Finike Finike which was historically known as Phoenicus is a town and a district of the same name on the Mediterranean coast 90 minutes west of the city of Antalya. Finike is located in the south of the Teke Peninsula and is a popular tourist destination best-known for its oranges, the symbol of the town. For centuries Finike, then named Phoenicus was a trading port, the main port of Limyra, the capital city of Lycia. Phoenicus was said to have been founded by Phoenicians in the 5th Century BC, and thus named after its founders. The area has been inhabited for much longer than that as archaeologists have found evidence near the town of Elmalı showing that the Teke Peninsula has been settled since 3000 BC. Trade along the coast was established first by the Persians who had relinquished Lycia to the armies of Alexander the Great. However the coast was always vulnerable to forces from Syria, Egypt and Rhodes until it was brought within the empire of the Ancient Romans and the succeeding Byzantines. These days the local economy depends on agriculture, particularly oranges and other citrus fruits. This is supplemented by income from tourism during the summertime, although due to its distance from Antalya Finike has not seen the large-scale tourism boom that has so radically changed the other coastal districts of Antalya. The port of Finike is now a yacht marina and has a small fishing fleet. The coast is rich in marine life including sea turtles and fish including local specialities red porgy Sparidae and grouper as well as other fish found along the coast including leerfish and the more widespread Mediterranean varieties such as bluefish, sea bream, sea bass, with swordfish, sardines and others found further out to sea. However the coast suffers from overfishing and many varieties of fish, including the porgy, are either in decline or have disappeared altogether. The beaches of Finike are an important nesting ground for the Caretta caretta sea turtles and the rocky parts of the coast are used by the rare Mediterranean Monk Seal.
Finike
