Teenagers View of a Kalkan Holiday - July 2010

[antler]

 
For anyone thinking of visiting Kalkan for the first time with some spent out GCSE students, here are the comments from The Lads (16 year olds) as they wrapped up their holiday this year. In their words, Kalkan is:
 
OK regarding nightlife, considering the size of the village. We made lots of friends our age from London and the waiters were very friendly
 
VERY good position of the Mediterranean Apartments – we wouldn’t want to be lower down in the village
 
Good for water sports and great out on a boat, with good food
 
Loved the restaurants: really liked KAYA, especially for fillet steak, then Oz Adana & Meydan for Pide’s
 
Café Vita for nice food, atmosphere and waiters are good fun
 
Best Bars:  1. Ignite, 2. Mojito,  3. Chocolate
 
Worst Restaurant – “the white one on the left before the greengrocers – the curry looked like dog food with a sauce on it. We were worried we might have food poisoning”.
 
Omar’s Kitchen for a cheap beer, “but very uncertain about their bill”
 
Great for a good hair cut at Jasmine Coiffeur
 
Great for shopping at the Thursday Market – we bought T’s, Polos, leather wallets – would have bought more jeans with more cash
 
Thought Kalkan Beach Club was “a bit too Benidorm” – chips & burgers everywhere - although good for kids with the slide and small beach access
 
After over two weeks in Kalkan, they were happy to stay and happy to go home as they had had a great time making loads of new friends (who went home a day before them).
 
Costs: They managed on TL50 per day each (£21.74) but Water Sports, taxis -  and a nice dinner roughly every other day  - put on Antler’s card.
 
Perfect Day would be:
 
Get up at 11am. Dive in the pool and swim for an hour or more.
 
Lunch (Pide) at Oz Adana or Meydan or  pizza at Foto
 
Back for another swim, then Water Sports at Indigo – Yamaha 1200cc Jet Skis are brilliant
 
Early pm a beer in the village, dinner at Kaya (Fillet Steak plain or with Mushroom Sauce) or Café Vite for Chili con Carne or Pasta
 
Meet the mates at Ignite and watch the moon come up on the beach
 
Try not to wake Dad getting in at 3am (or 4, or maybe 5?!)
 
And Dad says?  It was great having them there, hearing that they were making new friends in a relatively safe environment. We felt good that they could “cut their teeth in this way”. I think it was a very formative holiday and one they will remember for many years. Fillet Steak and Jet Skis at these prices may not be on the menu everywhere they go, though!
 
The Lads (& Antler)

Linkback: https://www.enjoykalkan.com/forum/index.php?topic=6093.0

[Babs]

we have travelled to Kalkan with teenage girls for the last 4 years and I would say their feelings about Kalkan are the same.....my younger daughter first hit the 'evening scene' at almost 16 and we felt she was perfectly safe and well loked after by her slightly older sister and the locals and will be coming back with us 4 years later in a couple of weeks because she loves it so much
we have always thought Kalkan provides a 'safe as is possible'....I say that because of course nowhere is perfect and they still need to be sensible......environment for teenagers, they meet lots of people their own age and the locals are very friendly and protective (and yes I did say teenage girls!)
 

[kalkan4eva]

Our girls came to Kalkan with us last year when they were 16 and 20 and fell in love with the place - they're coming back with us next year, with our son who is between them in age. They've only been with us once, but everywhere we go - from bars, restaurants to beach clubs they ask where they are and when they are coming back . Its a safer environment than their local haunts in Chester, Liverpool or Manchester, I can tell you!
As they are three adults, the cost of bringing them with us requires a second mortgage so I'm liking that idea of Antler's to give them a budget (and packet soup )to live on...everything has to be equated in terms of bags
 

[Chris B]

Just back from Kalkan yesterday with four teenage boys ages from 16 to 17 ( Jack Brad Oli and Tom ) as Antler says it is difficult to find somewhere for teenagers to Holiday where they can have a degree of freedom but still have Mum and Dad to fall back on.

I think Kalkan fits the bill perfectly I can say that all the lads enjoyed there holiday and after two weeks would have stayed longer.Even though there was a few nights were they were getting about the time of the first call from the Mosque which if that was back in the UK we would be ringing round to see where they were we were fairly relaxed in Kalkan.

the lads met people from all over Turkish and the UK and are all ready asking about going back next year.The favorite places for the Pontecarlo team were

1. Ignite 2. Bar Chocolate 3. Mojito

we also gave them a allowance and it seemed to work may be they bumped in to Oli and his mate as we were there at the same time

Chris B

[antler]

 
 
Hi Chris B,
 
Glad your lads enjoyed it, too. I think they missed each other - but not by very much! They still keep talking about it very fondly, which is nice. I agree totally about them coming back with the first Call to Prayer; I got used to it and it felt kind of OK over there!
 
Maybe next year they will meet up!!
 
cheers
 
Antler