Ok - I'll try and remember everything and keep it as useful as smc's post. Sorry it goes on a bit and pictures will follow soon

Arrival

Dalaman airport was far more civilised than any other Mediterranean airport we'd been to - tunnels to get from plane to terminal building. The access to the terminal was a little confusing but fairly obvious if you look at the signs. You have to get your visa from one desk before crossing over to the actual passport control (Don't forget your £10 note - although, contrary to what we had been told, the couple in front gave them a £20 note to cover 2 visas). We had to fill in health declarations on the plane and it was quite off-putting being greeted by Turkish staff wearing face masks!!

Transfers

We had booked our holiday and transfers through On the Beach and, as advised, our transfer bus was waiting outside the main building with a local guide advising which coach was ours. We had to wait for the others to join the coach then we were soon off.

2 words of wisdom
1) The coaches will stop for a "tea break" (rumour has it that the café owner may be a family member of the coach company - but it is only a rumour)
2) If you can, get the full address of your apartments as the drivers may not know where your apartments/hotel is (our driver had to ask at 4 different shops before finding ours!!)

Apartment

Sarigul Apart were looking a little "tired" but clean. Being in the old Village it was mainly residential around us but only a short walk into the heart of Icmeler. Reg, the owner, and his wife cannot do enough for you but then we found this was typical of Turkey. The apartment was cleaned everyday with towels and bedding changed a couple of times a week (we did save them some work as we didn't need any bedding!! The aircon was roughly £30 a week - which is about half what we paid on Rhodes last year - and you will probably find you need it.

Getting around

Firstly, the shock! Turkey is generally quite a cheap place but we knew before we went that car hire may be more expensive than we pay elsewhere so we decided to hire locally. In the end Reg organised a car for us from one of his mates (yes I DID check the insurance docs etc!) for £22 a day but I think we could've got a similar price with a newer car from Power (near the beach). However, what I wasn't expecting is roughly £1.35 to £1.40 a litre for unleaded!!! Being a hilly country you will use a lot of fuel - so if you are hiring take extra spending money!!

We did drive to Pamukale which is definitely worth a visit, Datca and Turunc. But to be honest the trips organised locally were good value. We booked a day trip by boat with "Cheeky Bugger" (get down to the beach and you'll see who I mean). A whole day on the boat with pick up and drop off at the apartment, lunch, admission to the Mud baths at Dalyan was £15 each. My OH booked a trip to Ephysus whilst I was in Rhodes which, although a very long day (picked up at 6-30 am and returned at 9-30 pm) included all meals and she felt it was very reasonable at 90ytl (about £36) and definitely a must do.

I went over to Rhodes for the Lindos Rock festival so caught the ferry from Marmaris and back on an open return. If you opt to do this then make sure the ferry is actually sailing at the time your ticket says (I was given a return ticket which said 8am Monday. When I got to the port at Rhodes I was informed that the 8am sailing wasn't happening that day - only the 4-30pm!! Luckily they allowed me to transfer my ticket to the 9am Hydrofoil). Also if you opt for the day trip to Rhodes option be aware that the reps may not advise you that there is a €32 port tax to be paid for all sailings from Marmaris (a group sitting near me hadn't been told this so were a bit miffed that they had extra to pay).

Eating out

Without a doubt our favourite restaurant was OZZYs in the old Village. Ozzy and his staff were very helpful and friendly and offered free internet access to their customers. On our last day we asked the chef about the pastry baskets he serves his vegetables in. He took us into the kitchen and showed us how to do it and my OH actually made 4 of the baskets which were for the nights service!! If you want to splash out go for the Fish in salt (it has to be ordered the day before as Ozzy gets the fish in fresh from the boats) and be prepared to be the centre of attention in the whole restaurant - your meal is served with fireworks and the full razzamatazz.

Other places we visited and were pleased with included SET (on the main crossroads) and IL Maestro (near the beach). We did hear that the meals at Harmony bar were good but we didn't try them although we did go to the StellaShow (a drag artist who was in Funny Girls at Blackpool before deciding to try his/her luck in Turkey). I would recommend this show - unless you have children!!!

I would have to be honest though and say that we didn't have a bad meal anywhere and the levels of service you get from the waiters is second to none. Someone said to me "Yeah, but this is only because they want your money". I would agree with this but also ask "don't they want your money in restaurants in the UK?" - because you certainly don't get the same service!!

Hassle

We were warned that you will be hassled as you travel around but we found a simple "No thanks" or "Maybe tomorrow" was all that was necessary. We did see some restaurant/bars that had been closed by the Zabita for hassling tourists - they are making real efforts.

Other activities

Definitely recommended is a full Turkish shave and facial for the fellas - and I had a pedicure for the first time in my life. She did a really good job on my feet.

If you feel up to the walk we walked from Icmeler to Marmaris along the shoreline walk - it is worth the effort but to get to Bar Street and the Market is approximately 4 miles so wear comfy shoes.

Spending money

You don't need to take loads of lira with you as you will get a better rate over there than over here. We found the best rate was offered by our bank when we used our cards over there (we did find not all machines accepted our cards but the HSBC machines did and there are a few of them about). You won't spend as much as other places in the Med so just take a few lira and get the rest changed over there.

Summing up

To sum up we had a fantastic 2 weeks and would definitely recommend Icmeler. I think how much we enjoyed it was best summed up by my OH. She has not had a two week holiday for a number of years because after a week she is missing home. In Icmeler she was not only happy to stay for 2 weeks but would happily have stayed for another 2 weeks. During the last few days of our stay she was even looking at the prices of villas and apartments. I can't give anywhere a better endorsement than that!! We have already started to look for next year and we don't usually go to the same place twice.

If you are unsure of whether a holiday in Turkey would be right for you - YES IT WOULD!!

I will get my pics posted soon - but I should really be heading for bed as I have an early start tomorrow.

Dave