Swimming
Can you swim in Sapadere Canyon?
Usually, yes — in the natural pools beneath the waterfalls, when conditions allow and where the guide says it is safe. The water is cold in every month of the year, and that is the point.
Sapadere Canyon quick facts
- Location
- Sapadere, Alanya, Antalya province, Türkiye
- Distance
- roughly 40–45 km from Alanya, by route
- What is there
- Canyon, waterfall, wooden walkway, cold pools; Cüceler Cave is an optional stop
- Walkway
- about 750 m of boardwalk along the river
- Duration
- about 7 hours
- Pickup
- roughly 08:30–09:30
- Price from
- €33 per person, paid on the tour day
- Booking
- Online or WhatsApp, free to cancel up to 24 hours before
Where you can swim
At the end of the walkway the canyon opens into a chain of cascades and turquoise basins. The swimming happens there, in the pools beneath the falls, on the guide's say-so for the day. The walkway itself runs above fast water between rock walls; nobody swims from it.
How cold is the water?
Cold. The pools are fed by mountain springs, not by the sea, and they stay cold through August. We do not print a temperature because we do not measure one; what the operator's guests report is a gasp on the way in, a few minutes of exhilaration, and a warm rock afterwards. On a hot day it is the best thing on the coast.
Is swimming guaranteed?
No, and no honest page would say it is. After heavy rain the water rises and the guide may keep the group out; in winter conditions access can be limited. Swimming is optional and conditional — but on an ordinary summer day it is there for anyone who wants it.
What to wear and bring
The full packing list is on its own page; the families page covers children and the water.
- Swimwear under your clothes, and a towel.
- Shoes with grip — the rock in and around the pools is smooth and wet, and the timber near the falls is damp.
- A dry layer for after; the gorge is shaded and the water takes the heat out of you.
- A phone in a pocket, not in a hand, on the steps.
Children and swimming
Children who can already swim and are used to cold water go in with a parent beside them; small children paddle at the edge. The guide decides where the group may enter. Infants stay on the platforms in an adult's arms. Nothing about the pools is a pool: no lifeguard, no shallow end marked, no warm water — supervision is the parents' job.
If you do not want to swim
Most of the day is the walkway, the falls, the cave if you take it and lunch; swimming is one stop among those, for the guests who want it. Plenty of guests keep their shoes on, take the photographs and eat lunch dry. The Dim River tour adds a second cold river to sit beside in the afternoon.
Want the cold water? Book the canyon tour from Alanya, and pack a towel.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Do I need water shoes?
Shoes with grip help for the wet rock; dedicated water shoes are a comfort, not a requirement.
Is there somewhere to change?
Wear swimwear under your clothes and bring a towel — that is how the operator's guests do it.
Not answered here? Ask us on WhatsApp
Read next
What to wear and bring to Sapadere Canyon
The packing list: shoes, swimwear, layers, sun, cash — and the one rule about food and drink.
Read more →Sapadere Canyon or rafting: two different days on the water
On one day you walk beside the water and choose whether to get in; on the other the river makes that choice for you.
Read more →The best time to visit Sapadere Canyon
High summer, spring and autumn, rain and winter — when the canyon is at its best and when a tour may not run.
Read more →From the canyon journal
See the whole journalAlanya and the coast
Planning your visit
First time at Sapadere Canyon: the mistakes we watch every week
Photographs
The Sapadere Canyon tour specialist
Ready to explore Sapadere Canyon?
From 33 € per person · free hotel pickup · pay on the tour day · free cancellation up to 24 hours before.