Sapadere Canyon

Forty-four kilometres inland from Alanya, a narrow cleft runs into the mountains. The rock walls on either side rise close to four hundred metres, and at the bottom walkways of steel and wood follow the water inwards. About three hundred metres from the entrance a waterfall comes into view. Look up and the sky is reduced to a thin strip. In 2022 a 3,358-metre ecotourism trail was opened along the stream as well.

The canyon opens above the village of Sapadere, which gave it its name. The village is known for an old water mill and a workshop where silk is woven, and our tour stops there before the canyon. The banana groves on the slopes are part of the drive up from the coast.

The path you walk inside the canyon is not fixed permanently into the rock: the walkways are built from steel and wooden sections that can be taken apart. The canyon stays as it is, and you pass along its floor. Between walls approaching four hundred metres, the waterfall you come to is the first big stop of the walk.

In 2022 Alanya Municipality added a new path to the valley: a 3,358-metre ecotourism trail along the Sapadere stream, extending an earlier one-and-a-half-kilometre path. Walking it end to end takes around three hours, which makes it a separate day out for anyone who wants to see the canyon beyond the walkway.

On our Sapadere tour the canyon entrance ticket is included. There are stops at a banana grove and in the village, where the silk house is a stop with products for sale. You get an hour in the canyon to walk and swim, and lunch is by the stream. Cüceler Cave is optional.

• 44 km from Alanya
• Walls ~400 m high
• 2022: 3,358 m trail