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Ocean Calling

Ocean Atlas · Europe and Mediterranean

Europe and Mediterranean

Türkiye

A freediving-led coast at Kaş with very warm water, turtles and groupers.

Kaputas Beach and islands seen from the bridge near Kas, Turkiye
Kaputas Beach between Kas and Kalkan, Turkiye · Photo: Wusel007, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
Exploring

Ethics pass, with care. We found a way to visit this country that meets our animal-welfare standard, as long as we work with the right local operator. Checked by Ocean Calling on 26 Sep 2026. Sources: Kaş, Wikipedia (Kekova specially protected area, 2006); Mediterranean monk seal, Wikipedia; Update on captivity issues in Turkey, Dolphin Project, 2012.

🧭 Travel advice, checked 30 Sep 2026. The UK FCDO advises against all travel within 10km of the border with Syria, due to fighting and a heightened risk of terrorism. The rest of the country is not under that warning. Sources: UK FCDO travel advice, Türkiye Advice differs by passport: check your own government before you plan.

FreedivingTurtlesCoral reefs

Why Türkiye

Kaş is a freediving-led coast with very warm water, loggerhead and green turtles, groupers, octopus and rays, and good food on land. Mediterranean monk seals are seen only rarely. September to early October is best, and May and June are also good.

Conservation-led. Ocean Calling guests never chase, touch or bait animals.

KazakhstanUzbekistanSudanChadRussiaFranceMaliMauritaniaNigerIsraelLebanonPalestineTunisiaAlgeriaJordanUnited Arab EmiratesQatarKuwaitIraqOmanPakistanAfghanistanTajikistanTurkmenistanIranSyriaArmeniaBelarusUkrainePolandAustriaHungaryMoldovaRomaniaGermanyBulgariaGreeceTurkeyAlbaniaCroatiaSwitzerlandLuxembourgBelgiumNetherlandsPortugalSpainIrelandItalyUnited KingdomAzerbaijanGeorgiaSloveniaSlovakiaCzechiaSaudi ArabiaN. CyprusCyprusMoroccoEgyptLibyaBosnia and Herz.MacedoniaSerbiaMontenegroKosovoKaş, Türkiye

When to go

May-Jun, Sep-Oct. Timing changes by place and by animal, so check each place below.

We have researched this place and keep learning about it. There is no trip here yet.

Our ethics check

Can we travel here ethically?

Ethics pass, with care

Good with the right operator. Here is how we choose.

Since 2006 the Kaş coast is part of the specially protected Kekova area, and turtles, groupers and octopus can be met calmly on a freediving day. Mediterranean monk seals are rare and easily scared by divers in their caves. Türkiye has also had many dolphin parks, so we never visit captive dolphins, we never enter seal caves, and we watch any seal only from far away.

Evidence is still thin here. We are checking again with official sources.

Checked 26 Sep 2026. Places change, so we look again every year.

Sources for this check
Places we are exploring

Where in Türkiye

Short notes from our research. Wildlife is never guaranteed.

Kaş

Exploring

A freediving-led coast with turtles, groupers and very warm water, plus good food.

🤿 In the water: Loggerhead and green turtles, Groupers, Octopus, Barracuda, Rays

⛵ From the boat or shore, never in the water: Mediterranean monk seals (rare)

When: May-Jun, Sep-Oct. September to early October is best, with very warm sea. May and June are also good.

Animals

Animals recorded in Türkiye

Tap an animal to learn how it lives, where it travels and how to meet it respectfully.

Land animals
Sandbar shark with its tall dorsal fin over a sandy seabed in HawaiʻiSandbar sharkCarcharhinus plumbeusSeen in 19 countries in the AtlasEndangeredRed lionfish with spread fins over sand in Dauin, PhilippinesLionfish (red and common lionfish)Pterois volitans and Pterois milesSeen in 80 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernCommon octopus crawling over a rocky seabed in FranceCommon octopusOctopus vulgarisSeen in 32 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernHarbour porpoise rolling at the surface off Berry Head, DevonHarbour porpoisePhocoena phocoenaSeen in 20 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernGreen turtle resting on the reef, shell and head pattern in sharp detailGreen turtleChelonia mydasSeen in 103 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernLoggerhead turtle at the surface feeding on Portuguese man o' warLoggerhead turtleCaretta carettaSeen in 89 countries in the AtlasVulnerableMediterranean monk seal head above blue water, whiskers visibleMediterranean monk sealMonachus monachusSeen in 9 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCommon bottlenose dolphin swimming over a seagrass bedCommon bottlenose dolphinTursiops truncatusSeen in 89 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernSperm whale mother raising her fluke beside her calf off DominicaSperm whalePhyseter macrocephalusSeen in 114 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCuvier's beaked whale surfacing, pale scarred head and small dorsal finCuvier's beaked whaleZiphius cavirostrisSeen in 42 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernFin whale surfacing, showing its white right lower jawFin whaleBalaenoptera physalusSeen in 37 countries in the AtlasVulnerableStriped dolphin leaping, dark flank stripe clearly visibleStriped dolphinStenella coeruleoalbaSeen in 43 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernPod of common dolphins surfacing in calm blue seaCommon dolphinDelphinus delphisSeen in 53 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernScarred Risso's dolphin spyhopping out of the waterRisso's dolphinGrampus griseusSeen in 56 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernDusky grouper underwater at Cabo de Palos, SpainDusky grouperEpinephelus marginatusSeen in 40 countries in the AtlasVulnerableSmall spotted pufferfish swimming just above a sandy seabed, with a yellow-ringed eye; listed on iNaturalist as Torquigener flavimaculosusOrange-spotted toadfishTorquigener hypselogeneionSeen in 10 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernMoon jellyfish in a harbour in Zeeland, NetherlandsMoon jellyfishAurelia aurita and other Aurelia speciesSeen in 33 countries in the AtlasNot EvaluatedAngelshark with a flat, mottled brown body swimming just above a sandy seabed in dark waterAngelsharkSquatina squatinaSeen in 14 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredA Black Sea seahorse in the shallow water at Eforie-SudLong-snouted seahorseHippocampus guttulatusSeen in 21 countries in the AtlasNear ThreatenedNoble pen shell in Hérault, Languedoc-Roussillon, FR, iNaturalist research-grade observationNoble pen shell (fan mussel)Pinna nobilisSeen in 8 countries in the AtlasCritically EndangeredAtlantic bluefin tuna leaping out of choppy water, recorded in Hovedstaden, DenmarkAtlantic bluefin tunaThunnus thynnusSeen in 39 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernNomad jellyfish seen from below in sunlit blue water, a translucent bell with frilly arms hanging beneath, off Haifa, IsraelNomad jellyfishRhopilema nomadicaSeen in 6 countries in the AtlasNot EvaluatedSilver-cheeked toadfish resting just above sandy seabed, with its pale belly and dark-spotted backSilver-cheeked toadfishLagocephalus sceleratusSeen in 19 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernWhite-tailed eagle in flight low over calm water with a fish in its talons, near Raftsund, Lofoten, NorwayWhite-tailed eagleHaliaeetus albicillaSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasLives on landLeast ConcernGreat cormorant perched on a branch, with white head plumes and a glossy blue-black backGreat cormorantPhalacrocorax carboSeen in 90 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernClose view of a northern gannet face, with pale blue eyes and a golden headNorthern gannetMorus bassanusSeen in 38 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernScopoli's shearwater skimming just above calm blue waterScopoli's shearwaterCalonectris diomedeaSeen in 37 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernEuropean shag sitting on its nest of dry grass, dark green-tinged plumage and yellow gapeEuropean shagGulosus aristotelisSeen in 31 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernTwo pygmy cormorants perched on a bare branchPygmy cormorantMicrocarbo pygmaeusSeen in 26 countries in the AtlasLeast ConcernYelkouan shearwater lifting off the sea surface with wings raisedYelkouan shearwaterPuffinus yelkouanSeen in 19 countries in the AtlasVulnerableCommon stingray resting on a bed of seagrass, with its eye and body edge in viewCommon stingrayDasyatis pastinacaSeen in 13 countries in the AtlasVulnerable
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