The name Patara stands for a marvellous 12 km white sandy beach which is classed as one of the most beautiful beaches in the world and for the ancient ruins of the ancient town still partly buried under the sand. The beach is also a nesting place for turtles and is therefore environmentally protected. The ancientcity of Patara, the birthplace of St.Nicholas and the port where St.Paul changed ships on his way to Tyros is in recent years being carefully excavated by Prof. FahriIşık.

Patara used to be the most important harbour of Lycia and one of the major members of the Lycian League with three votes. During its eventful history the city always had to struggle against foreign invaders and a giant sand dune. The cityharboured an Apollo oracle as important as Delphi and Delos and Alexander the Great as wellas the Roman Emperor Hadrian and his wife (just to name the most famous) had vested interests here. Today the nearby little village of Gelemiş provides simple accommodation during the season.