Recently, during a particularly overwhelming time, I took a three-day weekend trip to Dalyan. When choosing a hotel, I relied on customer ratings and reviews on booking.com. The most important criteria for me were service quality and cleanliness. Based on these, I set my sights on a highly rated hotel: Palmyra Hotel.
We landed at Dalaman Airport early Friday morning on a 7 a.m. flight. From there, we set off for Dalyan. Based on what people had told me, we were heading to a truly magical place—and once we arrived, Dalyan exceeded even my highest expectations.
Imagine a place that has every beauty a traveler could hope for: stunning beaches, crystal-clear sea, a majestic river, a peaceful lake, impressive hills, lush greenery that soothes the soul, ancient ruins of civilizations that shaped history, restaurants offering a rich variety of delicious dishes, healing thermal spas, and warm, hospitable people. What more could you want from a destination?
When we arrived, the hotel’s owner and manager, Mr. Serdar, greeted us at the entrance.
“We were expecting you yesterday morning,” he said. I explained that we had to cut the trip short by a day due to work obligations. He sighed and said, “Now how are we going to host you properly?” I didn’t quite get what he meant until he blurted it out: “Even your penthouse suite is as big as this entire hotel.” At that moment, I thought to myself, “Oh boy, how does he know who I am?” I reassured him that I’m not someone who cares about luxury and glamour—that what really matters to me is good service and a clean place to stay. That seemed to put him at ease.
Throughout our stay, I saw once again that “customers usually tell the truth.” Just like the reviews on booking.com, we found the hotel management to be warm and sincere. When I say “hotel management,” don’t imagine a large staff—it was just Serdar and his wife running the place. They also had a sweet little six-month-old baby named Mehmet Deniz. Even though the rooms were a bit on the quaint side, I quite enjoyed staying at the hotel thanks to their professional attitude, commitment to cleanliness, and its idyllic location right by the river. They also helped us with everything, from arranging boat tours on the first day to giving us great local tips.
On the first day, we took a boat to Iztuzu Beach. Walking along the 7 km stretch of shoreline was the perfect stress reliever. I especially recommend trying Dalyan’s freshly squeezed pomegranate juice—it’s both delicious and healthy. After an hour-long walk on the beach and some juice, we set off by boat again to visit the ancient city of Kaunos. The documented history of this city, which we visited via the Dalyan Canal, dates back 2,800 years, but it is estimated to be a much older settlement. Stone cutting tools and arrowheads dating from the Paleolithic era can be found in many locations. The documents and remains found reveal that Kaunos was once a major economic power, a sovereign state capable of minting its own coins.
Here are some of the must-see structures and areas in Kaunos: the city walls, the acropolis (with its fortress and inner city ramparts), the theater, Anatolia’s first and only domed church, the Roman baths, the palestra (ancient sports school), temples and sanctuaries, the agora (harbor marketplace), the stoa (shopping and meeting center), warehouses, the harbor fountain, the Monopteros (a circular tomb monument), inner-city roads, Çömlekçi Hill, and the Small Fortress. Considering the many yet-unexcavated ruins still buried underground, it becomes even more apparent how vast and important this ancient city once was.
While wandering through the ruins of Kaunos, we even came across a turtle happily nibbling away at some greenery. Speaking of turtles, I can’t leave out the Caretta Carettas. These rare and protected sea turtles come to Dalyan to lay their eggs. When I heard this, I thought, “These turtles really know what they’re doing—what a perfect place they’ve chosen.” Because they’ve become such a symbol of Dalyan, you’ll see sculptures and symbols of Caretta Carettas all over the area. The locals are also highly aware of their presence and go out of their way not to disturb them.
We ended our first day with a delightful fish dinner at the hotel. I must admit, the sea bream I ate with that breathtaking view—where nature and history blend so perfectly—tasted even more delicious.
The next morning, after an amazing 10 hours of sleep, I woke up feeling completely refreshed. Normally, I can barely sleep six hours, so being able to sleep that long was nothing short of a miracle. Sure, I was tired—but even when I’m exhausted in Istanbul, I never sleep that deeply or wake up feeling this good. During breakfast, Serdar, the hotel owner, explained it all:
“We’ve become oxygen junkies here,” he said. “You can really rest here—this peaceful, quiet, oxygen-rich atmosphere puts everyone into deep sleep.” I replied, “I even find myself going to bed at 10 p.m. sometimes.”
I had so much energy that I put on my sneakers and went out for a run around Dalyan. Jogging for an hour in the morning, surrounded by birdsong, was truly uplifting. During breakfast, it started to rain. Later, as we set off again to explore Dalyan, we suddenly found ourselves in the middle of a colorful local market. Apparently, there’s a town market every Saturday. The atmosphere was incredibly lively.
After strolling and shopping around for a while, we sat down at a local restaurant in the middle of the market for some regional dishes—gözleme, mantı, and börek in true Aegean style. The owner took a special interest in us. “Brother, you look like someone who knows his stuff,” he said, walking over. Then he asked me how to describe mantı in English. I told him he could say “Turkish ravioli.” He nodded and followed up with, “Alright then, honestly—how was the food?” I told him everything was very tasty overall, but that they could use a bit less oil in the gözleme. After a friendly exchange, we left the restaurant and enjoyed a cup of coffee at a café overlooking the shore. Then we hopped on another boat ride to the point where Lake Köyceğiz meets the river. There, at a small facility, we soaked in a thermal pool and took a mud bath in the rain. At that point, I was in absolute bliss.
That evening, we headed to a pub to watch the Beşiktaş–Galatasaray match. Just as we settled into the perfect spot and were ready to enjoy the game, the match was unfortunately postponed due to weather conditions. So, we left and tried a seafood restaurant on the other side of Dalyan.
The next day, wanting to do something different, we rented a car and drove to the shore of Lake Köyceğiz. We tried to visit the Toparlar Waterfall as well, but as we drove up the mountain road, a large pool of water had formed across the road, and we didn’t want to risk it—so we turned back and headed to the hotel. We enjoyed one last riverside fish meal before heading to Dalaman Airport.
On the way to the airport, as I started thinking about work again and returning to Istanbul—one of the most amazing cities in the world, in my opinion—I couldn’t help but sigh: “Is now really the time to go back to Istanbul?” The 3.5-hour flight delay only added to my stress. But what was it that I already missed, even before I’d left Dalyan?
The answer came to me quickly: “A peaceful and joyful life.”
And that, more than anything else, is why I became enamored with Dalyan.
Tag: excursion
