This is the first in a series of guest articles from Anne, a frequent visitor to Gündoğan.  During her numerous visits, she’s collected a wealth of local knowledge, and will be sharing her discoveries with with us over the next couple of weeks.

Gündoğan is in the northern part of the Bodrum Peninsula, and has retained it’s local Turkish charm, despite the influx of visitors to the surrounding areas.

By: Anne, Guest Blogger

Introduction to Gündoğan

Gündoğan  formerly known as ‘Farilya’ (sunrise) is a small village about 18 km North-West of Bodrum.  It is approximately 1 hour from Milas Bodrum airport.

As the ancient name suggests the sunrise here is truly spectacular and something worth getting up early to experience.

Winters are wet and summers hot.  The landscape in this part of the peninsula, is pleasantly green with lush forests, plants and beautiful flowers.  The stunning bougainvillea very prevalent in the area, and the scent of flowers, as you walk around the village, is intoxicating.

The sun shines from April to October.  Days are long and sunny, and nights are warm and balmy.  There’s a gentle breeze ever present in Gündogan, due to the shape of the harbour, making it a couple of degrees cooler than in Bodrum centre.

Well Kept Secret

Gündogan is still a well kept secret and you rarely find it mentioned in package holiday brochures or websites.  Many Turks have holiday homes here, and many others flock here in summer to leave the heat of the city behind.  The village retains a rural tranquillity and old world charm that urges the visitor to relax and adopt a slower pace of life.  It is common to see a cow being led down the road as you stroll around the village in the evening.

With a population of around 4,000 the village centre is back from the sea front where you will find the main mosque, local government offices, chemist, hardware shops, and other day to day businesses.  There is little sign of any tourist activity in this area and locals go about their business here winter and summer alike.

Gündoğan Bay

With one of the longest beaches in the area and a constant breeze in the horseshoe shaped bay, Gündoğan is very popular with water sports enthusiasts and offers opportunity for windsurfing, paragliding, snorkelling, jetsking, fishing, sailing, boat trips etc.

Over the years another world of restaurants and supermarkets has grown up along the beach front and both old village and beach front now happily co exist side by side..

The tourist season is relatively short in this area with mid-June to early-September being the peak season. Hotels are full and such is the demand for tables in the restaurants that cars are no longer allowed along the sea front. Restaurants now set up extra tables on the roadway.

Outside of peak season there are far fewer visitors and temperatures are very pleasant and this is when you will find the more international visitors –  early summer May/June and late summer Sept/Oct. As may Turks have permanent holiday homes here, many restaurants remain open all year around.

Where to Stay

Hotels

There are two large all inclusive hotels frequented by many different nationalities – Bodrum Baia and Green Beach. Both are on the outskirts of the village and have stunning views.

Along the beach front there are a number of smaller boutique style hotels with a variety of facilities and price ranges.  Some to consider are – Istanbul Palace, Olira, Begonvil, Costa Farilya, Cennet Park and Butik Han.  Many of these are listed on the usual websites like Trip Advisor, Travel Republic, Booking.com etc and you will find very reasonable prices and superb and friendly service.

Self Catering accommodation

In recent years there have been a number of holiday villas built in Gündoğan many of which are available to rent on sites such as Trip Advisor, Holiday Lettings and other similar sites.

 

• Read Anne’s Guest Article about Shopping in Gundogan
• Read Anne’s Guest Article about Restaurants in Gundogan
• Read Anne’s Guest Article about an Introduction to Turkish Wines 

 

 

Guest Blogger, Anne has a holiday rental property in Gündoğan, and visits this area of the Bodrum Peninsula as often as she can.

 

Click this image to download my free Gündoğan Quick Reference Travel Guide 

 

   

 

© Source of Ariel view of Bodrum GoBodrum
© Source of Loungers and Jetty Photo Bodrum Hotel Olira