Two partners, Gökhan and Murat…

Founding members of the Society of Underwater Research... once on the summit of Mt. Ararat and once along the nesting beaches of the sea turtles for documenting their spur action; then through the underground waters of limestone (karstic) caves of the Taurus range for Project Karst Dive; sometimes in the Red Sea, in the Atlantic Ocean and China Sea; once paddling 3216 km by kayaks for the "Trans-Europe Sea Kayak Expedition" crossing from the North Sea (Holland) down to Black Sea (Turkey) for the sake of clean river beds; and another time reanimating a historic flight from Istanbul to  Cairo; one day surfacing the secrets of Struma Wreck in the Black Sea - one of the most  tragic stories of the World War-II - from the depths of 80 meters to daylight; at times in mountain marathon competitions; nature or under-water shoot-out contests or beached oil cleanup projects, and another day committed bodies documenting the world's seas and underwater for a TV channel… 

And a director...

Arife Hanley, our new boss/manager!! She was born in apricot-paradise town Malatya, and brought up in Istanbul. After graduation from Istanbul University where she studied Business Administration, she worked two years within the banking sector. At this point the wings on her feet became so big that she left banking and went travelling in Europe for two years. On her return to Istanbul and to banking, she became a bank auditor travelling for five years throughout Turkey, gleaning so much knowledge about her own country which gave her great pleasure. After this period she became a manager in head office in Maslak (still in the Ottoman Bank!!!!) where she worked for a further three years finally leaving after marrying her love Diarmuid (an Irish man!!!) in 2001. This opened a new doorway for both of them. Deciding to leave her professional career, her friends&family and the city life behind they set off to Kas in 2002 where Diarmuid worked as a guide, settling into a healthier and more wholesome life together.  In 2005 their path met Dragoman’s, having similar aspirations and dreams they got on very well. Arife has now been running the office since April 2005, pulling in all her managerial skills to control all the male workforce (!) with Diarmuid in the outdoor activities side enjoying the life in Kas.  Whenever they find time in winter, they return to visit their families and friends in Istanbul, England and Ireland... She may be out of the office a lot in 2008... BECAUSE SHE IS EXPECTING A LITTLE GIRL!!!

If these folks would decide to run an outdoor activities centre and "retire" in Kas... what would happen there?  It would not just be a mere "business" or a tour operation, but days filled with energy, sharing, learning and teaching, and a set of "dragoman-brand" discovery tours exploring the amazing cultural, historical and natural diversity of the region.

We don't like to use the term "customer": we prefer "guests” with whom we share fine memories and empathy.  We won't talk about the difficulties of the eko-tourism, we will instead mention the beauty of it all... from the greens and the blues of nature, taking you from the summit of mountains to the depths of underwater. Touristy “sight-seeing” trips are definitely not our speciality: we imagine, design and organize our own outdoor activities... we participate and enjoy them ourselves!

We have chosen to discover and share Mother Nature's riches and pleasures!   Our philosophy is hidden in the words of Yunus Emre, the dervish who said  "Owner of goods, owner of property, where is the first to have those?... it's only your turn to amuse yourself with them for a while..."

If you are fond of humanity, if you are in peace with yourself and with the natural world, if you want to listen, have time to learn or teach how to dive, how to reach at the high peaks, how to cultivate a bougainvillea plant or a basil, to help the future of sea turtles, to wonder why it's necessary to care for monk seals... and if one day the archipelago of Kas is on your way: knock at the door of Dragoman Outdoor Activities Centre.  You will  certainly get involved in the projects of the friends there!

With its partners and crew having over 25 years of professional experience in outdoor sports and underwater activities, Dragoman is genuinely concerned with outdoor ethics, minimum impact - responsible tourism, small group journeys, new expeditions and soft adventure trips.  Our goal is to develop innovative and unique tours in the Lycian Region as well as all over Turkey. 

In addition, we are continuously striving to create new "first time" trips: they are designed in an authentic style, in harmony with the natural and geographical mysteries as well as with the cultural riches of Anatolia, permitting a strong interactive frame and offering the highest satisfaction for our guests.  Turkey, the "cradle of civilizations", has a very rich cultural heritage all over its geography:  we hope our outdoor activities will give you a rewarding taste of those.

Dragoman:

Dragoman Travel agency, authorized by the Ministry of Tourism and Union of Turkish Travel Agencies (TURSAB License no: A-4615), was founded  in May 2002  and based in Kas, ANTALYA to arrange outdoor activities mainly around the Lycian region.

Dragoman Travel Agency is a subsidiary of Eko-Natura Ltd., and carrying on its activities under the names of different divisions as:

• Dragoman Outdoor Activities Centre
• Archipel Diving Centre
• Ekomarin Sea Kayak Centre

All our operations are directly run and monitored by our co-founder partners.