Yacht Charter Bodrum

Yacht Charter Bodrum

A refined yet relentlessly buzzing seaside town on the Aegean Sea, Bodrum is closer in style and attitude to St Tropez than Benidorm.

As with so many cities in Turkey, Bodrum has seen its fair share of empires and history. Built 500 years ago, St Peter's Castle overlooks the town, which was an active port in Byzantine times. You will enjoy the bazaars that have traded for hundreds of years, and get a taste of the 'real Turkey' as you explore its streets and alleys.

Other towns on the Turkish Riviera have made names for themselves as being a bit on the cheap vacation end of the spectrum. This is emphatically not Bodrum's style. This is a vacation town where the wealthiest Turks come to let their hair down. You can see this as soon as the port town appears on the horizon - there are no high rise hotels and the architecture is distinctly Turkish from end to end. The local government has fought hard to keep the style and those that visit it decidedly upmarket.

You will find boutiques that are open to those with more discerning tastes, privately owned yachts in the marinas that aren't cheap to own or run, and people who have a certain cut of their cloth wandering between attractions.

On your Bodrum yacht charter you will notice that many of the hotels have their own jetties - these are both for their customers to enjoy the water and to encourage visiting yachts to moor alongside and take advantage of their hospitality.

Explore Bodrum By Renting A Yacht

On your Bodrum yacht charter, perhaps on your gulet vacation or luxury yacht, finding Bodrum more your style than Marmaris there are two other resorts on the Bodrum Peninsula you should visit - Turgutreis and Yalikavak.

On the west coast of the Bodrum Peninsula and just 20km by road from the main town, Turgutreis shares the laid back, upmarket vibe of the larger town. The marina itself welcomes superyachts and you may see a famous face or two on Artist Street in the marina, looking at the boutiques and art galleries.

Yalikavak lies on the north coast of the Bodrum Peninsula and for those who wish to escape the modern world on your charter yacht, do head across Yalikavak Bay to the hand carved caves close to Kudor - these show the brightest and the best from prehistoric lived in the area too!

Looking back south from Bodrum, the Greek island of Kos is closer than the next major vacation resort of Marmaris. For those who wish to enjoy the Aegean Sea at its best, pausing at this island as you head on to the secluded bays, ancient relics and quieter vacation resorts of the Datca Peninsula could well be an option.

How To Get To Bodrum

There are two Turkish airports that serve Bodrum - Bodrum Airport and Dalaman Airport. You can also fly into Kos and take a ferry over to Bodrum to widen your options - this can be quicker and more reliable than a flight to Dalamanand a bus onward.

Bodrum Airport

Only charter flights fly into Bodrum from the UK and much of Europe in the summer months. If you can only get a sceduled flight then you will have to fly to Istanbul and take a connecting flight on to Bodrum. From there it is a short shuttle bus ride to Bodrum town.

Dalaman Airport

This takes sceduled flights from a number of European airports every day.

For around GBP $12 you would take two buses the 120km or so to Bodrum. After taking the shuttle bus to Dalamanbus station, you will then catch the once daily bus onto Bodrum bus station. The trip involves around 6 hours actual travel time.

Kos Airport

This busy vacation airport administered by Greece has a large number of flights in every week from across Europe.

The car ferry takes around two hours to get between the Greek island and Bodrum. With the bus or taxi it can cost as little as GBP $30 per head to get to Bodrum from Kos Airport.

Marinas In Bodrum

Milta Bodrum Marina is a midsized marina that is well equipped for the discerning sailor. It has a number of yachtcharter companies working into it offering luxury yacht charter, blue voyage (gulet rental) as well as superyacht charter, catamaran, motor yacht and monohull sailing yacht charter on a bareboat or crewed yacht charter basis.

Milta Bodrum Marina:

Berth Characteristics:

475 berths

Max Length 100m (328 Feet)

Max Draught 7m (23 Feet)

List of additional services: Shore power, water, WiFi, fuel, laundry, market, medical center, bar, restaurant, liquid waste and rubbish collection, yacht repair, ATM

Suggested Sailing Routes From Bodrum

Whether on a seven or 14 day, bareboat or blue cruise Bodrum yacht charter, you have a number of options to consider on your sailing vacation. Here we will make some suggestions for you to consider.

7 days - Bodrum Peninsula and Greek islands: Without doing too many sea miles every day you can take in the best of the Turkish Riviera and even sail into Greek waters. Yalikavak and Turgutreis share Bodrum's upmarket resort attitude, and you can explore the ancient ruins nearby as you wish. Perhaps after an excursion in Yalikavak you can head south to the Greek vacation islands of Symi and Kos. Both have their share of hidden bays and beautiful beaches as well as relics from the civilisations that ran the region for thousands of years.

14 days - Datca Peninsula and Greek islands: You don't have to visit Marmaris to enjoy the Datca Peninsula! Orhaniye on the north coast is surrounded by pine forest and has relics of the ancient kingdom of Bybassos. The Carian ruins of Knidos will give you lots to photograph too!The Bozburun Peninsula has many such remains too. As well as these Turkish mainland and islands, you can also head to the Greek islands of Kos and Symi - these will shorten a sail across the Gokova Gulf and Hisarönü Gulf as you explore the region.

Best Times To Rent A Yacht In Bodrum

The sailing season runs from April to October in Bodrum. July and August are the busiest months for an Bodrum yachtcharter. This is also when the NE wind the Meltemi peaks in strength. Though this makes for a cooling blast from the fierce heat of summer, it can be challenging for all but the most experienced sailors.

With the Meltemi less powerful outside of the peak season - and the marinas and sailing waters less crowded - it may pay off to do a sailing vacation either later in the year or earlier - if you can get out in May or October you may find things calmer both in terms of crowds and winds!

Sailing Weather In Bodrum

The Meltemi winds dominate the weather of the Aegean Sea in Turkey. The further west you go - as far as Bodrum the stronger the NW winds are during the day. The further east you go - around Antalya in the east of the country, the gentler these winds are during the day. These vary day to day and through the day. The most comfortable time to sail in Turkey is during the morning every day during the vacation season. The winds tend to be lighter and steadier in the morning and can build to very exciting conditions come mid-afternoon.