My Trips to Bodrum and Kuşadası - Turkey

Hello my friends. After my Marmaris trip I moved on to Bodrum. Today, I will tell you about Bodrum’s old town, its castle, its sea and how much all of this cost. As soon as I arrived, I went out for a walk to explore and get to know this popular city. I started to like the city at first sight because it has its own unique, special architectural style. Tiny snow-white houses are everywhere. Both homes and official buildings are like this. In other words the entire city consists of white houses and it looks really beautiful.

We were hungry and wanted to grab a bite at a café before setting off to explore. Those who, like us don't want to overpay can find a wonderful café right by the Herodotus statue in the center of Bodrum. The prices are really reasonable. Of course, there is a queue at the cash register and it is quite crowded inside. The system works like this. You place your order and pay at the window, then your number lights up on the board. You go and collect your order and eat your food in a spacious area. It’s very crowded, mostly with locals. The statue of Herodotus, who was born in this city, is right here.

I got myself a Bodrum toast. It looked very delicious and the price was quite reasonable. It was tasty. But still such cafés are the exception. You have to search and find them. Actually I think the food sector in Turkey is generaly expensive. For some reason, this café doesn't appear on Google maps at all. So we found it purely by luck while passing by. We noticed the locals gathering, a queue at the register and great smells coming from inside. We were just looking for a place to eat anyway. While we were wondering whether to go for McDonalds or Burger King, seeing this crowded local café made us realize how right our choice was.

One thing caught my attention in the old town part of Bodrum that we visited. There are very beautiful historical buildings, but I think the cafés, restaurants and shops overshadow the beauty of this historical texture a bit. There are too many signs, too many shop windows. You want to enjoy the old town a bit more fully. They could make it like the old town in Antalya or Marmaris. For example, they could divide it into sectors. Anyway we wandered around, continuing to look for beautiful old houses.

We went to visit Bodrum Castle and saw that the museum of Underwater Archaeology is also located here. Visitors and travelers praise this place to the skies. The entrance fee is 23 Euros per person.

When the European orders of knights lost their bases in the Holy Land, they urgently needed to establish new bases in the Aegean sea. This is exactly why they built Bodrum Castle. What is interesting is that this castle was built by knights from different countries all over Europe. There are sections like the English Tower, the French Tower and the Spanish Tower. The Chapel of St. Peter was built at the center of the castle, which is actually where the castle gets its name.

The most interesting detail is that this castle was never taken by siege. However in 1522, the knights surrendered it under the terms of the capitulation agreement made with the Turks and the castle passed into the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

While crossing the drawbridge of the castle, I felt as if the bridge would be pulled up behind me while I was still on it. They deliberately left the footprints of the ancient knights who walked here back in the day. It looks really cool. The entrance of the castle was also made intentionally winding for defensive purposes so that occupiers could be easily fired upon from the ramparts above.

The day before, we were at the castle built by the Ottoman Turks in Marmaris and just a day later, we came to the castle built by European knights. The difference in military engineering and fortification between the Eastern approach and the European approach immediately shows itself. After the castle fell into Turkish hands, the Chapel of St. Peter was converted into a mosque and they also built themselves a bathhouse. The ruins are clearly visible.

Finally we entered the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. This museum was founded in 1953 after an extraordinary discovery, when fishermen hauled a massive 4th-century BC bronze statue out of the sea. The aquariums in the museum recreate how archaeologists work underwater.

The shipwreck remains here are unique evidence of ancient seafaring and trade. The ship and its contents were raised from the seabed by researchers after dozens of dives. As a rule merchants traveled on such ships, carrying wine, olive oil, ceramics, jewelry, bronze and glassware.

So why is there an underwater archaeology museum in Bodrum? It's actually very simple. Because very close to here, just beneath the sea at a depth of about 1.5 meters, there is a dangerous area with very sharp rocks. When ships rounded the Bodrum peninsula, they thought they were heading out into the open sea and then boom, they hit these rocks and sank. It all started in 1993 when a Lebanese-flagged cargo ship sank there. While divers were inspecting the shipwreck, they discovered more than 10 other ancient shipwrecks there. The grounds of the castle are really massive. It is clear that the garrisons of knights from all over Europe were not here for nothing.

In one hall finds recovered from a ship that sank in the 12th century BC off Cape Gelidonya near Antalya are exhibited. This is considered the birthplace of underwater archaeology in Turkey. By the way after this wreck was discovered, archaeologists and scientists reconsidered the history of the Near East, especialy Ancient Egypt and the role of the seafarers of that period.

There were details worth seeing, like a makeup box in the shape of a duck. In ancient times usually at most 10% of the crew survived shipwrecks and that was only if luck was on their side and the ship sank close to the shore. If it sank in a storm and far from the shore, as a rule, no one survived. In the shipwrecks exhibited in this museum, although they generally sank close to the shore, only 1% to 5% of the crew managed to survive.

We were really shocked that such different cultures, from the Late Bronze Age to the ancient period, from Ancient Greece to the Roman and Ottoman eras, were blended together in Turkey. They can all be found in one single place. Just like in the castle. It blows your mind. In the display case, there are ancient Greek coins, tetradrachms and what could be bought with them at that time is visually explained. And this is the Spanish Tower.

I liked Bodrum castle very much. To be honest, at first 23 Euros seemed a bit expensive and we hesitated whether to go or not, but this castle and underwater museum are definitely worth the money. You should go see it and read its history. In the castle they have managed to tell the history of both the Bronze Age and even older periods. The Roman Empire, Hellas, the Crusaders and the modern day. It is all told and shown so interestingly that you never want to leave while wandering around.

We spent about 2.5 hours and explored until the museum closed, yet we still didn't have enough time to examine everything carefully. Therefore I recommend setting aside at least 3 hours to visit this place. Only then can you examine most of the exhibits, enjoy the view from the observation terraces and perhaps sit down at the cafés here afterwards for a nice coffee.

By the way Bodrum, known by its ancient name Halicarnassus, is the birthplace of the historian Herodotus. In the 5th century BC, he described many traditions and customs that existed in these lands in Asia Minor and of course, he wrote about the Greco-Persian wars in the finest detail.

Over there two ferries are waiting, which you can use to cross over to the Marmaris side (to the Datça pier) with a vehicle. We also wanted to cross from Datça to Bodrum by ferry, but unfortunately, we missed the last trip. It is a very sensible option for those traveling by car. you get here much faster compared to the highway. But keep in mind, it is not a very cheap journey. A round-trip ticket per person is 700 liras and one-way for a vehicle is 1250 liras. By the way the ferry's last trip departing from Datça is at 16:00.

In Turkish TV series, I used to see café or shop owners and employees frequently sitting out on the street like this, drinking coffee, smoking and chatting. I thought this only happened in TV shows, but it turns out it’s real.

After walking a bit along the promenade, we headed towards the Mausoleum, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. The Mausoleum withstood all invasions and sieges, remaining standing until the 15th century, but it was destroyed by a series of earthquakes in the late 14th century. By the way, some of its stones and statues were used by the Crusader knights in the construction of the St. Peter castle. Unfortunately, since only ruins are left of the Mausoleum, we decided not to go there.

After seeing the Mausoleum of Halicarnassus, we entered streets and side roads so narrow that cars could barely pass between the houses. But this was very interesting because we got to peek into some Turkish courtyards and see how the local people live. This definitely added an authentic vibe to our walk. Though, since we stayed until after sunset, it got a bit late. I advise you to explore these streets while it is still daylight, when the sun is out. Because those white walls reflect the light beautifully. I am sure there will be magnificent light to see the charming houses here during your walk. Yes, you have to stop and make way for cars or motorcyclists when they pass by. Still, it is an incredibly atmospheric place and I definitely recommend seeing these streets of Bodrum along with the other tourist spots.

My hotel room in Bodrum was clean and nice. A double bed and finally, that unnecessary third bed they always give us in other hotels for some reason was not there. The balcony had a garden and pool view. The most interesting part was that this room cost me around 43 Dollars for two nights, including breakfast, thanks to a crazy discount on Booking. I was in shock myself, I didn't quite understand what happened, but that's how it was.

Kuşadası was a completely brand-new city on my route, coming from Bodrum. I'm starting to get a bit confused among the cities we visited, but this is a very interesting and unique city, known in ancient times as Phygela or the city's port Scalanova, which was a very important Greek port and trading point. Back in the day many ships, travelers and merchants would stop here and life was practically buzzing. Later during the Byzantine and Ottoman periods, the city took its current name, Kuşadası. It has a very beautiful, wide promenade, offering a great view of the entire city. You can walk while watching the landscape stretching out before you.

Also this city is said to have a climate of its own. It supposedly never gets sweltering hot here. In summer, spring and autumn, the temperature always stays at a quite comfortable level. Its sea is also warm, making it easy to swim.

Kuşadası is famous for its charming nature and rich historical heritage. The ancient city of Ephesus, which I planned to go to, was very close to here. Also close to Kuşadası are the ancient cities of Priene and Miletus. Their history is also very rich, but if I aimed to visit all the ancient sites and old Greek cities in Turkey, my journey would probably take a year. Unfortunately I didn't have that much time.

I also really liked this modern walking area built along the promenade. It stretches from one end of the port to the other. I arrived at the departure point for ships going on boat tours near Kuşadası. The main reference point so as not to get lost is Kuşadası Castle. This is already the port where many different boats dock. Prices for a one-hour sea tour started from 300 liras. The captain said 20 people were needed to set sail, so we sat and waited for a while.

In the cities we visited before, prices were really expensive. Considering that tourist activities in Turkey are generally not cheap, I had decided to wait a bit. Finally I found Kuşadası and upon my friend's recommendation, I came to the port and went on this sea voyage. Believe me, such prices were nowhere to be found. They were offering us 2000 liras, 3000 liras, which was not cheap at all.

The main pedestrian street in Kuşadası passes right by the caravanserai. So in the evenings, you can walk on this beautiful street and admire the walls of the caravanserai. Since it was a bit late, we thought the caravanserai had closed. But as we passed by, we saw that the gates were open and of course, we didn’t miss this opportunity. We went inside to see the inner courtyard.

There were basically two reasons for us to come to Kuşadası. To do a boat tour and because it is quite close to Ephesus. We liked the boat tour very much. The sunset tour was really legendary. The city looks very good from the boat. That whole panorama looks really beautiful. That's why we recommend coming to Kuşadası just for this tour and to visit Ephesus afterwards. It's very close anyway.

The hotel I stayed at was located in a historical old house where a Turkish family used to live. According to what the hotel owner said, the house was over 100 years old, but exactly how old is unknown. The room was very nice and very well equipped. TV, tea corner, water, safe, wardrobe, air conditioning, a large bed. In principle, everything is there. Looking out into the hotel courtyard from the window of the common room, the view reminded me of Georgia for a moment.
The hotel has a total of 10 rooms, a fairly small place but made with attention to detail and in traditional Turkish style. Its courtyard is especially beautiful.

The next city on my journey was Ephesus, which is ancient, massive and very impressive. But that is a whole different story.