Turkey - help

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I'm hoping mumsnetters can help.

We always create our own independent holidays but after the last few years my teens have requested an all inclusive resort with things to do - no more airbnbs or villas.

I've been googling Turkey and I just can't get my head round where the best places to stay are.

We want to find an upmarket place near the beach/sea with good sized pools. Preferably not in the middle of nowhere as we have an 18 year old and 16 year old. Also not a place overrun with toddlers screaming. We are thinking of combining this with a road trip/few nights in Ephesus and even Capadoccia so ideally somewhere located where that might be possible.

Even if you can't recommend a specific resort if you know what areas are best for a bit of culture but lovely hotels and beaches please post

Thanks.

Fethiye is a relaxed place, it has a harbour, market, some decent shopping, but it's also a proper working town, not entirely reliant on tourism

I would look at the Bodrum area. Bodrum itself is a busy town and harbour. Lots of restaurants and bars. Outside Bodrum there are many smaller resorts such as Bitez ( maybe a bit quiet for teenagers), Yalikavak,Torba, Turgutries. All easy to get to on local buses. Personally I’d not go AI as the food in Turkey is amazing. I travel there 2 or 3 times a year. Love it.

Hi we had a brilliant time at Club Letoonia Fethiye with our three boys, the oldest being a teenager. It's on a private spit so they can be really independent - three different private beaches with diving platforms, watersports included so can try everything as much as they like. Different pools including indoor. There is a boat that goes across to Fethiye throughout the day.
Amazing place we are going back next year! They pick you up from Dalaman airport it's around an hour.

Olu Deniz is wonderful and there are some big all inclusive hotels on the hill leading down to it. My tip is to skip the main olu Deniz beach when you go out and catch a dolmus to the lagoon beaches round the corner. Paradise Beach is probably my favourite place of all time.

I would second what other people have said though and would consider not doing ai. For the price of ai you could easily eat out at some beautiful restaurants ( they always have English food too for those who are fussy), the kids could do activities and you would probably have change left over. It's nicer not to be a slave to set meal times too!

Another recommendation is Gumbet. Some people slate it and we ended up there when our Thomas Cook holiday to Bodrum went down the swanny. I was more than apprehensive but it was lovely with a beautiful beach. Its lively enough for teens, has a regular dolmus day and night to Bodrum and you can also get to Bitez, Turgetris and Torba Bay easily. The boat trip to Camel Beach is fantastic too!

We love Dalyan and have been 6 times - getting out and about by boat is very relaxing

@Inthepark I am just looking at booking this hotel with my two DC (11 and 12 when we go) - glad to hear you like it! What was the food like? Would love to hear more!

The food was great! We went October half term when only the main buffet restaurants were open but thought the standard was fab compared to other AI holidays we have had. The fresh breads were amazing, loads of salads as usual, freshly cooked options as well as the stews. You can get lovely savoury pancakes served on the beach and we liked that the beach bar served a slimmed down lunch which was quieter and meant you didn't have to go to the main restaurant and could stay near the beach but in the shade to eat. Snack time was also plentiful with doughnuts and other treats plus savouries.
My children still talk about the pancakes at breakfast as they were so nice!

I think it's been improved again since we stayed so can't wait to go back. The water slides into the sea look more exciting - the sea is warm and very calm and great for swimming. There were diving platforms off the beaches you could swim out to.
Having the included watersports was a bonus and we made use of that a lot - especially good for older children. They can be really independent as it all feels very safe and easy to get around, but also a big area to explore.
I think we are booking for next may half terms to bit of a wait for us, hope you get there sooner!

@Inthepark can you tell me how busy the Club Letoonia Fethiye was when you went please, and what time of year you went? It's so strange I was just looking at this hotel when I saw this thread and your post! It does look great so pleased to hear you enjoyed it. I SO want to go somewhere lovely this summer.

Years ago I stayed in Hotel Pine Bay in Kusadasi. There was loads to do on site, but only a short trip to get into the town and other beaches. The food was epic, everything from chicken and chips to traditional Turkish cuisine. The dessert stand was to die for!

We were there Oct half term and although it was quite busy, the option of choosing between beaches as well as the other huge spaces around, means it didn't feel crowded.
We wouldn't go in the Summer though as it's over 40 degrees, but there is shade around as it's full of trees. October was perfect weather for us.
Be aware there aren't any other towns nearby except Fethiye which you can get the hotel boat to and is great for a morning/afternoon. There are trips etc on offer to explore further and we did a day long boat trip which was lovely.
If you book direct they used to offer a free pickup in their minibus which we liked and meant one less thing to arrange.

We've got Dalyanitis too! Fabulous place, think it's about 10 times for us and we never usually go back to the same place!