Turkey Traveller

Eskisehir is a city I return to on a regular basis, and I consider it my home city in Turkey, over the last decade or so it has undergone a huge amount of change and positive development. Every time we return there is something new, improved or restored mostly due to the vision of one man Mayor Yılmaz Büyükerşen. This video by heritage heroes recognises his achievements in this role. The Mayor has said he wants Eskisehir to be a role model for other Anatolian Cities, something he has undoubtedly achieved, every time you tell another Turk you are from Eskisehir they immediately all most always comment on how beautiful and successful the city is …. ah Eskişehir cok guzel demi? More about Eskisehir Eskisehir Sivrihisar Yazilikaya Platform/Midas City

Kabak beach is situated at the bottom of the beautiful Kabak Valley in Faralya, near Olu Deniz on the Turkish Mediterranean, almost completely untouched by commercial tourism partly due to its isolated position and partly because of a moratorium on development in this part of Mugla province . With its small encampment of beach bums, hippies, students and potheads it bears an uncanny and slightly comical resemblance to the beach in Leonardo DiCaprios film of the same name. The beach is reachable from Kabak Koy (village) which is the last stop on the dolmus that runs between Olu Deniz and Faralya where you will find a café rather helpfully named last stop café, From the village you have to climb down a footpath to the beach it is approximately 600m and quite rough in places, there is a track that 4x4's go up and down and they will take you down for an extortionate 20 TL. The trek is well worth it because the views are stunning and at the bottom you will find the beautiful and relat...

We loved the small secluded beach at Gocek Island(Göcek Ada) enclosed on both side by pine covered slopes and a beautiful clear blue water bay to swim in, it was very peaceful without the pumping dance music you often get at beach resorts like Antalya. The beach is accessible by a service that runs from Gocek for 10 Turkish lira, the loungers are another 10 TL for the whole day. They have all the normal facilities ie: A bar, changing area, showers, toilets, light snakes and a camping area. Gocek Ada website

Göcek is a small but pleasant port that resides between Dalaman and Fethiye. The main draw is tourism that revolves around the yachting industry and the marina is stuffed full of expensive yachts and power cruisers. As a result of the money this brings some of the local prices are slightly inflated, but its an nice opportunity to see how the other half lives. The shops and boutiques are of a higher quality than the normal tit-tat you would expect in a tourist destination and there is a good selection of restaurants offering both traditional Turkish dishes and western and continental meals. We particularly enjoyed eating at the Kebab Hospital Antep Sofrasi which served some of the best pide we have ever tasted at reasonable prices. Boat trips are available from the harbour including the 12 island boat tour. Gocek has a reputation for being relaxed and is really just a nice place to chill out enjoy the food and wine and mooch around the marina drooling at the boats. It is also well know...

The humble Dolmuş (pronounced Dol-moosh) sometimes referred to as a shared taxi is the cheapest way to travel in Turkey, Dolmus buses vary from city to city sometimes a small minibus sometimes a converted transit van. They normally stick to a set route although I have known them to go off route to drop you off closer to you destination in Istanbul. Dolmuş stops are indicated by a blue bus stop style sign with a large white “D” on it in some areas in other areas there are no marked stops, however Dolmus buses will stop and pick up or drop off anywhere along their set route you just have to hail them like a taxi. The sign in the front window of the Dolmuş usually indicates the route of the bus saying both the departure and destination point. It is generally accepted that the Dolmus never runs on time, and in fact the name Dolmuş translates as a taxi that doesn't start until its full (stuffed full) with passengers. Once you have hailed the Dolmus take a seat and pass your money to th...

People often ask me about this, are there any poisonous snakes in Turkey? Or do you have to worry about scorpions; it always makes me laugh as I get a mental image of some hapless British tourist with a knotted handkerchief on his head, lobster red suntan and union jack boxer shorts trying not to spill his beer whilst grappling with a giant man eating scorpion at the hotel bar like an outtake from Clash of the Titans. The short answer is yes Turkey does have some poisonous inhabitants but the chance of you coming across any of them is so negligible as to be almost nonexistent. I have travelled around Turkey and visited many times and have managed to spot a poisonous snake on just one occasion, which means I see more poisonous snakes in my hometown in the south of England ( Adders ) then I do in Turkey. Admittedly the one snake I saw in Turkey was a horned viper , considered to be the most dangerous snake found in Europe, which my mother in law almost trod on when we were visiting a...

The Ihlara valley is a stunning gorge cut in the volcanic rock of the Cappadocian plateau by a small river that runs through the centre. The valley is both breathtakingly beautiful and historically fascinating. Inhabited by monks from the 4th to the 14th centuries the valley is littered with ancient rock cut Byzantium churches and hermit holes. If you like walking and are interested in nature and history then The Ihlara valley is a must to add to your itinerary, the main route meanders along the lightly wooded valley floor next to the river bed, as you make your way along there are signs on either side pointing to different rock cut churches you can explore, most of which are cut into the face of the valley side and are a bit of scrabble to reach. Many of the churches have frescoes some in very good condition some defaced, the churches vary greatly in condition there are over 60 in the valley, the most popular ones are: Direkli Kilise (Column church) Agacalti Kilise (Under tree chur...