Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool)
On Gingerguide's self-guided Pamukkale audio tour, Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool) is a stop worth about ~45 min. Stand in front of it, press play for a short narrated story, and put any follow-up question to the built-in AI guide.
- Type landmark
- Suggested visit ~45 min
- Pamukkale Pamukkale guide
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About Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool)
A warm, spring-fed thermal pool inside ancient Hierapolis where you swim among fluted Roman marble columns that toppled into the water during a 7th-century earthquake; the 'Cleopatra' name is modern.
The Antique Pool is a natural thermal pool inside the ancient city of Hierapolis, at the top of the Pamukkale travertines, where visitors swim for a separate fee among ancient marble ruins. Its floor is scattered with fluted marble columns that fell in when an Ionic portico, which once framed the site's sacred spring, collapsed during an earthquake in the 7th century AD. The water is warm and comfortable for bathing, commonly cited at about 36 degrees Celsius, and roughly one to two metres deep. It is charged with bicarbonate, sulphate, dissolved carbon dioxide and iron.
The pool sits beside the sacred spring of Hierapolis, the ancient focus of the spa city's cult and bathing, close to the Temple of Apollo and the Ploutonion. When the plateau hotels were cleared after the 1988 UNESCO listing, the thermal pool of one former hotel was retained as the public swimming pool used today. The popular name 'Cleopatra's Pool' is a modern touristic label, with no historical evidence that Cleopatra bathed here.
Did you know? The pool's romantic name is a recent invention. No historical record connects Cleopatra to this water; the label borrows the springs' long-standing reputation for beauty and simply attaches a famous face to it.
How much time do you need at Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool)?
Around ~45 min works well for Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool) — time to look properly and listen to its story on the spot. Linger if you like; nothing on a self-guided walk is on a clock.
Should you stop at Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool)?
Yes — Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool) made the cut as one of 12 places the Gingerguide team researched and narrated across Pamukkale. The story tells you why it is worth the stop, and the AI guide fills in anything you still wonder.
Nearby stops in Pamukkale
Day 1 of the Pamukkale in 2 days itinerary →
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Hear the story of Antique Pool (Cleopatra's Pool)
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