I've been on holiday to a village very near Bodrum (and into Bodrum on a night) as part of a couple and to Side also similarly. Not particularly for clubbing, but like meals out, and bars (maybe the odd very late night in bars). I can honestly say that I've had far more leering and bad behaviour from men on nights out in the UK than I had in Turkey.

I went on one occasion to Turkey (same area near Bodrum again) with my sister and a friend (no partners), and although I guess there was more male attention, none of it was disrespectful or too intrusive. We spent evenings in Bodrum in the night market, restaurants and bars and I have to say we weren't a bad-looking set of girls at the time. Still no really bad behavior from men on the scale I've experienced at home whilst out on a night out!

If you want a relaxing holiday in beautiful surroundings in a small resort, with plenty of nice restaurants and bars for a 2 week holiday - you may like Turunc. If you do want a more lively night out Marmaris is easily accessible by dolmus,taxi or water-taxi.
Some people may think Turunc is too quiet for a young couple but our daughter(20) and her boyfriend love going there for a relaxing break.
If it does look too quiet for you, you may want to look at Icmeler, which is a great favourite with lots of people on here of all ages. Dalyan is also very beautiful, larger than Turunc with a lovely beach accessible by boat. Wherever you go in Turkey, it is very easy to get around, so if you are staying somewhere small like Turunc, there are plenty of trips and activities if you want them.

Also forgot to say, that you needn't worry about your girlfriend getting hassled, there don't seem to be any problems in the smaller resorts, particularly as you are a couple. You will find the waiters will want to make friends with both of you.

another point is do you want a decent beach, as some places in turkey have shingly or stoney beaches.

olu deniz is lovely with a fab lagoon very scenic area, we didnt get hardly any hassle here compared to icmeler, marmaris ,bodrum etc, its smaller but still plenty of bars and shops and theres hisaronu just 5 mins up the road with more shops, bars, restaurants etc.

we usually stay in akyaka, which is a lovely turkish resort, extremely scenic, beautiful sandy beach, laid back, in all the years we have been going ive never had any hassle, even my daughter of 22 hasnt had any hassle here, and shes prime target with blonde hair, blues eyes and very pretty, but she got lots in icmeler and marmaris . have a look at the photo gallery ive put some photos in there or look at this link, there isnt many shops here, but marmaris is within 20 miles for a day trip.

have a read up on the resorts and decide, 1 resort suits 1 family, couple etc but not another, the resorts vary from quiet, scenic to loud, brash and busy, usually in the busy resorts you get more hassle

http://akyaka.com/index.php

Another vote here for Olu deniz . A good choice for a first visit to Turkey .; It has a good mixture of everything . Beautifully scenic , compact, very friendly , enough bars and shops to keep you busy , splenty of excursions and boat trips if that is your thing , Paragliding if you are brave enough (if your not great to watch them landing on the beachfront) I also love the beanbags on the beach with the shisha pipes and candlelight of an evening .

Its also the most photographed . You will see the fab lagoon from the air pictures in most holiday brochures.

definatley a vote for ouldeniz or hisaronu great for couples who dont want clubbing every night. loads to do lots of things to do/places to vist nearby.

I agree that Bodrum and the surounding area is lovely. Somewhere like Bitez may be nice, it is quiet and laid back with lots of nice restaurants and a few bars. It is also close to Bodrum or Gumbet if you fancy a bit of a livelier night out.

As for the men, I wouldn't worry as you are going as a couple. Yes, the men do give single women lots of attention but they wouldn't hassle your girlfriend while you are with her, in fact I'm sure you will make lots of friends as they guys are very friendly out there. I am married to a Turkish man and I lived there for a few years so I have seen what they are like, don't worry you will have a great time

Thank you for all the replys. Very helpful!

In addition to Icmeler and Hisaronu, I would also recommend Kalkan. Although the beach isn't up to anything, there are swimming platforms and a short dolmus ride away is Patara Beach which is simply gorgeous. Take a dolmus ride down to Kas, the journey itself is beautiful.

Les

hi inme89
just take your time and do your reseach on the areas before making up your minds

What is Gumbet like?

I have been looking at the Royal Asarlik as it seems to have very good reviews.

Thank you.

Gumbet is fairly busy, lots of bars and restaurants and a few clubs but not big ones. The beach is nice and there is lots to do there. Royal Asarlik is a fairly new hotel, it looks lovely and has some very good reviews. I think you would like Gumbet, it doens't have to be a clubbing holiday, there are some great bars there and lots of young people. I lived just outside of Gumbet so if you want to know anything else just ask

Kedi x

I think we'll go for that, the reviews sound good. Can you recommend any trips worth doing?

Thanks for being such help!

I would definitely recommend a boat trip, it is a lovley relaxing day out, where they take you to several bays for swimming, you get lunch on board too and it costs about £8 - £10, try to go on a smaller boat that doens't cram too many people on if you want to get a sunbathing spot. A jeep safari is great fun too and there is a water park not too far from Gumbet. If you fancy seeing the sites you can go to Ephesus and Pamukale (the natural white rock pools). You can book trips at any of the agencies in the resort and they all cost about the same and are all insured. Don't book trips with your rep, they cost a lot more and are exactly the sme as the ones you book in the agencies.

Bodrum is easy to get to by dolmus (minibus), these run every 5 - 10 minutes and you just stop one when you see it coming, it costs about 80p. There are lots of good shops in Bodrum and a weekly market on a Tuesday.

If you fancy exploring you can also get a dolmus from Bodrum to a number of other resorts.

I'm sure you will have a great time. Are you planning on going B&B, HB or AI?

All inclusive. Thanks for that. The safari sounds good!

l have to agree with Kedi - you've made a good choice in Gumbet and the Royal Asarlik is a good hotel in a good spot in Gumbet - close to walk into everything but far enough out to be away from the "madding crowd". You may read some reviews that say Gumbet is for the 18-30 crowd but that's not the case. Yes, Bar Street can be "banging" but there's loads of other places that are calm and chilling. I know you're going all inclusive but do take the opportunity to get out and about. The dolmus runs just along the top road from your hotel and goes to Bodrum. From Bodrum, you can get a bus to other places on the peninsula - Bitez, Yalikavak, Turgetries, Gumuslik (if you love fish, you'll love the restaurants there), Gundogan, etc. It's a great peninsula to explore.

The jeep safari is good fun - go prepared to get wet (no best clothes!). The gulet cruises are fantastic and as Kedi says, look for one that doesn't carry a lot of people. Some of them are for young ones who want loud music but others are more chilling (and I think more enjoyable). Also take the time to have a Turkish bath and oil massage - heaven! Do shop round if booking trips, there's loads of places to book them from and all have different offers. I'm a bit too old for unwanted attention, but my daughter and her partner always holiday with us and she's never had any bother as she's part of a couple. All the Turkish people are really friendly and will want to talk to both of you. We first visited Gumbet six years ago - fell in love with the place and have never been anywhere else since. In fact, we've even bought our own house over there as we like it so much and want to live there for part of the year whenever I can give up work!!

If your girlfriend likes shopping, she'll love the handbags (genuine fake designer and good quality - just make sure to shop around) and if you want to treat her, the gold is fantastic value (I can recommend Ocean Jewellers). Don't forget to haggle when shopping and don't pay more than you think something is worth. Oh and although you're all inclusive, do take the opportunity to eat out once in a while. Seray Zetas is a lovely restaurant close to the Royal Asarlik (and it's Kedi's favourite) and there's others which are good as well.

When are you going in summer? Just remember that in July and August it will be mad hot. Use plenty of suncream and - more importantly - drink plenty of water so you don't get dehydrated. We've already booked to go three times this year (April, June and September) but hopefully will manage a couple more trips out there as well - the only problem is that work gets in the way.

I'm sure you will have a great time over there and won't be disappointed with your choice. Enjoy!! If you have any more questions just ask as I can rabbit on about Gumbet for hours (as many of my friends could tell you!).

Jakki

Thanks a lot Jakki, some very useful info there.

We're going in september all being well.

Thanks again!

September's a great time of the year to go - July and August tend to be too hot. May and June are nice as well but by September, the sea's had to warm up all year and is warmer. Enjoy your holiday.

hi imne89, just to let you know that if you want to holiday in turkey the best places to go is the Antalya area, Lara Beach and Beleck which are both between 15 and 45 mins from the airport.
the Hotels are all mostly 5 star, at the Hotel you do not get any hassle just a relaxing holiday with a Hotel on the Beach.
I find that were i have been in both of these areas that you do not need to leave the Hotel Complex as most of the Hotels have about 4 to 5 resturants, a few shops. entertainment all day and night thats if you desire, and their own private beaches.
what more can you ask for!!!!! in my eyes its paradise!!!!!!!!