The Sunday Times - 15 February, 2004
Why settle for a holiday in just one continent? Turkey is at the crossroads of two. That means buckets and spades, mountains, rock tombs and rafting. David Wickers has your complete guide into the east.
It has a coastline to rival Corsica or Croatia, archaeological sites the equal of any in the Peloponnese or Sicily, a wild and mountainous interior, and prices that sound like a lottery rollover, but convert into loose change. No wonder Turkey attracts such a broad spectrum of travellers.
More than a million a year now come from Britain, a meteoric increase since the late 1970s, when we would barley have registered on the tourist scale. The welcome is renowned. Visitors unfailingly record the warmth of the Turks among their most memorable holiday experiences.
Turkey’s rise into the jet stream of mass tourism has been both rapid and rampant, but the sheer vastness of the country – more than three times the size of Britain – means that most of its interior is overlooked, and most of its 5,000-mile Mediterranean coastline is barely touched either.
Turn inland from even the most barrack-like modern development and you will discover a world of shepherds and weavers, women in baggy trousers heaving bundles as big as hatchbacks, and men clacking away at backgammon in the shadow of village cafes. Travel by yacht or gulet along the rugged shores of antiquity, and you’ll have more chance of spotting dolphins than wetbikes or bouncing bananas.
Despite its affordability and ease of access – there are flights from 17 UK airports – you can still find a Turkey that’s both tranquil and exotic without travelling to far-flung corners. But you do need to know where to look – and, even more importantly, where to avoid.
Coastal Turkey
Although massacred in parts, Turkey’s coast is still one of the least developed on the Med. For every mass-marketed resort, you’ll find umpteen snoozy fishing villages, empty bays and pine-filled inlets, echoing to the frenzy of simmering cicadas, where tourism has barely made an imprint.
Marmaris
Everything that is bad about Bodrum is writ even larger in Marmaris, which sprawls so voraciously round it’s fjord-like bay that it has entirely gobbled up neighbouring Icmeler.
Again, though, there is a far gentler alternative. Kumlubuk is a 30 minute drive (or water taxi ride) away, and it’s made even more appealing by the presence of a terrific hotel – Dionysos, a collection of stone cottages built into the side of a mountain overlooking the sea. It has a large infinity pool, a gym, massages, good food, fantastic views, no kids and choice of bedrooms, apartments and two-bedroom villas (with their own pool).
For late-night liveliness, head into the next town, workaday Turunc, with seafront cafes and restaurants, and a reasonable beach. The hotel shuttle bus will take you there.
Dalyan
This four-mile strand of sand has been saved from development by the presence of egg-laying loggerhead turtles. A big treat here is a trip upriver by boat, snaking through reed beds alive with kingfishers and past the rock tombs of the Lycians, carved into the inaccessible Cliffside. And don’t miss a visit to the wonderful ruins of ancient Kaunos.
Kalkan
Kalkan is the most attractive town on the southwest coast. Its narrow, sloping alleyways, filled with elegant shops and bars, lead down to the harbour, where you’ll find good fish restaurants and regular boat trips to nearby Kaputas Beach. Patara is just a 20-minute drive away by car, taxi or shared dolmus (minibus).
The Kalkan Regency is a modern but elegant hotel with sea views, a large pool, a beauty salon, a hammam, interesting food and good beds.
Cultural Turkey
The Lycian Coast
Turkey offers cultural exploration for softies, because several of its finest archeological sites lie within a day’s range of the popular resorts. They include Hellenistic Knidos, once one of the most cosmopolitan cities on the Mediterranean; the Dalyan rock tombs; Xanthos, ancient capital of Lycia; the rock tombs and amphitheatre at Myra; and the sunken city of Kekova.
Tailor Made
For those who would prefer to devote an entire holiday to Turkish treasures, there is a wide choice of land and sea tours, usually accompanied by academics. These include such world wonders as the city of Ephesus, the Roman capital of Asia, which ranks alongside Knossos, Baalbek, Pompeii and Leptis Magna as one of the Mediterranean’s most eminent ancient sites; and Goreme, with its fairy-tale tufa landscapes and its Byzantine-frescoed churches.
Turkey is vast, and the mountains that fill its interior keep on going all the way to the Himalayas. You can hike them, climb them, raft their roaring rivers and check out the wildlife that roams unmolested within them – including several rare species of birds.
For Walking
The Lycian Way is Turkey’s first – and only properly waymarked – long distance path, linking Fethiye to Antalya via the ancient province of Lycia. The scenery takes in peaceful valleys and pine-clad mountain passes, citrus groves and forgotten villages, ancient ruins and spectacular beaches.
Something more challenging? One of Turkey’s most demanding treks will take you up to the 16,854ft summit of Mount Ararat, officially graded as a “strenuous” trek. It requires ice axes and crampons, even in summer.
For wildlife
Turkey’s unique geographical position – spanning two continents, and at the crossroads of three – gives it supreme importance for flora and fauna, especially for wild flowers and birds.
For Sailing
If you’ve just a one-week porthole, there’s no better sailing area in the Med than the Gulf of Gokova, 50 miles deep, on Turkey’s fretted southwest coast. A second week to spare? Then there’s another bay below it, the Dorian Gulf, full of anchorages and tiny one-jetty villages. The country also offers a wide choice of flotilla and bareboat charters, as well as shore-based clubs where you can learn the ropes before casting off.