Bodrum Back Street Stroll

The restaurants and bars that line the harbour along Neyzen Tevfik add a touch of modern day glitz and glamour to Bodrum. But you only have to step off the main drag to be transported back in time, as you follow the tranquil back streets of Bodrum that lead to the entrance of the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus.

Mausoleum at Halicarnassus

When King Mausolus, Persian satrap of Caria (377-353 BCE), died, his wife Artemisia (who was also his sister) commissioned the kingdom’s most prominent architects and scepters to design and build a monument, that was so grand it was named one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. It also lent it’s name to every grand funerary monument built throughout the world.

There is not much remaining of the original Mausoleum, but it’s well worth a visit, and the trip down this memory lane to reach it, it a wonderful way to get you in the mood for wandering around the ruins of the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus.

Photo Gallery of the lane leading to the Mausoleum Museum

Map to Bodrum’s Mausoleum Museum

There’s two lanes leading off Neyzen Tavfik Caddessi that lead directly up to Turgutreis Caddesi and the entrance to the Bodrum Mausoleum. The photos above follow the route Saray Sokak, and you have to turn right onto Turgutreis Caddesi to reach the entrance to the Museum. An alternative route is to walk just past Starbucks and take the first right up Haman Sokak, and take a left turn onto Turgutreis Street.

After you’ve visited the Mausoleum, turn right out of the Museum entrance and walk along Turgutreis Caddesi to bypass the habour and make your way to the Bodrum Bus and Dolmus station. No matter how busy and hectic Bodrum becomes in peak tourist season, you only have to wander away from the main tourist areas to explore Bodrum’s quiet side and see where it leads you.

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