A brand new tour for 2010. So many of our guests have raved about the food served on our gulet cruises and asked for recipes, that we decided to create a trip with an even more gastronomic flavour. Not only will you enjoy all the usual dishes served up by the onboard chef, on this trip you will get involved in the cooking, conjuring up some of the excellent Turkish dishes you’ll eat.
You’ll collect wild foods and explore a local market for fresh produce. You’ll cook with a Turkish family in their home and prepare regional delicacies in a small traditional restaurant. This is a journey to tantalise your tastebuds, a voyage of discovery through Turkish Mediterranean cuisine.
You won’t miss out on the history. Your expert guide, Serdar, is an archaeologist who has dug in Turkey for many years. He also happens to be a foodie, a man with a great passion for Turkish cuisine. He will lead you on a gourmet adventure along one of the most beautiful, least developed, and stunningly natural areas of Turkey.
Day 1: Our boat is about 30 minutes from Dalaman airport at Göçek, a pretty harbour on the Bay of Fethiye. Welcome dinner on board.
Day 2: We sail to the pretty inlet of Ağlımanı and walk up an ancient track to the city of Lydae, set in a forgotten valley filled with the tinkle of goat bells. We break bread and have tea with a local goatherd.
Day 3: Heading west we take a boat through a lagoon into the reed lined Dalyan River to see the city of Kaunos. Its monumental public buildings, surrounding a silted up harbour, speak of its once great wealth and fame. Serdar has been excavating here for many seasons. As well as exploring the site, we’ll cook and eat with one of the village ladies who prepares food each summer for the archaeologists.
Day 4: To Loryma, a magnificent Rhodian fortress guarding a strategic bay. We’ll swim and eat warm delicious bread freshly baked in a traditional oven.
Day 5: To beautiful Bozburun, a picturesque village surrounded by hills. We’ll go to the home of one of the most longstanding restaurant owners and cook food with his family.
Day 6: West to spectacular Knidos. We climb up to the temple of Aphrodite that once housed the fabled first female nude in history.
Day 7: We cruise north from the Datça pensinula, and prepare local dishes and delicacies in a family run restaurant. A last chance to swim then on to Bodrum, ancient Halicarnassus, for our final farewell dinner.
Day 8: Transfer to Bodrum airport.