For the last few years

By Ian Urie

For the last few years, we have been going to Turkey for our holidays. It took a few years to persuade my wife to get on a plane, and history and historical buildings etc had always fascinated her, so Turkey seemed a good place to try.

We all fell in love with the resort of Marmaris. Marmaris is situated on the Mediterranean Sea.

The airport used for Marmaris is Dalaman, which as you can see, is a good few miles from Marmaris. Journey time is apprx. 1.5 hours, although this also includes a short toilet break.

Marmaris is a beautiful seaside resort. It is packed with restaurants, hotels of all shapes and sizes and has a beautiful harbour where you can get boat trips.

There are water sports available such as jet skiing, scuba diving, Para sailing etc.

There are also Jeep safaris, pony trekking, the list is nearly endless.

Trips to historical sites are also available, such as Pumukkale.

A short trip (under two hours) will also take you to the island of Rhodes.

There is a plentiful supply of nightlife, if that is what you wish, with discos, karaoke, Turkish belly dancing, or nearly anything you desire.

All in all, plenty to see and do....all accompanied by legendary sunshine and a friendly people.

Food is varied, most restaurants serve up an “English” breakfast for those that can’t do without a daily dose of cholesterol. The majority of restaurants serve the food outdoors as befits a country with as much sunshine.

This will probably set you back under £2. Did I mention how cheap Turkey is compared with Britain? For the last couple of years, the restaurants have also been serving “Scottish” breakfasts. Yes, square sausage and potato scones are added to an already large plateful.

Beer, the local brew is Efes, which is uncommonly good when chilled (or served in ice coated glasses), and can cost from 30p to about 75p per pint. Local spirits are cheap and plentiful, but imported spirits are roughly equivalent to British prices.

As I mentioned there are loads of boat trips…

Boat sizes vary considerably, but nearly all boats have an upper sundeck and, of course, a very well stocked bar. A meal is usually included in the boat trip price (apprx. £6- 10) and they last for about six hours, travelling round the numerous bays.

This also gives lots of opportunities to stop for swimming, or someone will arrive alongside with one of those “banana boats”.

The scenery is breath taking and it would be a shame if everyone didn’t take at least one boat trip while there.

Here is Icemeler viewed from the road descending into the town.

There are boat trips to Dalyan  (the reeds are where the “African Queen” was filmed), and further afield.

With Rhodes only being a couple of hours away, it makes sense to take a day trip there as well.

Traditional Turkish entertainment is laid on at the bars and hotels at least once a week and this allows you to see traditional dancing troupes and belly dancers.

The markets in nearby Icemeler and the local market in Marmaris are worth catching as well. They are well stocked with local produce, fake designer clothing and the likes and it is an experience just buying something here, as they all love to haggle. Failure to haggle will result in a really high price compared to what you could have got the article for, so you have been warned.

I haven’t even mentioned the bazaar, which seems to be open 24 hours a day.

Marmaris also has a couple of water parks for the kids..and the bigger kids who love flumes etc. Most hotels have at least one swimming pool as well.

The sheer variety of food available is extraordinary as well, Chinese, Indian, Mexican, Italian, just to name a few. The ice cream fritters at the Chinese restaurant we went to was a delight………..

Marmaris also boasts a castle with an impressive display of old relics and translated descriptions of everything for the tourists.

Travelling about the town is easy with taxis being available although the local transport (Dolmus) is cheap and cheerful. The Dolmus is a minibus, as can be seen above and they commonly run about once every five minutes, so you never have to wait all that long for one to come. The fare is cheap as well, usually around the 30p mark for any length of journey within the town. Simply stop one and climb on, tell the driver to stop and off you get…

I’ve never bothered to take travellers cheques and getting money is even easier nowadays with cash machines available around the resort. Most British bankcards are accepted and the machines display in various languages just to help.

Of course, every place takes credit cards….what kind of holiday is it if you haven’t max-ed out your card by the time you get home.

Wives usually love Turkey, the jewellers are everywhere and gold is cheap compared to Britain. Combine that with a willingness to alter jewellery and settings within a few hours and you can see how they can become captivated.

I did mention that my wife loved historical areas and sites, so Turkey is an ideal place.

Within a few hours, you can be at the likes of Pumukkale, Ephesus, or Bodrum to see its spectacular castle.

I could go on and on for hours about how lovely Turkey is, but why don’t you try it out for yourselves………