Situated on a cliff over the Mediterranean, Antalya is surrounded by mountains. Developments in tourism, starting in the 1970s, have transformed the city into an international resort. With its airport and central location, Antalya is a gateway for the Turkish Riviera and many historical sites. In 2007, Antalya Airport's number of passengers on international flights surpassed the total amount of Istanbul Ataturk Airport and Sabiha Gökçen International Airport for the first time, officially earning the title of "the capital of Turkish tourism".

Antalya city corresponds to the lands of ancient Pamphylia to the east and Lycia to the west. Antalya has hotel accommodations, a hot climate and places to visit both in and around the city, including traces of Lycian,Pamphylian, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman architecture and cultures.

The city as a whole has grown huge now with high apartment blocks and the infrastructure such as roads and drains are struggling to catch up, but there are still areas that are very attractive indeed: Kaleiçi, with its narrow cobbled streets of historic Turkish and Greek houses is the old center of Antalya, now mainly hotels, gift shops, and many, many bars. The big new hotels such as the Sheraton are along the coast above the Konyaalti and Lara beaches, and indeed spread along the coast in both directions far beyond the city of Antalya itself.

In summer the town is heaving with tourists both from Turkey itself and sun-seeking foreigners, many from Britain and Germany and for the last few years a large number from Russia as well. On summer evenings it is too hot and humid to sleep and Antalya hums with the sound of people buzzing around on scooters or cracking open seeds and nuts with their teeth as they parade the streets with their friends and families. In winter the town is cool and quiet.