Kas is a small seaside town with a bustling centre chock-filled with colourful souvenir shops, eateries, rustic cafes and bars. It has a very relaxed, carefree "Mediterranean" atmosphere and also, a curious mix of past and present.

The earliest history of Kas is unknown, but there was a Lycian settlement (Habesa) here and later the Helenistic port of Antiphellos. During Roman times, Antiphellus was the principal port of the region, wealthy from its thriving trade in cork, timber and sponges.

The Lycian sarcophagus, with its lion motif, that stand in Uzun Carşı Caddesi has become the town’s emblem. Just to the north there are Lycian rock tombs, one built to resemble a house and featuring a facade decorated with carving of twenty-four dancing girls. At night these tombs are floodlit and make a splendid backdrop to the town.

Hellenistic remains include the theatre, whose twenty-six rows of seats give spectacular views over the sea to the island of Meis (also known as Kastellorizo), an angora, some underground grain stores, and fragments of the defensive walls of Antiphellos.

Not far from Kas is Kekova island, off which lie the submerged ruins of a Byzantine city. The ban on diving there is strictly enforced, but they are clearly visible from a boat. It is possible to snorkel off the beach, slightly to the west of the main ruins, where a Byzantine chapel stands on the shore and fragments of other buildings can be seen beneath the water.

Overlooking the ruins from the mainland is the tiny farming and fishing village of Ucagiz. Sadly there is nothing left to see here of ancient Teimussa, but it makes a pleasant lunch stop with its many shore-side restaurants, ready to wave you ashore.

Opposite the approach to Kekova is Kale (ancient Simena). The ramparts of the Roman castle, high on the hilltop, conceal a 300 seat theatre carved into the steep rock face. Other ruins scattered nearby include temples, public baths, some tombs and sarcophagi.