Holidays in Oludeniz

Who goes there?
Oludeniz is popular mainly with the British, the family market, and the cheaper end of the market although there are also some younger couples. This is not hard core party territory.
Where in the world?
Oludeniz is situated on the southwest coast of Turkey, 17km (12 miles) south of Fethiye. The resort climbs up a narrow valley overlooking a picture-perfect lagoon and pine forest with the Taurus Mountains behind and the Mediterranean Sea in front.
Beach
The whole lagoon is lined by shallow sloping golden sand and almost still water. The sand is a little gritty, but other than that, it is the absolutely perfect beach for small children. If you go round to the forested side, there’s even room to camp out in the shade under the pines and protect fair northern skins. You will be sharing the beach with various watersports enthusiasts so will need to keep an eye open for collisions. On the far side of the sand spit, facing the open sea, Belcekiz Beach drops away steeply and has no shade, so is generally colonised by grown-up sun-worshippers. Quieter Kidrak Beach is a couple of kilometres away to the east.
Beyond the beach
Oludeniz itself really has very little beyond the beach, but you don’t have to go far to entertain yourself. Just up the hill, near Hisaronu, Kaya Köy is a haunting deserted village abandoned by the Greeks thrown out of Turkey in 1924. Turks coming back from Greece thought it cursed and refused to move in and only now are the first few houses being restored. Take to a boat for a trip along to Butterfly Valley, a hidden Shangri La with a delightful beach and walks up through butterfly-rich meadows to a waterfall. Or head into the local market town of Fethiye for some retail therapy and a Turkish bath. There are dive sites off the coast and Babadag, the mountain above Oludeniz has become one of the world’s great para-gliding centres – you can do a course and go solo, or take a tandem flight, landing on the beach. The great Lycian Way trekking route goes past the door.
Family fun
This is family holiday territory. Most of the hotels in the area are very child-friendly and some of the larger resorts run kids’ clubs. There are gentler watersports such as banana boats on offer on the lagoon and boat trips with snorkelling. Older teenagers could take a PADI diving course or learn to paraglide. The hills behind the resort are filled with wonderful walks and hikes, wild flowers and birds, and there are places to hire mountain bikes, ride horses, go canoeing or white-water rafting or take a jeep safari. Ruins are good for scrambling as well as history.
Retail therapy
Don’t expect to find many exciting shops in Oludeniz or its satellites, although you will find plenty of places to buy cheap and cheerful souvenirs and designer fakes (watches, sunglasses and clothes). Turkey makes clothes for many of the world’s great labels, so you may find exactly the same product with a slightly different logo at a fraction of the price. Kayaköy is turning into a mini-designer market with a couple of excellent clothes shops and a superb carpet weavers’ coop – well worth a visit. For fine carpets, leather and jewellery, head into Fethiye, which also has an excellent Tuesday market.
A night on the town
Oludeniz isn’t really the place to be if you are looking for a serious night on the tiles. There are a few bars down on the seafront that stay open and approach something like a party atmosphere. The Buzz Bar and Help are probably the best. Crusoes and NJoy (Carsi Caddesi, Belcekiz Beach) provide serious decibels for dancers, but the resort of Hisaronu has more of a choice of clubs and there are a couple of places in Fethiye too. The larger resorts have entertainment in-house.
Eating out
Most of the restaurants and cafes in Oludeniz are geared for British families and serve unadventurous international cuisine alongside the ubiquitous kebabs. The beach bars will do steak and pizza with the beer and pounding music and there are a couple of fine restaurants too (see Splashing Out).
Getting around
Oludeniz itself is small enough to get around on foot, but in the heat, the hills may prove too much and you will need transport to shuttle between Hisaronu and Ovacik. Many of the larger resorts run their own shuttle buses down to the beach. Otherwise there are plenty of dolmus (shared minibus taxis) that cover the whole area. If reasonably fit, you could think of hiring a bike. There are sightseeing tours of all sorts and car hire companies if you want to spend a day exploring on your own.
Exploring further afield
Oludeniz sits in the middle of a ring of magnificent ancient ruined cities of which the finest is undoubtedly Xanthos (67km/42 miles), capital of the Lycian Federation, whose population committed mass suicide three times rather than admit defeat. Nearby the Letoön is a charming temple complex now largely taken over by frogs. Combine a trip to the smaller sites of Tlos and Pinara with an afternoon in the shady depths of the canyon at Saklikent (45km/30 miles) where an icy river tumbles through the steep rock walls. Or visit the dune-swept Patara, where the half-buried city leads onto a magnificent 18km (12 mile) white sand beach. It was here that St Nicholas (aka Father Christmas) was born in the 4th century AD. Finally, back near the airport at Dalaman, take a boat through the reed beds to ancient Kaunos or upstream through Koycegiz Lake to the mud baths where you can wallow to the delight of your inner child and your skin.

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Category: Travel