The waters off Kalkan provide some of the best venues for scuba diving along the Mediterranean. It was off nearby Uluburun that sponge divers discovered a 14th-century-B.C. shipwreck. Several outfitters organize single or multiple days of diving, as well as a "discover scuba" day for beginners. The main reliables are Armes Travel and Tours (Armes Travel & Tours, at the harbor; tel. 0242/844-3169); Kalkan Dive Centre, a division of Aquasports over at Kalamar Bay (tel. 0242/844-2456; www.kalkandiving.com), run by a couple of experienced local divers; and Bougainville Travel (tel. 0242/836-3737; www.bougainville-turkey.com), located over in nearby Kas. A day of diving for beginners and pros starts at £25 ($50).
Canoeing along the Xanthos River is an exhilarating way to spend the day. You don't need to be a pro -- the excursion organizers design tours geared toward fun rather than physical fitness. A day tour usually includes a stopover at a mud bath and a few hours of relaxation on Patara Beach. A day on the rapids runs around 55YTL ($48/£22) per person, lunch and transfers included. These and other activities are generally planned on fixed days of the week. If you don't see a tour package that suits your needs, check around the main square or down by the harbor for tours organized by other outfitters. The canoe trip with picnic lunch costs 28€ ($41/£20) per person.
A popular activity especially suited to the area is horseback riding. The Esen Plain meets the sea at Patara where, riding through Roman ruins and sand dunes, you can imagine yourself in an ancient Greek countryside. Dardanos runs day and multiday trips from 38€ ($55/£27) per person.
