Knidos & Datça

Ancient City

At the tip of the Datça peninsula where two seas meet — an ancient port immortalised by Praxiteles’ famous Aphrodite, and a legendary sunset point.

At the westernmost tip of the Datça peninsula, on Cape Tekir where the Aegean meets the Mediterranean, Knidos was one of the ancient world’s most captivating harbour cities. With two separate harbours, it grew rich thanks to its position at the crossroads of east–west sea trade and produced scholars such as the astronomer Eudoxus and the physician Ctesias. But what truly made Knidos famous in antiquity was the Aphrodite of Knidos by the sculptor Praxiteles: the first statue to depict the goddess entirely nude, it was so renowned that people sailed from afar just to see it.

Today, among the ruins at the peninsula’s tip you can wander two theatres, temples, colonnaded streets, the round foundation of the temple of Aphrodite and the slopes overlooking the harbour. At this far point, marked by the Deveboynu Lighthouse, watching the sun set between two seas is an unforgettable experience. Datça, crossed on the way to Knidos, is a discovery in itself, with its clean air, almond and olive groves, the stone houses of Old Datça and quiet coves. Datça is reached from Bodrum by ferry or by road; the peninsula is a favourite of those seeking to escape the crowds.