The most remote (in the south) region of the Antalya Mediterranean is Alanya - one of the most popular Turkish resorts. Our compatriots are happy to visit it, because here you can find rest for every taste and budget.
Almost in the center of this picturesque city is an unusually beautiful place created by nature without human intervention. This is Damlatas cave. Its name translates as “stone in drops” or “cave of wet stones”. It is interesting that it was discovered in the middle of the last century (1948) by accident and since then has become one of the most visited attractions in the city.
According to tourists, here you can touch the ancient history of the Earth and feel the power and strength of nature, which could create such splendor. Damlatas Cave is one of the few in Turkey that is suitable for visiting by unprepared tourists. This is due to the fact that the facility is currently under state protection.
Where is the cave located?
Damlatas cave is considered the most easily accessible of the city’s many underground caves. It is located at the foot of the fortress almost on the beach. It is interesting that Aladdin Street passes next to it, just like in a famous fairy tale. The huge pointer to the cave is impossible not to notice. The entrance to it is to the right of the pointer.
Description of the cave
Vacationers and tourists are always attracted by the mysterious and unusually beautiful caves of Turkey. Damlatas Cave is included in the list of attractions that you should definitely visit in Alanya. It is safe and free to visit by all comers. There is Damlatas cave, a photo of which you can see in this article, a hundred meters from the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. She has a natural entrance.
Despite the fact that this amazing place was discovered by one of the local residents relatively recently, experts say that her age is at least fifteen thousand years. When visitors enter the cave, it becomes apparent to them the reason the cave got its name. Passing a very narrow corridor, about fifty meters long, tourists enter a two-story cave. Already at this place you can see the magnificent rainbow formations of stalactites and stalagmites. Their age is not less than fourteen thousand years.
Gorgeous, expertly made artificial lighting of orange, red and yellow colors emphasizes this pristine beauty. Immediately there is a feeling that you are in a dungeon with countless treasures that sparkle and shimmer. In these amazing natural formations, as if eternity has stopped. Most of this fabulous beauty is concentrated in a depression, the height of which is fifteen and the width is fourteen meters. Its volume reaches two and a half thousand cubic meters.
Today Damlatas cave in Alanya is fully equipped for the reception and stay of tourists: it provides comfortable stairs and benches. In addition, all visitors can be absolutely not afraid for their safety. The walls of this cave have a thickness of about ten meters, which completely eliminates the possibility of collapse of the arch.
Exploring the cave by scientists
More recently, only locals visited Damlatas cave. But later, the rumor about this amazing dungeon spread throughout the country and even beyond its borders. A unique natural object has interested scientists. Research began, during which air samples were taken in the cave. To the surprise of the researchers, it turned out that its composition increased ionization and the amount of carbon dioxide.
In Damlatas cave, a constant temperature is maintained from + 21 to +24 ° C. Humidity is increased throughout the year: it approaches one hundred percent. Scientists came to the conclusion that nature created a unique healing microclimate inside the dungeon. As a result of research, it was confirmed that the air in this cave contains twelve times more carbon dioxide than in an ordinary place.
The healing air of the cave
Scientists continued to examine the cave, and it soon became clear that the unique composition of this air has a healing effect on people who suffer from bronchial asthma, even in very severe form. This discovery turned the cave from a magnificent landmark into a kind of Turkish health resort. Every year, a huge number of people have come here to seek healing from a serious illness from all over the country. Over time, the fame of the Damlatas healing cave spread far beyond the borders of the country and people from other countries began to come here with a variety of respiratory diseases.
How is the treatment going?
Many people travel to Alanya from around the world to undergo full treatment in the cave. Initially, patients are advised to climb the “upper floor” of the cave, so that the body is a little accustomed and adapts to the special atmosphere. After twenty to thirty minutes you can go down to the lower floor. People who have a mild form of the disease will experience significant relief in their health after several visits to an underground health resort. In some patients, asthma attacks disappear completely.
Those who suffer from chronic forms of this disease should undergo a full health course within twenty-one days. After such procedures, patients breathe without difficulty.
Contraindications
A visit to Damlatas cave is not useful for everyone. Tourists with various diseases of the heart and blood vessels may experience discomfort, malaise and heaviness in the head. Even people who do not have serious health problems find it difficult to stay in a cave for a long time because of its special microclimate.
Visiting Rules
For tourists, the cave is open daily from ten in the morning until seven in the evening. A ticket costs six Turkish liras (approximately two dollars). Payment is accepted only in cash, cards are not accepted. And if you purchased a museum card, then it is not valid in the cave.
At the entrance, tourists should read a plate that indicates that visiting the cave is not recommended for people who have heart problems. You can not touch the stalagmites and stalactites, it is forbidden to litter, talk loudly and smoke.
Damlatas cave in Alanya: how to get there?
It is easy to do. Pass by the huge sign "Damlatash Cave", located a hundred meters from the promenade is impossible. You can use public transport: bus number 4 regularly, with an interval of ten minutes, leaves from the pier. He will take travelers to the walls of the fortress, which rises above the famous famous cave. A bus ride will cost you 0.75 lire. If you wish, you can take a walk along the promenade of Cleopatra Beach.
If you decided to get into the cave, passing Alanian fortress, then you should get off the bus at the Central Market stop, go along it and turn left. There are many signs on the road, so you won’t get lost. But if suddenly this happens, contact the locals, they will be happy to explain to you how to get to the cave.
When is the best time to visit the cave?
Damlatas cave is very popular, there are always a lot of visitors here. They all want to see beautiful stalactites and stalagmites formed as a result of exposure to rocks of limestone sea water. If you want to consider them calmly and without fuss, then come to the cave in the afternoon. It is interesting that some visitors who promote health tourism bring small pillows with them on an excursion in order to take a little nap underground for health reasons.
Visitors reviews
Most of the tourists who visited the famous cave find this tour impressive. Stalactites and stalagmites make a big impression: they are very beautifully illuminated. True, lovers and connoisseurs of the caves claim that the Damlatas cave is too small and the tour is very fast. However, many people with asthma believe that visiting this place has a beneficial effect on their health and recommend that anyone who has problems with the respiratory system undergo a full healing course of healing air in this cave.
But before starting treatment, you need to visit a local doctor who will give a conclusion that you have no contraindications to treatment. If you will rest in Alanya, be sure to visit here. You already know how to get to Damlatash Cave, so you will find it without difficulty and you can compare the photo that we posted in this article with reality.