Sightseeing around Türkbükü

Whist not considered traditional sight-seeing, I do love having a snoop around the new locations I visit on the Bodrum, even if it’s just a wander up a back-street to see what’s there.

It reminds me of when my brother and I were kids, and each time we went on an outing to somewhere new, we couldn’t wait to run-off and explore our environment.  I’m all grown up now!, but I still love the thrill of discovering new destinations.

So after spending a morning at Türkbükü’s slither-of-a-beach, and enjoying a delicious lunch served lounger-side, I decided to take a walk to explore the rest of Türkbükü.

• I took one of the side alleys, to explore the back-streets of  Türkbükü
• I walked to the corner of the bay between the beach and the glitzy to discover the dolmuş Station, taxi rank and cash point machines

And finally, I walked along the western part of Türkbükü which is lined with shops, wooden jetties, glitzy hotels, restaurants and bars.

Boats and Toys

I encountered a water-sports company – where serious toyz for boyz (and the ladies of course) were available to rent, e.g. jet-ski’s and motor boats etc. The bay is roped off, so these acquatic players can’t veer into the protected swimming sections.

On the opposite side of the bay, you could see the harbour filled with small fishing boats and leisure craft, and in the bay itself was a wide assortment of different types of boats.  Including a couple of slick looking luxury yachts, that looked like serious contenders for the gold-plated-tap brigade!

View my Photo Gallery of the Glitzy side of Türkbükü Bay

Navigating the eateries

I was able to walk a little way around the bay, between the businesses and jetties.  I ended up walking through a couple of restaurants, and felt like a complete interloper.

I figured it wouldn’t be too long before I felt a heavy hand on my shoulder accompanied by a request to use the tradesman’s entrance.  But I managed to make it through undeterred.

Eventually I had to veer inland, and before I knew it, I was at the inconspicuous entrance gate to the Hotel Maki. (I’ll recount my adventures there in another article)

I went as far as I could along the coastline, but you can only make so far, without having to go deeper into the Hotel complex and veer inland.   If you reach here, you’ll be parallel with the two small islands that just off the main-land, one of which is called Almond (Badem) Island.

If you go into the complex a little bit more, there’s the start of the footpath to take you onto the edge of the landmass for Türkbükü bay, called Kesire Point.  I didn’t venture this far, instead I just enjoyed the view from my vantage point.

Here, as well as having great views of the two little islands, and a birds eye view of the whole of the Türkbükü bay, you’ll catch sight of a small clutch of windmills on the distant hill.

How the other half lives

If you want a break from sunning yourself on the beach, spend an hour wandering around this part of the bay, it was an experience. If just to oogle and the well healed gentry, in their itsy-bitsy-teenie-weenies, working hard not to spill their expensive cocktails on the white loungers and white cushions, whist listening to the dulcet tones of Acid Jazz, under the shade of undulating white canopies.

There’s an often used quote from the New York Times, that dubbed Türkbükü as the St. Tropez of Turkey. Having never been to St. Tropez, I can’t attest to the validity of this evaluation, but it’s definitely not your bucket-and-spade brigade.

Envious? You bet!

 

    

 

© Feature Photo from the New York Times in 2006, which dubbed Türkbükü as the St. Tropez of Turkey