Hotel and Resort Salmakis, Bodrum: Pleasant All-Inclusive Hotel

Illy has never been a fan of all-inclusive hotels and all-inclusive tourism in the Mediterranean areas, be it in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Malta, Greece or Turkey. But she is a big fan of Bodrum, the ancient city of Halikarnassós and home town of Herodotus, so she was kind of introduced to several all-inclusive resort hotels in the Bodrum areas over the years. 

Admittedly some of these all-inclusive resorts are truly horrid - full of loud, half-naked randy drunken tourists  and noisy children on packaged tours, and the food and service of the resorts were far from being satisfactory - but there have been a few decent ones as well. Salmakis Spa and Resort is one of those all-inclusive places which is actually worth a mention.

Located at a part of town known as Bardaci, Salmakis Resort has its own private beach and a great view of the Castle of St. Peter and the Bodrum Bay. The resort complex, built along a slope overlooking the bay of Bodrum, can be reached by water taxi boat from the Bodrum harbour, or alternatively by car and dolmus from the bus station in downtown Bodrum.
 

Water taxi is a far more scenic and interesting way to get to Salmakis Resort than by car or dolmus. For a small fee (about 2 TL) you can enjoy a 5-minute scenic boat ride across the picturesque Bodrum marina, have a good frontal view of the Castle of St. Peter, and arrive at the private ferry pier of the resort right at the beginning of the hotel compound. Follow the waterfront sidewalk lined with sun loungers and tourists tanning themselves, you will see the open air cafe area and stairs leading up to the hotel complex and the swimming pool areas.

The architectural style of the resort is a somewhat clumsy effort to replicate the famous blue-and-white houses of the Greek Cyclades islands. I am not a fan of such kitschy stuff, but at least it is optically slightly more pleasing than the outright high-rise concrete drabby apartment buildings so commonly found in other Turkish resorts on the Aegean and the Mediterranean coast.

The private beach of Salmakis Resort is a bit small, but the view is great and there are ample sun loungers for everyone, hence no need to wake up at 5 in the morning and reserve your place in the sun with your bathroom towel :)

The public areas consist of a big swimming pool (with separate children's pool), al fresco dining areas, beach bars and cafes, sandy beach and sun deck for those who prefer to swim or dive in the Aegean, and a landscaped garden with lots of olive trees, palm trees and other exotic faunas and floras.

What I like most about Salmakis Resort is its location that offers one of the most splendid views of Bodrum bay, the marina, the Castle of St. Peter and the countless white-washed houses that dotted all over the hillsides overlooking Bodrum. The view is so typically and essentially Bodrum, it is hard to mistaken it for any other place on earth.

Imagine a candle light dinner or a hearty breakfast under the bright blue sunny Aegean sky, accompanied by such marvellous views of this historic town ...

Throughout the day, yachts and gulets of all shapes and sizes sail the sea in front of the hotel's open terrace. During the annual Bodrum Cup yacht regatta in September, this part of town is a good place to enjoy the spectacle of the yacht race if you are a fan of yachting and sailing activities. The hotel compound and the swimming pool are not open to non-residents, but you can walk around the landscaped gardens and enjoy a glass of drink at the seafront and poolside bars of the hotel.

This is amongst my favourite view of Bodrum, with the hills full of scattered olive trees, the castle, the gulets and the yachts, the sea, and the characteristic white flat-roof cube-shaped houses so typical of Bodrum.

Here is a brief tour of the hotel compound:

The sea-facing rooms of the resort with individual balconies, some rooms have open terrace reachable via the French door.

The view from the sea-facing rooms are simply fascinating.

Those who are given land-side facing rooms (cheaper price compared to rooms with seaviews) have to put up with the views of neighbouring hotel complex instead. 

The lobby and reception area of the hotel is located all the way up the hill at the very top of the whole resort complex. Elevated ceilings and big windowns give the whole place a brightly lit interior and an airy atmosphere.

One corner of the hotel lobby has been modelled into a kind of 'Ottoman corner', with Turkish-themed blue tiles, ornate woodwork decorations and traditional furnitures.

The hotel is open all year round. In the summer months, rooms tend to be booked out quite well in advance by package tour operators from Europe, it is advisable to book well ahead if you intend to travel during the high seasons.

Copyrights@2011. All text and photos by Illy the Shiba Inu. All Rights Reserved.