This remarkable monastery complex perches on a terraced slope with tumbling views of the Göksu Valley below.
Above the site entrance is a cave-church chiselled into the cliff face. A grand entry adorned with richly carved reliefs of angels and demons leads into the ruins of the west basilica with its re-erected Corinthian columns. More ruins dot the path up to the mammoth, well-preserved 5th century east basilica , thought to be one of most ambitious early examples of domed-basilica architecture.
Although today the location amid the pine-forested slopes of the Taurus Mountains has a middle-of-nowhere feel, during the Byzantine age the monastery sat near a vital trade and communications route, and archaeologists believe Alahan was probably one of Turkey's most important religious centres during the 5th and 6th centuries.
The journey here takes in some of the region's most beautiful scenery, with the Göksu River, rimmed by soaring jagged cliffs, scything through the countryside. Take the inland (D715) highway from Silifke to Mut (1½ hours, 76km) and then continue north for another 24km to the village of Geçimli, where a signposted turnoff to the monastery leads for 3km up a steep incline.
