Gokce Hotel

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Tucked away over a mountain or a 40 min boat trip from Marmaris lies the idyllic bay of Turunc. You fly to Dalaman and it takes approx 2 hrs to reach Marmaris from where your operator arranges a “taxi” over the 400m high mountain. In the early hours, the view from the top is spectacular and even better during sunlight. The taxi drive might be a bit hair-raising as the road over the mountain hasn’t been modernised yet, but the locals sure know the roads well!
Arriving at The Gocke hotel, 5 mins walk from the beach, I was greeted by the owners who showed us to a clean pool- view room on landing 2 of its 3 storeys. There was air-conditioning at a local charge, but we made a deal with the owners and got it much reduced. I always think if you’re polite and friendly, most locals will go out of their way to help.
The pool was fantastic. clean, with bar to refresh you at lunchtime with sandwiches and water and plenty of sunbeds. In fact the place wasn’t full at all as were NONE of the hotels in Turunc. Its worth booking the hotel and buying flights separately...they’re only £10 per night. The staff and owners were extremely helpful although few spoke much English but they loved it if you tried to speak Turkish.
Breakfast was typically Turkish, salad/tomatoes/ham/cheese and if you ask for a Turkish coffee, they’ll make you one..free!
After breakfast, we took a 5 min maximum stroll to the main street. Because it’s a little bay, away from the hustle and bustle of Marmaris, and although there were tourists (mostly on day trips from Marmaris) the streets weren’t packed. In fact, although it was Aug, it felt like early season.
The main street has lots of restaurants similarly priced and all of equal quality. The food REALLY was excellent. I stuck to local foods rather than anything with chips and I wasn’t disappointed. An average meal, bread to start, wine and food cost approx £6 a head. Local RAKI (ouzo to us Brits) was often free and they gave children free squash and water whenever I asked.
Jewellery shops, souvenir shops, local hole-in-the-wall etc were all there a-plenty so you didn’t need to run out of ideas.
The bars were great - catering for the younger tourists (although no “lager louts” were visible at any time of our stay). Families, couples and all ages took to the evening entertainment and drinks were usual prices £2 a cocktail etc/spirits-local beer somewhat cheaper. Bars stayed open till 1am and at weekends, later till 3am.
The beach was narrow, man-made and had the usual array of sea-front restaurants all crying out for your custom. This was the only letdown of the whole place. Mind you, the pool was much better at keeping us cool. there were plenty of watersports ongoing which could be booked at the marina.
The local taxi-boats went regularly to Marmaris and Icmeler (every 30 mins for £2 return) and you could book day trips to Rhodes etc, which is only across the water an hour away. In addition, there were other local boat-trips which were well worth going on and I thoroughly recommend. You could book with your operator or more cheaply by Travel Agents on the main street or on the Marina quayside itself. For those who prefer dry land, the local Dolmus (minibus taxi) called each hour to return to Icmeler or Marmaris over the mountain. Nerves of steel required for this trip!
All in all, the holiday was peaceful, relaxing and gave me a thought that there must be plenty of other little “Bays” in and around the Turkish coast that often become overlooked because of their close association to Marmaris or the likes.
If you want a brilliant holiday without the crowds, go to Turunc...you’ll not regret it.