One of the best-preserved Roman theatres in the world, Aspendos was built in the 2nd century AD and still hosts performances today — its acoustics so exceptional that a whisper from the stage carries to the highest tier. The 15,000-seat theatre stands within a broader ancient city complex including an aqueduct, agora, and basilica. Aspendos is roughly 50km east of Antalya city and easily reached by organised day trip or private transfer. The site is striking in the golden light of late afternoon, when the ochre stone glows and the mountains form a backdrop that no set designer could improve upon.

The Duden River cascades over limestone cliffs into the Mediterranean at two sites within easy reach of Antalya. The lower falls plunge directly into the sea from a cliffside park — you can walk behind the curtain of water on a wooden walkway, the spray catching the sunlight in miniature rainbows. The upper falls, set in a park inland, are a popular local picnic spot. Boat trips from Antalya's old harbour include the lower falls in their coastal circuit, making them a natural complement to a morning on the water along the Turquoise Coast.

Built in 130 AD to honour the Roman Emperor Hadrian's visit to Antalya (then Attaleia), this triple-arched marble triumphal gate is the most celebrated monument in the old city. Remarkably well-preserved, its carved reliefs and grooved columns stand in the middle of the modern city, where it serves as the entrance from the bazaar district into Kaleici. The gate is free to visit and best approached on foot through the adjacent bazaar, arriving as the locals do — from the old city side.

Antalya's old town is one of the Mediterranean's most charming historic districts — a harbour of Roman origins ringed by Ottoman-era mansions, many now converted to boutique hotels and restaurants. Narrow cobbled streets wind past ancient walls, Byzantine-era churches, and the 13th-century Yivli Minaret. The old harbour itself — yachts moored in a natural rock basin below the city walls — is particularly atmospheric in the evening. Kaleici is a pleasant half-day excursion from the coastal resort strip and a very different experience from the all-inclusive environment.