Kalkan Turkey Forum - EnjoyKalkan.com
Kalkan Discussion => General Discussion => Topic started by: sally on October 22, 2016, 12:50:51 PM
-
It is ten years since I was last in Kalkan!!
Where has the time gone??
I've been to several other parts of Turkey since & spent a lot of time in France as now have grandchildren there.
We are thinking of coming back to Kalkan next year & there are a couple of questions I'd like to ask of you regulars.
1) Are there still really cheap Turkish places to eat, such as Oz Adana, Extinct Fish etc etc?
2) Does Kalamar beach club still offer a transfer service if you are going there for the day?
3) Who is the best for transfers from Dalaman?
4) Is it very expensive, compared to other Turkish resorts?
5) How much have things changed ;D I know that is a bit of a daft/how long is a ball of string question but I'd still be interested to hear the views of those of you who have been going for ages.
Thanks in advance - I'll be interested to hear.
-
Sally, we have been coming to Kalkan since 2000. Moved out here to live in 2007, but could not hack the climate, and reluctantly had to move back to the UK. The temperature seems to be rising year on year, and seasons are blurring as they are around the globe. Yes, it has changed somewhat at first glance when you look around the hillsides and see the amount of buildings there now are. When we first came there was the odd building on the hillside, with the majority of property, hotels, pensions being either in Kalamar Bay/Kalamar Road or on the Lykia estate. The essence of Kalkan is still here, that is in the bar owners and restaurants and the shop owners who over the years may have expanded their empires with extensions or new premises, and more upmarket goods and menus, what hasn't changed, I think, is in the DNA of the Turkish, who excel at hospitality and friendship, and as a result we come back year after year. It's rather like being a junkie, except our fix is Kalkan and the fine food it produces and that feeling you get nowhere else, sorry if I am sounding a bit smug. As a result my waistline has expanded somewhat but I can live with that. I offer no apologies for my addiction, when you find something you can't live without, you have to get your fix as and when you can. Best advice is to come back and see if it still has the power to pull on your heartstrings.
-
Hi Sally.......how have you managed to stay away for ten years? I'll try to answer some of your questions but there are plenty of knowledgeable Kalkan regulars on here that I'm sure will fill in the gaps.
1) The choice of restaurants never ceases to amaze me and you can still buy authentic Turkish food at very affordable prices. There are restaurants to suit everyone's budgets and I've never been disappointed.
2) I've never been so can't answer this one!
3) Once again there are plenty to choose from........we use Club Lycia unlike a lot of the drivers theirs are a bit more relaxing and don't try to emulate a F1 driver!!
4) I've never tried other Turkish resorts as I just love Kalkan, it's setting, ambience and people.
5) Kalkan continues to evolve and grow. This isn't to everyone's liking but it does mean that there is more choice. Overall the feel of the place is what makes it so special.
I hope that this helps but I'm sure that you will have a variety of responses.
-
Next year will be year 29 for us....Yes Kalkan is special but not perfect but where is? you can still find affordable eating places and Oz Adana are still going but have moved around the corner, Some of the smaller restaurants at the top end of the village still offer great value....Having travelled widely across parts of Turkey by and large Kalkan is more expensive than other places many will guffaw and whinny at that but it is our opinion and has been for sometime ..it's the Kalkan way ..less visitors so put the prices up for those that they do get .Still if you are happy to pay prices charged by some of the "Names" on the restaurant front then you have a bargain by UK standards/Prices..we choose not to ..Like many we eat more and more by catering indoors and many of the smaller places do delivery services now. not a problem if you are in an apartment or a villa ..more of a problem in a hotel! many of the supermarkets are cheap like Bim, A101 etc . The hillsides will be noticeably less on your return having been dotted with new builds but that was always going to happen cant see much changing this winter as in the current climate in Turkey and with the drop in visitor numbers it is not a good time to invest in new property or business and I fear some of the businesses that are here now wont be next season.The currency situation could also have a bearing on Turkeys visitor numbers next year but who knows? But don't be put off by alarmists in the UK press about Turkey. Kalkan is still perfectly safe and very welcoming and if it wasn't I wouldn't put mrs L in danger by going next year...Transfer companys are much of a samenesss and everyone will have a favourite you can get that nearer the. time expect to pay £55 for a transfer each way (for a couple this year) haven't been to Kalamar beach club in a few years but there are others on the harbour area too so plenty of choice.
whatever you choose I'm sure you will have questions so just fire away someone on here will know ;)
-
Thank you all.
I'm not put off Turkey at all, last year was the first year for 10 years that I didn't go somewhere in Turkey and that was due to personal circumstances rather than any political reasons.
£55 each way for a transfer sounds very comparable to what I paid some 10 years ago.
For those of you who are wondering where I've been, Datca, it's peninsula & the Bozburun peninsula have given us some great holidays.
Glad to hear the Oz Adana is still going as I need my fill of Lamajun every year!!
-
where Oz Adana was is now Adana Ocakbasi...still very good value and worth a visit for Turkish tucker, basic and wholesome with no airs and graces just a welcome like the old Oz which as I said has gone round the corner ..some people get confused ;)
-
Kalamar beach club were still giving guest lifts back this year (personally never needed a lift there)
-
Can I just ask roughly how much is a taxi from town to Kalamar??
Thinking of renting out @ Kalamar but suspect will need wheels to get me home some nights :D
-
from taxi rank to our villa (near Cafe Vita and Yelken Bistro) it was about 10Tl this summer.
might be able to give updated prices next week if I need to get a taxi!!
8)
-
Many thanks for that, Hobo.
I hope you don't need to get a taxi........................
But I Also hope that you have had such a great night out that you DO need to get a taxi..............
;D ;D ;D
-
I like the walk back it's just that sometimes........................... 8)
As others have pointed out in the last 10yrs there have been changes and also much remains the same.. will be very interesting to hear your comparisons. Remember to take some old photos with you to share with the locals.
-
We've not long been back and in answer to you question regarding Kalamar Beach Club, it is still very much going and for us it was 17tl per person for the day and that included Taxi's there and back plus sun beds - a bargain seeing we were staying in the Old Town. Personally of all the beach clubs it is our favourite because of its sheltered waters and great snorkelling!
-
Thank you, Mrs M.
Kalamar was always my favourite beach club as I love goinng straight into deep water. And I could get up onto the big bouncy trampoline/raft that used to be there. Wonder if I'll be able to ten years on? And I remember there lovely fried cheese salad & amazing chips.................
Almost certainly going to come back & I will do a ten year report for you all!
-
where Oz Adana was is now Adana Ocakbasi.
Adana Ocakbasi was open for the first week of our holiday at the end of July but then closed down. We never even saw Rashid around to ask him. Assume it was lack of business.
B
-
Well I've booked & will be coming early next summer.
Promise to do a report on the changes & how we feel about it when I get back.
Won't be doing a holiday report when there as we try hard to have a holiday from the internet as well as everything else.
-
We always use Define Tours for transfers for us and our guests. They do a car for up to 3 people for £99 return.
-
Our 30th year and still going strong ! Yes loads have changed but much for the better ! Shorter transfers, Great choice of sun bathing from beach, to yacht club to out on a little boat ! All still going strong !
Lovely choice of shops as usual and great shop keepers too !
Food well where do you begin still harbour bound in the evenings and all settling down there now the new restaurants and bars taking seat !
Also the new top street really taken off with smart bars, restaurants and tea room !
Very cosmopolitan !
Prices are from one extreme to the other the choice yours great little kebab houses to full blown Mediterranean spreads ! All delicious and still served with great pride!
And as always the Kalkan people smiling friendly and full of care !
So go for it get back and have a fix ! It really is just sooooooper and always has been !
-
Welcome back, sally. Kalkan will welcome you back with open arms :)
We have friends who have been coming to Kalkan as long as us, but the the last few years they have settled on Bozburun Peninsula and have no plans to return :(
One of the big changes you will notice straight away is the new road - the old way into Kalkan through Yesilkoy is no longer used and you will enter the town via a "super highway". The D400 was widened about 6 or 7 years ago and Kiziltas is now accessed by two foot bridges and Komurluk and Kisla by a service road.
As others have said you can still eat traditional Turkish food at many of the smaller establishments and Kalamar has also grown somewhat and has a good choice of bars and restaurants....hoping they are all still there next year.
A lot of the beach clubs now have trampolines and mostly they all give you direct access to deep water.
If I think back 10 years, I'd say there is quite a difference to today but the friendliness and welcoming nature of the owners and their staff hasn't changed a bit....you may even find some will remember you.
-
Thank you all for all the info.
Booked & coming in 7 months time.
I now have to try to forget about it as it's such a long way off!
-
If you would like to know what Kalkan looks like now or if you are missing Kalkan KTLN have put a nice video link on which takes you on a drive around Kalkan..nice one KTLN!! ;)
-
Yhanks for that, Blue Lizard.
I am amazed by how little it seems to have changed. I recognised many shops & restaurants and the Moonlight Bar still looks the same.
Also spotted Cafe del Mar. Does Murat still run it? I remember him from his first season in Kalkan when he worked for Cindy & Ur at the Avalon.
Just down from Infinity Jewelelry, on the opposite side of the road, there used to be a lovely clothes shop run by a guy who looked a bit like a pirate (always wore a bandanna) & his daughter. Is it still there?
And I saw the Odak - that was the first place I ever ate in Kalakn - run by Ferdy back then........ I remember being given one of the pide breads that puffed up like a rugby ball & thinking it was solid & how the hell were we going to eat it!!
And it was millions of lira then - very confusing.
I CAN'T WAIT for June!! :D
-
yes Murat does still run it. Cindy and Ur split up and Cindy moved back to the uk. The last I heard she was a hostess on canal boats and he had moved to America
-
Not looked at the video myself but Odak closed 2-3 years ago. Don't know a Ferdy only ever knew man who owned it with wife & children who were always about. Think his name was Mustafa I always called him Odak ! :laugh: It was our first ever meal in Kalkan too & always my favourite (16 years) now Mussaka is there which moved up from the harbour after a fire & decided to stay despite rebuilds of the burnt out units, opened this summer.
The clothes shop is still there, Tufanlar's the Tailor.
-
I knew they had split. They were both lovely & I think Ur was one of the most handsome men I've ever met - years too young for me though :D
And I think it was the Oz Adana, I saw, not the Odak. I was getting over excited!
Just seen your post Lucy - am now sure I was mistaken.
-
The video is well worth a watch - really lovely.
-
Came back on Friday after 3 weeks in Kalkan. ;D :-* Will save the video until depths of winter (about 3 weeks time !).
-
I absolutely LOVE the KTLN Drive Thru :-* :-*
I could watch it over and over...first time you watch it the anticipation of which way next when they got to junctions and crossroads was so exciting..!
Thanks KTLN ;D