlu is also a perfect base from which to explore this fascinating coastline. There are the beaches of Kaputas and Patara. Kaputas is a pretty sandy bay at the mouth of a deep gorge. Patara beach on the otherhand is 16km of golden sands, backed by dunes and the Taurus mountains. It was once voted by the Sunday Times newspaper as one of the world’s best beaches. The Loggerhead turtles still nest here and so it now forms part of a protected area.
There are many fascinating archaeological sites, including: Patara, Pinara, Tlos, Letoon, Xanthos, Simena and Myra, all on the doorstep.
There are areas of outstanding natural beauty. Visit the Gorge at Saklikent, take a canoe trip down the river in the Nature reserve at Patara, or go horseriding through pine forests, over the sand dunes and along the beautiful Patara beach.
