Where is Bodrum?

Bodrum is a city in the Southern part of Turkey, stretching into the Aegean Sea. Now during summer, Bodrum is one of the most popular places to visit in Turkey, not only for locals, but also for foreigners.   High tourist season is June to September when the price of accommodation and the flight gets two to four times higher than the rest of the seasons. Thus, we decided to visit Bodrum at the end of May at the last moment before the seasonal price sets. Throughout the year, generally, the weather in the Southern part of Turkey such as Bodrum, Antalya, and Mersin, etc. is moderate and warmer than any region in Turkey, approximately 15-17℃ in winter, so I would like to recommend those regions that are worth visiting even in winter if you are looking for places can be away from the cold. 

First day

Upon arrival at the Milas-Bodrum airport, you can easily find the shuttle bus going to the center bus terminal Gümbet, which takes around 50-55min, and only cash is accepted 100TL on the bus. From the Gümbet bus terminal, there are mainly three ways to head to the city center. One is a local minibus, which we actually struggled to find the right bus due to the unfriendly information for the foreigners, which had no English signs and nobody speaking English there. However, if you can find the right bus, a local minibus should be the most reasonable transportation cost around 50TL only for 15 minutes. 

We ended up getting a taxi paid 400TL(around 10$) to get to our hotel. 

All-inclusive hotel

Most hotels in Bodrum offer an all-inclusive service, providing all-day unlimited meals (afternoon snack and midnight snack!) and alcohol, facilitated with a private beach, a swimming pool, and host some shows on the stage at night, which would definitely give you reasons why everyone does not want to get out of the hotel. Some regular hotels are not all-inclusive style, but I would highly recommend booking all-inclusive hotels because the hotel price is much more reasonable compared to the other beach resorts such as in Alanya and Antalya or even foreign countries like Marta, Niece, and Santorini. 

Exploring City

Despite the perfect stay in the Hotel, of course, we still wanted to discover the city. Local bus heading to the port side is very convenient and runs every 20 minutes from the hotel area. Walking takes about 50 minutes, but along the way, we could enjoy the beautiful whitewashed cottages with colorful flowers, and some historical place called Myndos Gate, one of two ornamental gates from the time of the city of Halicarnassus, for free of charge. 

Passing through the ports and some restaurants, you should find the Bodrum Castle, well known as the Castle of St. Peter (https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6121/) is standing towering over the city. The Museum of Underwater Archeology is also located inside the Bodrum castle. The castle was built by the Knights Hospitallers of St. John between 1402 and 1437, and throughout the centuries, the walls were created by mixing culture of Gothic and Ottoman architectural elements, being defended by the knights of the multiple nationalities. 

 Opening Hours : 8:30 AM-7:00 PM

 Admission Fees : 24 €

Shopping at the Bazar

Bazar is the most buzzing area in Bodrum because it has everything, cafe, seafood restaurants with fantastic views, souvenir stores for textiles, Turkish pottery, sweets, etc. 

After walking all day, we went back to our hotel and relaxed on the beach enjoying the unlimited meals and waiting for the sunset. 

Second Day

It was hard to leave the hotel like a dream, but the checkout time came. We walked to another must-see spot, the Antique Theatre, a 30-minute walk away from our hotel. This historical amphitheater was built in the 4th century B.C., just like masterpieces of ancient Greece, with an attached stage, stone seats in the audience area, and an orchestra. Although it was too hot to stay if there was a show in the daytime, but the view from the top of the audience seats was spectacular seeing the ocean across the road. 

Back in the Bodrum Marina area, we chilled having a coffee beside the area of hundreds of yachts.  It is also possible to join a half-day, day, or multiple-day yacht tour of the Aegean, depending on your availability. If you feel the Bazar area is too noisy with too many tourists, you can walk a bit towards the Marina Yacht Club Bodrum for 20 minutes through the arcade street with wine shops and a variety of stores, there are more collections of luxury dining restaurants and cafes that offer a calm and peaceful atmosphere. 

Bodrum looks most impressive from its beautiful beaches and collections of better-service hotels, but also the historic collections tell you stories of architectural history. The town gives you opportunities to experience a mix of sights and pleasures from ancient history and enthusiastic vibes.