Seven Trips Deep: Why We Keep Returning to Türkiye (And our exact route this summer)
The first time I visited Türkiye nearly 15 years ago, I stood in awe at the Blue Mosque, I got completely overwhelmed in the Grand Bazaar (without buying anything), and took a sunrise hot air balloon ride in Cappadocia in freezing temperatures. Turkiye is wonderous, beautiful, but these touristy activities are just the surface. Seven trips later, we look at the map completely differently. These days, we skip the old city of Istanbul for neighbourhoods with genuine local flavour; we’ve driven along the wild Black Sea coast to see the Sumela Monastery and through the centre to Adana and up the Antalian coast to Epheseus. This summer, we are bypassing those all-inclusive resorts of Antalya to head back to the raw, sun-bleached grit of Kaş and the Fethiye coast. Here is why Turkiye remains our favourite modern fusion destination; and how our strategy has evolved over a decade of visits.
Trying to avoid the touristy things in 2015 - not sure where this scene is supposed to be - ha!
Firstly, Old City, Istanbul is brilliantly enigmatic on a first, or even second visit. After a while though, the tourist-sellers become tiresome and superficial. Real Turkiye is more connective; with local customs, language, and embdedded cultutal history. When we go to Istanbul (which we often do as our last shopping stop before returning to Addis), we stay in Zeytinburnu on the outskirts of Istanbul. The restaurant district of Fisekhane on the edge of the Sea of Marmara are full of authentic turkish flavour and personality. We’ll be heading here after a long-awaited week in Kaş.
Our itinerary this summer isn’t a about flashy all-inclusives where we sit by the pool all day (if we can nab a spot); it’s an intentional return to the pockets of this country that refuse to be touristy. We almost booked this week in Bodrum which we’ve always avoided because it’s an all-inclusive hotspot but, instead, we’re bypassing the driving and the ultra-relaxation protocols, and heading straight for the sharp, sun-bleached limestone cliffs of the Lycian coast.
Lion’s Tomb in the centre of Kaş courtesy of Trip Advisor.
First, we are flying into Antalya before driving the spectacular coastal shelf down to Kaş. If you’ve never been, Kaş is the ultimate modern fusion sweet spot. It’s a town where unlabelled ancient Lycian sarcophagi are literally casual obstacles in the middle of modern cobblestone shopping streets, and where bohemian design-led cafes sit right next to gritty, graffitied fisherman docks. It’s entirely authentic, fiercely independent, and has a raw Mediterranean texture that puts Western Europe's overpriced beach clubs to absolute shame.
We’ve been wanting to get to Kaş for years now but it’s pretty out-of-the-way. From Istanbul, we’re flying to Antalya (although for a little more $ you can fly into Dalaman airport) and then getting a transfer (for a cool 125 euros - actually pretty cheap considering the other prices I’ve seen) for 3.5 hours to our hotel on the Kaş mountainside. Kaş is full of cobble-stone streets, quaint seafood restaurants, and turquioise waters. And, it’s also known for some cool dive sites… even a nearby sunken city. Apart from diving, there are heaps of other activities to do; horse-riding, snorkeling boat rides, and even a trip to a nearby Greek island, Meis (which we’ll be doing for $30 each). We can’t wait to taste the Turkish breakfasts again - often served with up to 20 small tasting bowls that include hummus, olives, fruits, breads, and sausages. And, all without the usual price-tag of the Mediterranean.
It is exactly this blend of family adventure, historical depth, and unpretentious design that makes Türkiye our undisputed modern fusion favorite. It's a place where you can dive down to a sunken ancient ruin one morning, hop a ferry to a tiny Greek harbor the next, and collapse into a beautifully curated coastal boutique hotel anytime… all without the staggering price tag or the stuffy, velvet-rope exclusivity of the French Riviera or the Italian coast.
Seven trips deep, and the magic of this absolute crossroads of the world hasn't faded. The strategy is locked, the transfer is booked, and the kids are prepped for long, winding coastal drives (our secret weapon? Tiring them out so intensely beforehand that they’ll sleep the entire 3.5-hour journey).
We're about to step back past the tourist curtain, and I’m taking you behind the scenes for the whole ride. Pack your bags; we're going to Kaş.
