Known to Turks as Green Marmaris (Yeşil Marmaris) because of its pine- and olive-clad mountains, the resort city of Marmaris is set on a broad mountain-ringed bay 3 hours by road east of Bodrum, 2 hours by road west of Dalyan (map), and just across the water from the Greek island of Rhodes.
It's among Turkey's most popular seaside resorts for foreign tourists coming on packaged holidays. They fill the town's many hotelssmall and large, promenade along its palm-lined waterfront, set out on jeep safaris and yacht cruises, go in for water sports, laze on the beaches (particularly Cleopatra Beach on Cedar (Sedir) Island), and have a good time.
Marmaris is also the hub for an ever-expanding resort area which includes the separate town of İçmeler across the bay, and smaller vacation getaway villages on the Bozburun Peninsula and Reşadiye Peninsula which jut into the Mediterranean to the west and southwest (map).
Holiday-makers are not the first foreign visitors to come to Marmaris. English admiral Lord Nelson readied his fleet in thisperfect natural Mediterranean bay in 1798, then sailed out to defeat the Napoleon's navy at the Battle of Abukir.
Since then, the beautiful natural harbor of Marmaris has been pretty quiet.
That is, until the tourism boom of the 1990s made it Turkey's premier yachting port for Blue Voyage yacht cruises. Sleek boats now crowd its modern full-service marina, and jostle for space along the waterfront promenades.
Its small fortress/castle is now a museum. More...
Ferries cruise to and from the Greek island of Rhodes (map) several times daily during the summer (less frequently off-season), bringing yet another flow of visitors. Here's full ferry information.
Marmaris's small market district and covered bazaar in the center of town is usually crowded with foreigners.
Resort complexes have sprung up all around the bay, adding a lot of white concrete to
Those who find Marmaris over-developed and noisy flee to colonies like İçmeler, Datça, Orhaniye and Selimiye out on the peninsulas that jut west- and southwestward into the Mediterranean.
You'll see beehives everywhere, set to gather Marmaris's famous honey. You'll also see workshops quarrying and shaping the region's famous mable.
Maps of Marmaris & Mediterranean Turkey
Use this handy Hotel Search Box to learn about room rates and availability in and around Marmaris:
—by Tom Brosnahan
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