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Koycegiz Lake, swollen by heavy rainfall and pushed on by strong lodos winds, has spilled over its banks in Mugla, Türkiye, leaving the Sultaniye Hot Springs and nearby mud-bath area underwater and temporarily cutting into one of the district’s best-known health and tourism draws.
According to Anadolu Agency (AA), rainfall in the Koycegiz district raised the lake level, and the combination of high water and a strong lodos (a powerful southerly wind known for driving rough conditions along Türkiye’s Aegean and Mediterranean coasts) caused the lake to overflow.
As the water spread, it covered the Sultaniye Hot Springs, which are widely described as a “healing source,” along with the mud-bath facilities used by visitors.
Sultaniye sits on the southwest shore of Koycegiz Lake, at the foothills of Olemez Mountain, and is presented as one of Türkiye’s rarer hot springs due to the minerals carried in its waters.
The site is also linked to tourism through both its thermal pools and its mud baths, which are visited by travelers who typically reach the complex by passenger boats leaving from Koycegiz and Dalyan. The facility includes both indoor and outdoor pools.
The history of the hot springs is described as stretching back thousands of years, with use traced to the Kaunos people around 100 B.C.
The complex was later expanded during the Byzantine period, when accommodation structures were built. In the present day, those Byzantine-era facilities are reported to have ended up beneath the waters of Koycegiz Lake. The location is also associated with the Roman period, when it was said to have been built up into a large hospital.
Experts describe the hot spring as being shown as a direct remedy for a wide range of conditions, including rheumatism, kidney and urinary-tract complaints, metabolic disorders, mental fatigue, skin issues, and gynecological illnesses. It also says the water contains compounds such as calcium chloride, calcium sulfate, calcium sulfide, bromide, radon, and radioactive substances, and that the water temperature is 39°C (102°F).
According to experts, Sultaniye is described as Türkiye’s hot spring with the highest radioactivity level, and it also claims the site ranks second worldwide by radon value after a hot spring in Indonesia. The mud used at the site is described as a “beauty mud,” with local belief holding that applying it can soften the skin and help reduce wrinkles.
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