After arriving yesterday in Akyaka and exploring a bit of the town, we just fell in love with it. Akyaka is situated at the end the Gulf of Gökova, not far from Marmaris, a popular tourist destination. Apart from local tourism Akyaka hasn’t been overrun by big resorts. The town starts at the bay and runs up a fairly steep hill towards the vertical cliffs of the coastal mountains.
The town is famous for its new but old architecture based on old houses from the local Ulla village. The distinctly turkish styled houses are painted white and highlighted with brown fittings which give them a great contrast. With the use of hexagonal shapes their main features are double stairs, overhanging roofs, wooden doors and shutters, wooden balconies and on some overhanging balcony seating. The town has a uniform building code so new constructions are governed in style. Another highlight are the stone walled gardens topped with wrought iron which surround the houses. Taking a walk through town at this time of year the houses look really quaint with all the wisteria in flower.
The Azmak river runs along the edge of town separating the town from the marshland beyond. The river which is fed from springs is unbelievably crystal clear and quite fast flowing. Many tour operators operate small boats up the river passing all the restaurants which front the gum tree lined rivers edge and out into the calm waters of the gulf. Unfortunately because its off season there were only a few tour boat operating and we seemed to miss them every time. Akyaka also has a few tours out into the gulf to a few of the nearby islands. Although our Africa Queen style trip up the river through the marshes didn’t eventuate it was quite nice however, to have a drink and meal overlooking the river.
Throughout town there were no shortage of restaurants and cafe’s open.
After breakfast on the balcony we took a stroll along the beach. The beach is packed with bars, restaurants and small hotels. Unlike a lot of tourist towns Akyaka isn’t overrun by big resorts so its got a nice feel. After a walk along the beach we discovered a lovely restaurant on the low cliffs overlooking the bay. We stopped off for coffee but after seeing their Turkish Breakfast we decided to try it out. The food was so good it became our first choice for food.
The chilled atmosphere of Akyaka became pretty addictive so all our plans for exploring the countryside went out the window and instead we sat about watching sailboarders and kite surfers across the bay. In season the bay supposedly is a popular spot for kite boarders and wind surfers. It’s also popular with para gliders who launch off nearby Sakar Pass only 30 miles away.
To the west of Akyaka pine forests extend all the way down to the water. Amongst the forest there’s a few camping grounds, which are a mixture of camping sites and villas. There’s also a few secluded swimming spots attached to the camping grounds which were quite nice. Unfortunately the water was still a little cold to swim in. It was still nice to walk along the coast through the pines and discover the place.
Tomorrow we head to Umzumlu near Fethiye for a housesit. We were so glad that Sandy’s friends suggested we check out Akyaka. It’s the perfect place to get into water-sports or just simply relax and recharge the batteries.
