Bodrum and Kos

I must apologise for the recent absence again but I am BACK with a few tales from overseas! On Monday I returned from a relaxing week’s holiday in Bodrum, with a short hop over to the Greek island of Kos.

Usually, I’m fairly adventurous on my travels and will try to explore as much as I can, but after all of the stresses of uni and heavy workloads, I needed a break in which I pretty much did nothing, so booked a week all-inclusive at the Bodrum Holiday Resort and Spa.

My partner and I aren’t big “joiners”, so had worried that a huge all inclusive resort might be a bit full on, but luckily Bodrum Holiday Resort and Spa really does have a bit of something for everyone. We spent most of our days by the relax pool and a few relaxing on the jetties by the sea, which was crystal clear and stunning! The resort also offers a main pool with music and activities (pictured above), which is my own personal idea of hell but great for families or people looking to make friends.

The best thing about all-inclusive holidays is the fact that you can basically eat and drink around the clock. Those of you who have stayed in such places will also know that this can be a drawback, as buffet style dinners get pretty repetitive and often leave me wondering where else I could be eating. The hotel offers two (or three depending on the season) a la carte restaurants and we booked into both the Italian and Fish restaurants for a change. I won’t mention the Italian as it didn’t really impress, but the fish restaurant was absolutely gorgeous!

The meal began with Turkish meze – small, traditional dishes including delicious goats cheese and a white bean salad – and then calamari, sea bream and fruit salad. Everything here tasted fresh and authentic, and we had a really pleasant evening. It also made a really nice change to be somewhere at the hotel where you interacted with the staff and the service here was brilliant. Sadly, in other parts of the hotel it could be a little lacking.

As well as the restaurants, we decided to eat in Bodrum’s city centre on two occasions so that we could explore the local area and try some different food. Bodrum is set around a marina, boasting an old castle and fort ruins on its stunning hillside, so made a beautiful evening setting for dinner. The first place we tried was FaRa, found within the lanes of shops, bars and restaurants towards the marina. From the outside you could see the seating area was by the sea, so we thought it might make a nice dinner setting, but were even more surprised upon being seated to see the stunning view of Bodrum castle! Here we had some more calamari (because calamari) with garlic bread to begin and lamb skewers as a main, served with creamy potatoes, rice, courgette, tomato and aubergine. It made such a nice change to get out of the hotel and experience an authentic restaurant atmosphere in the heart of the town, and the food was really tasty here too.

A few nights later we decided to visit Bodrum for dinner again, and this time I had used TripAdvisor for a few recommendations. After lamb skewers from FaRa and skewered meat from our trip to Kos (which I’ll get onto later!), we decided we were in the mood for something completely different and found a very well reviewed pizzeria called Arka.

If you’re not looking for Arka, you might miss it completely, as it’s set down a narrow alley within the same shopping lanes. But once found, you stumble upon a secret outdoor patio with red gingham covered tables. Arka, we discovered, is a very popular restaurant for locals but doesn’t get as many tourist visits as it deserves from the fact that it is almost concealed. We ordered garlic bread with cheese here and both went for Quattro Formaggi pizzas (4 cheese – my go to in most places).

You could tell the garlic had been roasted and rubbed with oil into the bread as opposed to a more synthetic paste or garlic butter and it was so delicious! I’m not going to claim to be a pizza expert  and don’t know too much about authenticity of dough and such, but I can certainly vouch that these pizzas were huge and extremely tasty! No sogginess or overload of oil either.

What’s more, prices were really quite reasonable and the man who served us for the evening was extremely friendly and courteous. We got chatting to him a little and that’s when we learned how the place was quite a favourite amongst locals. So, whilst not a traditional Turkish meal, this was probably the best experience we had all week, perhaps in a tie with the fish restaurant.

Bodrum town is a lovely place to spend time in the evenings, with plenty of bars serving cocktails and desserts, your usual tourist shops open until very late and a few more lively bar/clubs. We chose a beachfront bar to enjoy some cocktails right on the water, and listen to the waves lapping against the shore.

Sadly, Bodrum is unusually quiet at this time of year, probably as tourist confidence with Turkey is low currently, which makes a very peaceful holiday setting but must also be affecting trade greatly. It was a shame to see the beautiful squares, streets and restaurants so quiet and I only hope that things will pick up again soon as we found Bodrum to be a real delight.

So on to Kos, which just so happens to be a 30 minute catamaran ride away. We spent a day exploring the beautiful ruins of Kos Town, relaxing on the beach and enjoying Greek delicacies for lunch. Again, Kos Town is set around a marina which also boasts its own castle and is home to many traditional tavernas set around the beautiful squares that you imagine in your head when picturing Greece.

A left turn out of the port by the castle took us to a Roman public bath which can still be explored today and for free, and the Hippocrates Plane Tree, considered by some to be the oldest tree in Europe. Surrounding this, we found courtyards of ancient ruins from the 3rd and 4th century, some of which had floor mosaics almost still somewhat in tact. Many of these ruins had survived for centuries until an earthquake delivered the final blow.

We explored the courtyards for some time before deciding to head towards the beach for some drinks and relaxation.

The beachfront is lined with café restaurants and bars, many with their own sun bed section. In a bid for custom, it seems all sun beds are free and hosts desperately try to pull you in to their establishment. We found some to be slightly pushy (although not rude I would add) so walked along for a while until we came across Sola Strand, where we met the owner Hus and were taken in by his warmth and honesty. Hus told us there would be no pressure to order and that he would not interrupt constantly, so we agreed and took some beds by the sea.

A selection of Sola’s cocktails were only €5 here so we ordered a frozen strawberry daiquiri, which was packed full of real strawberries, and a mojito, as well as two beers a little later on. We spent several happy hours here in the sun, chatting to Hus about the island every so often and the charming salesmen wandering the beach to weave bracelets.

With not much time left, we left to find somewhere for a late lunch and headed up towards the Old Town where we settled at Ambrosia, located in a quiet, sunny spot.

Dying for some authentic Greek cuisine, we ordered a small plate of spinach and feta which was dressed with olive oil and exactly what I was looking for! Again, we had some calamari, which I think was the best yet, and ordered some of their specialities. They weren’t dissimilar to koftas, served with tzatziki, rice, chips and salad. A great meal in all, with friendly staff attending to us and massively filling. Afterwards we were very kindly given two small glasses of Raki… for those of you familiar with the spirit you’ll know it is generally around 40% with a strong aniseed taste, but even though our man served it over ice to take the edge off, we still had to admit defeat and leave a lot of it!

The day almost over, we headed further in to the squares of the Old Town to admire the shops, churches and tavernas, as well as buying our obligatory holiday magnet to document our travels. Kos has a wonderful charm about it and we were taken in with all of the sights and wonderful people we met that day.

As with Bodrum, Kos too was extremely quiet for the time of year. Hus informed us that people have stayed away due to the previous influx of migrants on the shores last year. It’s a huge shame as the issue for Kos has since subsided.

I think my main feelings in this post, apart from showing you some beautiful sights and delicious food, surround how wonderful both Bodrum and Kos were to visit and what fascinating cultures thrive in these towns. I would heartily encourage anyone considering these destinations to go and see for themselves the sights and charms. As third place destinations go, we couldn’t have been more relaxed and I feel both Bodrum and Kos have so much to offer different people, from singles and couples to groups of friends and families.

Have you been to Kos or Bodrum recently? Are you thinking of going any time soon? I’d love to know your thoughts if so!