Alanya General Information
Situated at the coast of the Mediterranean, Alanya is spread over a green plateau that plunges dramatically into the sea. Its glorious sandy beaches Cleopatra in the west and Orange beach in the east are several km long and are lapped with crystal clear waters.
During the first half of the 20th century Alanya was a city of agricultural, depending on the production of citrus fruits and bananas. In 1950s, Damlataş Cave was discovered and due to the refreshing air of this cave Alanya became a centre of national tourism activities. Furthermore, the tourist movement of the city gained an international dimension, improving at a great pace with the help of its historical background and natural beauties.
The most remarkable characteristic of Alanya, making it different from other tourist centres of the world and particularly from other Mediterranean cities is that the city centre has become a big holiday resort where all kinds of services and goods are available. There are lots of options for accommodation facilities, places for entertainment and shopping centres in Alanya and its vast beaches are at your service without any payments, ensuring the quality of the International Blue Flag.
Today, Alanya is one of the biggest tourist centres of the Mediterranean with its capacity over 100 thousand beds.
Weather in Alanya
A typical Mediterranean climate with hot and dry summers and mild and rainy winters dominates in Alanya. In this region, where winters mostly are like summers, the summer heat is being reduced by sea-breeze in the afternoon. The strait between Alanya peninsula and Taurus Mountains produces an air-current and releases a positive effect on the temperature.
The History of Alanya
Alanya is situated at the eastern coast of the Anatolian Peninsula. UNESCO; United Nations science, culture and art institution has nominated Alanya to be given the status of World Culture and Heritage for its magnificent monuments and historical structure. Today, the documents describing the periods of Alanya in ancient times are quite limited and it is not yet known by whom or when Alanya was founded. However, the research done in Kadıini Cave 12 km from the city centre in 1957 indicates that the first settlement in Alanya dates back to the later Paleolithic period (B.C. 20.000-17.000).
It is known that Alanya was situated between the boundaries of Pamphilya and Cilicia in the antique era. Therefore, the city is sometimes considered to be a city of Cilicia and sometimes a city of Pamphilya.
The oldest name of the city known is "Coracesium". At that time, this region was under the invasion of the Persians. During this period the city become an important centre for the Mediterranean pirates who got strong enough to resist the Roman navy. Coracesium became soon a base of the frightening pirates of the Mediterranean.
Although Antiochus VII., the king of the Syrian region, conquered the city in 139 B.C., Coracesium continued to be a home for pirates for some more time. In 65 B.C., the city became a part of Rome after a naval attack by the Roman Commander, Magnus Pompelus. After the collapse of Rome the city went under the Byzantium rule who gave the city a new name; "Calonoros".
In 1221, the Seljuk Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat seized the control of the city which he had besieged for some time. Alaaddin Keykubat had the city rebuild, made it a winter capital city of the Seljuks and gave the city the name "Alaiye". Alanya had its most brilliant era during the reign of Sultan Alaaddin Keykubat.
After the collapse of the Seljuk State in 1300, Alanya began to be controlled by the Karamanoğulları principality whose centre was Konya. In return of 5.000 gold, Karamanoğulları made Alaiye a part of the Memluk State of Egypt in 1427.
In 1471, Alaiye was made a part of the Ottoman Empire by Gedik Ahmet Pasha, who was one of the commanders of Fatih the Conqueror. The Ottomans made Alanya a part of Cyprus State in 1571. Later on the city became at first a part of the principality of Konya and finally in 1871 it became an administrative district of Antalya.
The city was given the name ‘Alanya' in 1933 with the suggestion of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, the founder of The Republic of Turkey.
