"Quick" Review

[chrispegler]

Recently had a 2 week stay in Kalkan and thought I'd do a "quick" review for anyone researching holidays in Turkey. We stayed in a villa in the Komurluk area during 2nd half August. Would prefer May or October when cooler but with children, not really possible.

Location
+ Gorgeous views from Komurluk and great for late sun when temperature is more bearable.
+ Amazing villa booked through the owners direct site.
- No shops in Komurluk. Ordered water cooler bottles & bread from guy who took care of villa.
- Steep, dodgy roads so not recommended for car hire.

Restaurants & Bars
+ Many good rooftop terraces to choose from: Fez for food; Gironda for cocktail waiting area & live music; Agora for ambience; Escudo for service; Gourmet for the overall rooftop restaurant experience.
+ I preferred eating at ground level to feel more part of the place: at Korsan we were literally in the street in a good atmosphere; Alternatif was very funny with OTT birthday celebrations and funky music.
+ Ada's Patisserie superb for Turkish Breakfast and getting away from other Brits. Felt like we were really travelling as it seemed to have people from many other countries, but mainly from Turkey. Also great for pastries.
+ Cafe Leon was run by a charming couple who were extremely helpful. Very good English Breakfast but don't go if you don't like dogs!
+ Food and wines in Kalkan are of high quality for a med tourist resort. Genuinely spoilt for choice. Surprised by the quality of Turkish wine.
- Not greatly impressed by the bars in Kalkan. Particularly the ones in the centre that have large TV screens. Hope this isn't going to become a feature of all bars there. But loved the blues, jazz and soul music at Kaptan.

Shopping
+ Migros (the new one) was our favourite - enjoyable place to shop and good range. Yali was ok but not as good as expected.
+ Numerous good little shops in the centre of Kalkan selling reasonable quality goods. Lots of cats & dogs lounging around them, which we liked.

Transport
+ We befriended a very friendly driver from the taxi rank. We'd use him for lifts from the villa and he even helped with the shopping.
+ Caught dolmus from taxi rank to Patara.
+ Airport transfers by Brave Tours minibus were superb.
- Several of the taxi drivers have no idea about dealing with tourists and are hilariously grumpy, but this was only a minority of them.

Trips
+ The Yildiz family-run evening boat trip was absolutely wonderful: eating very good food with friendly tourists and watching the shooting stars while lying on a boat with a drink in hand. This was an evening of genuine bliss.
+ Paragliding with Halil (based by Taxi rank) from a fairly high mountain behind Kalkan: superb experience but don't be fooled by anyone - you do take off from the edge of a mountain and this is not for the faint-hearted.
+ Patara beach is surely one of the best beaches on the med? Miles of empty sand and a slightly hippyish village plus the fascinating ruins of an ancient civilisation.
- Saklikent Gorge was a major tourist trap. It was hilarious watching thousands of people squashing themselves into a vaguely interesting ravine and all making a fuss (including me) about walking over rocks. The eateries were fairly atrocious. The highlight was a visit to Xanthos but it was too hot to really appreciate this wonder.

Overall I'd say that Kalkan is a distinctive resort. It isn't for serious travellers who want to experience Turkey and stay in a proper, working village or town (e.g. with fishing boats). And it does show signs of the more wearisome side of tourism (some money grabbing by a minority of the locals we came across, football on the big screens etc.). But it possesses a particular charm and atmosphere that I can't describe. Wish we'd had more time there.

Linkback: https://www.enjoykalkan.com/forum/index.php?topic=10103.0

[HolmfirthNicky]

Really good report Chrispegler. You have some of our favourite restaurants in your list and our fave cafe, Cafe Leon. We had a full English here one morning after having a lie in and missing breakfast, was surprisingly very good! Love your description that it has a certain charm and atmosphere that you can't describe, there is just something about the place that gets under your skin!!

[kevincat99]

A good report and thank goodness someone else doesn't like this proliferation of large screen TV screens everywhere 

People say they want to experience Turkey and complain about places that sell English breakfasts for example and then insist on watching UK sport at every opportunity

Grump over 

[amber]

What an interesting holiday report.Glad you liked the animals but not the large tv screens!!