New draft of Sept itinerary

Sounds like a great itinerary!

A few random comments:

• You probably already know that it's a fairly long drive from Cesme to Pergamon. Even with a longish drive, I would make the effort to visit Pergamon. It's one of the best of the ancient cities. (It's a shame that the Germans walked away with huge chunks of it many years ago.) One word of warning: traffic in Izmir can be a nightmare at rush hour. Time your travel through Izmir accordingly.

• I would definitely pick Antalya over Alanya, especially if you don't have a car. The transit system in Antalya is very well developed, and it's super easy to get around without a car. Also, while Antalya definitely has a nightlife/party scene, Alanya revolves around the nightlife. If I were in the 18-25 age range, I might choose Alanya; otherwise, Antalya is a better bet.

• Speaking of Antalya, I would definitely recommend staying in Kaleici (old town). Kaleici has a lot more transit options and a lot more options for walking and exploring. There are a lot of very nice resort hotels out from town, but they cater more to the beach club set.

• If I had two full days in Antalya, I would do:
  -- Day 1: Perge in the morning; Antalya Archaeological Museum in the afternoon.
  -- Day 2: Termessos in the morning (there's definitely some uphill hiking, but it's totally worth it if you are in half decent shape). Wander Kaleici in the afternoon. (Also, there is a lot of very good food for very little money north of Ataturk Caddesi.)

• We were extremely happy with Royal Balloons in Cappadocia, but it is just one of many reputable companies. Definitely make reservations in advance, and schedule your balloon ride for your first morning. There is always the possibility of balloon flights being canceled because of weather, and so it's best to plan to take your flight your first day.

Thank you for the detailed feedback, @Marie! Any and all info is helpful.

I posted this draft itinerary on another website's forum and got some good feedback. Some of it conflicts with the good feedback I've gotten here. I'd love to hear from @Marie and others as to their thoughts on these.

• other responder suggested NOT staying in old town Antalya because it's so noisy. @Marie suggests we do stay there due to transportation access. Is there an area that is a good balance of quiet and accessibility? Any specific lodging that folks have experience with?
• other responder suggested staying in Bodrum instead of Datça. I've read that Bodrum is lovely but more of a tourist magnet (and therefore likely pricier). Datça looked lovely in the photos, was at the end of the ferry, and I thought it might be less touristy. Comments?
• other responder suggested adding an extra day to Antalya since there are so many places to see. If so, where might we remove a day?
• other responder suggested skipping Çeşme. A former neighbor has family in the Çeşme area and has visited there most every summer since childhood. She sent me all kinds of places to see there and waxed on about how lovely it is. I understand much of that may be sentimentalism, but she also sent some cool info. Anyone have any independent info about the area? He/she suggested instead spending time around Kusadasi.

General question: if you had a month to spend in Western Turkey and loved the water, nature, history, and culture without the need for pampering or night life... how would you spend your time?

other responder suggested NOT staying in old town Antalya because it's
so noisy. @Marie suggests we do stay there due to transportation
access. Is there an area that is a good balance of quiet and
accessibility? Any specific lodging that folks have experience with?

I have stayed in Antalya four times: 2 nights + 1 week at the Akra, and 2 weeks + 2 weeks in Kaleici/Old Town. Kaleici would be my choice without hesitation. I have heard other people talk about the noise in Kaleici, but, honestly, I had more issues with noise at the Akra than in Kaleici. Having said that, I would take a look at Google Maps and TripAdvisor reviews before picking a specific hotel.

I stayed at the Eski Masal hotel in Kaleici for two weeks in May 2022, and I loved it. It is a small, family-run hotel with only seven rooms. I absolutely loved it. It was quiet, comfortable and peaceful.

I stayed at an AirBnB for two weeks in April 2023, which I also enjoyed. Although it wasn't as luxurious as the Eski Masal, the $30/night price (probably more now) was quite appealing. (My 87 year old mom cooked up a trip to Jordan and Israel that started a week after my stay in Antalya, and so I was dealing with funding an extra week in Turkey as well as paying my share of the trip with mom.) I think the AirBnB place advertises itself on the hotel booking sites as "Defne Suites." It is a restored Ottoman mansion that is owner-occupied. A young couple and their small child lived upstairs, and they rented out two apartments downstairs. It was clean, quiet and spacious. I would stay there again.

Other hotels that have caught my attention during walks around Kaleici include:

• Tuvana Hotel
• Char Me Hotel
• Puding Marina (has a good reputation)
• Ruin Adalya (has a gorgeous courtyard, and certainly caught my attention. Not for the budget-conscious, I suspect.)
• Dogan Hotel (may have a lot of stairs)

My neighbors stayed at the Argos Hotel, just a few blocks from Eski Masal, and they did have issues with noise. A few blocks can make a big difference in Kaleici.

There are bunches of small boutique hotels to suit just about any budget. Let me know if you have any in mind, and I might be able to give more feedback about location and possible noise levels.

other responder suggested staying in Bodrum instead of Datça.

I haven't been to either Bodrum of Datca. Bodrum is definitely on my bucket list, though.

other responder suggested adding an extra day to Antalya since there
are so many places to see. If so, where might we remove a day?

I didn't especially care for Antalya on my first visit, finding a little too glitzy and artificial. On subsequent visits, when I stayed closer to the city center, I became quite fond of it. I certainly never ran out of things to do.

I am not sure where to cut a day.

other responder suggested skipping Çeşme. ,... He/she suggested instead spending
time around Kusadasi.

I haven't been to Cesme. Izmir was our base for visits to Pergamon and Ephesus. (I am not sure that I would recommend staying in Izmir.)

General question: if you had a month to spend in Western Turkey and
loved the water, nature, history, and culture without the need for
pampering or night life... how would you spend your time?

I think you have a great itinerary. Personally, I can't get enough of the ancient sites, especially when they aren't overrun with crowds. The places I have loved the most:

• gulet cruise
• anything between Dalyan and Antalya (probably between Bodrum and Antalya, but I haven't been to Bodrum)
• Termessos
• Aphrodisias
• Sagalassos

As for pampering, I would highly recommend treating yourself to a hamam (or two, or three, or four) during your trip.

More random comments for you:

Pergamon — I don’t know the logistics of getting there from Cesme, but I’d suggest keeping it in your itinerary if possible. The ruins on top of the hill, and the steep amphitheater, were so evocative. Even more than Ephesus for me.

Datca — A very small town. We stayed there so we could visit Knidos — a huge archeological site slowly being restored. Easy to visualize how it must have been. We went to Datca by bus from Dalyan, and from Datca to Knidos by boat. I think our hotel name was Fuda — along the sea yet close to town. If you go there I can verify that.

Bodrum — We didn’t stay there but I know it’s a larger city with lots to do.

Patara — you didn’t mention this but I thought I’d offer another option. It’s a tiny place between Fethiye & Kas, with miles of sandy beach, another archeological site, and our favorite hotel in Turkey: Akay Pension, run by a lovely family. Very inexpensive. They had a small restaurant with the best food we had in Turkey. Every morning they would tell us the evening menu & we could choose to eat there or not. Not sure if they still do this — you’d need to check. We did day trips from Patara to Kas (for the sunken city boat tour) and to Saklikent Gorge.

You also didn’t mention Dalyan, another of our favorites. Here we took a river cruise & had a mud bath & saw Lycian tombs on the riverbank. There’s a sea turtle nesting beach & hospital. We had a lovely hotel which I could send you.

We did not visit Antalya, except to fly there from Cappadocia.Where you should definitely take a balloon ride. We used Butterfly Balloons. It was years ago though.

Here was our itinerary: Istanbul, fly to Cappadocia, fly to Antalya & taxi directly to Patara. Then dolmus to Dalyan, to Datca and then Marmaris. Then ferry to Rhodes.

Our visits to Ephesus & Pergamon were both day trips from Greek islands (Samos & Lesvos). And that’s my Turkey experience. Loved it.

Thank you for your wonderful "random thoughts", @Charlene. They were most helpful, especially the specifics.

• We did not include Patara since we will hope to be on a one-way gulet trip between Fethiye and Demre. It sounds like a charming spot, though.
• I was really interested in going to Dalyan, both for the rock tombs and the turtles, but at present we only have an overnight scheduled in Fethiye. I'd love to make that two nights so we could make Dalyan happen, but then I'd have to take from somewhere else. (The perpetual problem.) Weare planning to visit the rock tombs near Demre.
• I'm trying to decide between Bodrum and Marmaris as a base point. There are many places we'd like to see in Bodrum, but Marmaris seems less touristy. Perhaps we'll just find someplace a bit outside Bodrum.
  
• You are the second person who has recommended Butterfly Balloons. I'll look into them.

Again, thanks for your thoughts. Anything else that you would like to share would be appreciated!

Well, we finally got an itinerary figured out. Exactly what we're going to see each day we're in each locale is still flexible, but where we're staying and how many days in each is now set A big thanks to all who have offered feedback, either here or in DMs!

• Tue, 03-Sep Arrive Istanbul. Mosques. Cistern. Bosphorus cruise. Topkapi Palace. Spice bazarre (Istanbul 5N)
• Sun, 08-Sep Fly to Izmir. Rent car. Drive to Bergama. Pergamon. Opt: Manisa (Bergama 1N)
• Mon, 09-Sep Drive to Çeşme (Çeşme 3N)
• Thu, 12-Sep Drive to Selçuk. Ephesus (ruins, museum, House of Virgin Mary); Aydin (Selçuk 3N)
• Sun, 15-Sep Drive to Didim, visiting Priene, Milet, + possibly Herakliea en route. Didyma (Didim 1N)
• Mon, 16-Sep Drive to Marmaris. Drop car. Afternoon ferry to Rhodes. Opt: Acropolis of Lindos, medieval walled city, Kamiros, Ialissos, Tsambika beaches, Agathi, Jacob's Canyon (Rhodes 4N)
• Fri, 20-Sep Afternoon ferry to Fethiye. (Fethiye 1N)
• Sat, 21-Sep Gulet trip: Fethiye to Demre (gulet 3N)
• Tue, 24-Sep Embark Demre. Opt: Olympos, Phaselis (Demre 2N)
• Thu, 26-Sep Dolmus to Antalya. Opt: Perge, Antalya Archaeological Museum; Termessos, Kaleici; Aspendos (Antalya 4N)
• Mon, 30-Sep Fly to Cappadocia. Rent car. Opt: Tuz Gölü, hot air balloon, underground city (Göreme 3N)
• Thu, 03-Oct Drop car. Fly to Istanbul. (Istanbul 1N)
• Fri, 04-Oct Depart Istanbul

That sounds like a very well planned trip. You’re going to see some amazing sights. I hope you have a wonderful time & write a trip report when you return.