Termessos Örenyeri

About Termessos Örenyeri

Termessos is a mountain city in the southwestern part of ancient Pisidia, the area once known as Milyas. Turkish Wikipedia places it about 30 km northwest of Antalya on the Korkuteli road, on a natural platform southwest of Güllük Dağı at an average of about 1,150 metres above sea level. Today the ruins lie inside the Termessos National Park. According to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the city was founded by the Solymians, descendants of the Luwians, one of the oldest peoples of Anatolia. Termessos entered recorded history in 333 BC, when Alexander the Great besieged it and its people defended it so strongly that it never surrendered. After Alexander's death the Ptolemies took the city. In 189 BC the Termessians captured the neighbouring city of Isinda, and were punished for it by Manlius Vulso, commander of the Roman forces in Anatolia, after the people of Isinda complained. In 71 BC the Roman Senate confirmed that Termessos, a friend and ally of Rome, was independent and could make its own laws. Nothing is known of the city in the Byzantine period and after. The site is open every day. When checked in November 2026 the Ministry listed opening hours of 08:00 to 19:00 with the ticket office closing at 17:00; hours change by season. MüzeKart is valid for Turkish citizens. Enquiries go to the Antalya Museum.