TIMETravel

Pamukkale means cotton castle in Turkish and tourists have been visiting its Roman ruins and spectacular snow-white, waterfilled terraces on a 530ft hillside for centuries.

It was made a UNESCO world heritage site in 1988. The tiers of pools are made of sedimentary rock deposited by water from hot springs. When I went 30 years ago you could wallow in the warm mineral-rich water. Today access is restricted to footpaths and a paddle in some smaller pools to reduce erosion. It’s about three hours by bus from Kusadasi, Antalya and Marmaris and is a memorable day trip. NIGEL THOMPSON