Flights from Belfast to Dalaman
The stretch of Turkish coast where the mountains come down to the water. Greener, more dramatic and less flat than Antalya, with longer transfers to match.
- Flight time
- 4h 30mfrom BFS
- Airport
- DLMDalaman
- Season
- May to October
- Direct from Belfast
- Yes
Why this route matters from Belfast
Dalaman serves the most scenically dramatic coast reachable direct from Belfast. The Taurus mountains run right down to the sea here, so instead of a flat resort strip you get pine-covered slopes, deep bays and a coastline that is genuinely hard to build on.
The trade is transfer time. Dalaman airport sits between the resorts rather than among them, and the roads go over hills rather than around them.
Who this coast suits
Book it if you want scenery as well as a beach, you are interested in boat trips, or you want all-inclusive value with better surroundings than Antalya offers.
Look elsewhere if transfer time matters to you, or you want a short flight.
Check the transfer before anything else
From the terminal:
Sarıgerme fifteen minutes. Dalyan thirty. Fethiye fifty. Ölüdeniz around an hour. Marmaris ninety minutes, İçmeler a hundred.
Marmaris and İçmeler are the two most-booked resorts on this coast and the two furthest from the plane. That is not a reason to avoid them, but it is a reason to know before you are on the coach.
The one thing everyone gets right
The boat trips out of Fethiye and Ölüdeniz are the rare excursion that is better than advertised. A full day on a wooden gulet around the twelve islands of Fethiye bay, stopping to swim off the back in water you can see the bottom of, costs very little and is what people remember about the holiday.
Book through your hotel or on the harbour, take more water than you think, and go on a smaller boat if you have the option.
Dalyan, which is not like anywhere else
Half an hour from the airport, a river town where you eat dinner looking at Lycian rock tombs carved into the cliff face opposite, built in the fourth century BC.
Downstream is İztuzu, a long sandbar beach that is a protected loggerhead turtle nesting site, reached by river boat. In between are sulphur mud baths that people have been sitting in for two thousand years.
It is thirty minutes from the terminal and almost nobody books it.
Where to stay
- The postcard, and paragliding
Ölüdeniz
A sheltered lagoon of unlikely blue below Babadağ mountain, which is one of the best paragliding launch sites in the world. Busy, and worth it.
- A town rather than a resort
Fethiye
A working harbour town with Lycian rock tombs carved into the cliff above it and a marina full of gulets. The base for boat trips.
- Families and calm water
İçmeler
A quieter, tidier bay just beyond Marmaris, backed by pine-covered hills. Shallow water and a long promenade.
- Nightlife and marina life
Marmaris
The big one: a huge marina, a castle, a long bar street, and the busiest resort on this coast.
- River, turtles and ruins
Dalyan
Inland on a river, with rock tombs in the cliff opposite the restaurants, a turtle beach downstream and mud baths in between. Nothing else like it.
When to go
Slightly cooler and greener than Antalya thanks to the mountains, with the same long, warm sea at the end of the season.
| Month | Air | Sea | How busy |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 15°C | 17°C | Closed |
| February | 16°C | 16°C | Closed |
| March | 18°C | 17°C | Barely open |
| April | 21°C | 18°C | Opening up |
| May | 26°C | 21°C | Sweet spot |
| June | 30°C | 24°C | Busy |
| July | 34°C | 27°C | Peak, very hot |
| August | 34°C | 28°C | Peak, very hot |
| September | 30°C | 27°C | Sweet spot |
| October | 25°C | 24°C | Excellent |
| November | 20°C | 22°C | Winding down |
| December | 16°C | 19°C | Closed |
Typical averages, not forecasts. Sea temperature lags air temperature by roughly two months, which is why October often swims better than June.
Mistakes people make
Booking Marmaris and not registering the transfer. Ninety minutes over a mountain road, and İçmeler is another ten beyond that. Lovely drive, long evening.
Confusing Ölüdeniz with Fethiye. Fethiye is a working town with a marina. Ölüdeniz is a lagoon and a beach fifteen minutes away over a hill. Different holidays.
Assuming the lagoon is the swimming beach. The Blue Lagoon is a protected nature reserve with a separate entrance fee. The main Belcekız beach beside it is where most people actually swim.
Missing the boat trips. This coastline is best seen from the water, and the twelve-island trips out of Fethiye are the rare excursion that lives up to the poster.
Frequently asked questions
How long is the transfer from Dalaman to Marmaris?
Around ninety minutes, over a mountain road. İçmeler adds roughly another ten minutes.
Which is closest to the airport?
Sarıgerme, at about fifteen minutes, followed by Dalyan at half an hour. Fethiye is around fifty minutes.
Dalaman or Antalya?
Dalaman for scenery, pine-covered mountains and boat trips. Antalya for shorter transfers, flatter beaches and a bigger choice of very large hotels.
Is Ölüdeniz too busy?
In August, yes, in the middle of the day. Early mornings are a different place, and the hills above it are empty at any hour.
Before you book
- Guide
What actually fits in hand luggage
Why bags that fit at home fail at the gate, and the measurement everyone gets wrong.
- Explainer
Flight only, or a package?
What the bundle is really worth, and the protection you lose by booking the parts separately.
- 4h 40m
Antalya
Four and a half hours from Belfast to the one place in the Mediterranean where all-inclusive genuinely changes the maths rather than just the convenience.