The easiest way to get to the most “European” resort of Turkey is through Dalaman – the airport of this resort is located about 109 km from Marmaris. Buses regularly depart directly from the airport to the city, the journey takes only 1.5 hours. Those who want to plunge into the sea quickly can take a taxi: a little over an hour to go. But it is more expensive, and there is a risk of running into an unscrupulous driver, so you need to be more careful.
Marmaris district
According to A2zgov, there are 4 main resort centers in Marmaris: Icmeler, Turunc, Sarigerme and Armutalan.
Icmeler is very popular among tourists due to its wide sandy beaches and thermal springs. This area is suitable both for families with children and for youth companies: the resort has family hotels with all the infrastructure for children and at the same time – bars, discos and other nightly entertainment venues. Icmeler is also chosen by divers. There are very clean and calm coastal waters, there is an underwater mountain with caves, octopuses, lobsters, turtles and other animals are found.
The small village of Turunc is located next to Icmeler. This place is considered one of the quietest and most secluded in Marmaris, and the main advantage of Turunc is considered to be a chic Blue Flag beach surrounded by pine forests. There are no expensive hotels and restaurants, and generally no special frills in the infrastructure. People come here to enjoy nature, ride horses and yachts and do nothing.
Another place for lovers of a relaxing holiday is Sarigerme. This resort is located near the airport and is primarily aimed at families with children, for whom there is everything – from animation to menus.
Marmaris is a very compact resort. You can live here in one, more peaceful area, and go to have fun in another.
Armutalan is the largest area of Marmaris. Tourists love it for budget accommodation and an abundance of entertainment. There are many shops, restaurants and nightclubs here, and the main attraction of the area is the Jamiavlu waterfall, located in the forest. In addition to the usual entertainment of Turkish resorts, cycling through the forest and hiking are popular here.
For lovers of nightlife and discos until the morning, there is Bar Street, where all entertainment establishments are concentrated, which open at 23:00 and work until the morning. Entrance to all bars and discos is free, moreover, in some places they will offer a welcome cocktail or beer. Marmaris is a fairly compact resort, so you can get here quickly from any area.
Marmaris Hotels
Marmaris is considered a youth resort where life is in full swing day and night. Hotels designed for “party-goers” are located directly in the resort, from where you can easily and quickly get to bars and discos. Club hotels with a vast territory are located either outside Marmaris in the nearest villages of Hisaronu or Turunc, or in a park area between Marmaris and Icmeler. They have both buildings and bungalows. Hotels located outside the city are more suitable for families. There, as a rule, there is a large area with various entertainment infrastructure, including playgrounds, swimming pools, etc.
Most of the Marmaris hotels are of urban type: four- and six-story buildings. Many city hotels operate on a half-board basis; in family and club hotels, the all-inclusive system is more common. A night in a five-star hotel in Marmaris will cost from 80 USD for a double room, in a four-star hotel – 50-150 USD, and a budget three-ruble note can be rented from 35 USD per day for a double room.
Transportation
You can move around Marmaris by fixed-route taxis (dolmush), water transport and taxis.
The most economical way is dolmushi taxis (from the Turkish “dolmush” – filled). They run between Marmaris and Icmeler on a regular basis from 7:15 to 1:30. Dolmushi of Marmaris are colored with a green stripe, Ichlemera – orange. There are also minibuses with a blue stripe – they serve Armutalan, a suburb of Marmaris. On the most popular routes, dolmushes run every 5-10 minutes (less often in winter). The fare is 5 TRY, paid directly to the driver. You can stop them by simply raising your hand up, no special signs with your fingers, as indicated in some guidebooks, do not need to be depicted. There are no air conditioners in minibuses, so sometimes the driver does not close the doors to ventilate the interior. If you feel uncomfortable, you can ask to close.
All taxis in Marmaris are yellow and have checkered roofs. Their parking lots can be found near hotels, restaurants and at many major intersections. Cars are equipped with meters with a fixed starting price, which increases with each kilometer traveled. Some taxis offer a fixed price per ride, sometimes this is the preferred option, especially if you don’t know the way. The average cost of a trip around the city: 15-27 TRY. The prices on the page are for August 2021.
There are many small piers along the coastline from where taxi boats with a capacity of 20-25 people leave. They start running at 9:00 and finish around 21:00, run along the coast and stop at almost every kilometer. The cost of a trip within the city is about 15 TRY, you can go for a longer distance, but this is already much more expensive.
Rent a Car
In Marmaris, there is not a very rich choice of rental companies. Among the famous ones are Europcar, Sixt, Enterprise, Circular Car Hire. Accordingly, the cost of rental is higher than the national average, but there are also desperately dumping local small offices. The fleet of their cars is small, but the price can be 2 times lower than that of international representatives. Using the services of such companies is at your own peril and risk, only if you are sure that you can independently check the technical condition of the car for problems.
It is most convenient to take a car right at the Dalaman airport, there is the largest selection. For example, a Volkswagen Polo in the basic configuration and without additional insurance will cost from 450 USD for 2 weeks.
As for the requirements for the driver, documents and other things, in Marmaris there are all-Turkish rules, which are described on this page.
Communication and Wi-Fi
With mobile communications in Marmaris, everything is fine. There are several mobile operators, each of which offers a choice of tariffs for tourists. A minute of conversation with Russia and other European countries will cost approximately 5 to 10 TRY. The function of sending SMS abroad is not provided by all tariffs, you need to specify it separately.
Tourists are offered prepaid rates with the possibility of replenishment. SIM cards and payment cards are sold at the offices of mobile operators, supermarkets, newsstands and at Dalaman Airport.
Since July 12, 2005, the use of non-Turkish mobile phones with Turkish SIM cards has been restricted. The phone must be registered at the customs office upon entry into the country within 30 days, or the period of use of the SIM card will be no more than 2 weeks. After this time, the phone for Turkish SIM cards will be blocked.
Wi-Fi is available in almost all hotels. The lobby is usually free, the rooms can be paid – 20-40 TRY per day, but the speed, especially in budget hotels, leaves much to be desired. In cafes and restaurants, Wi-Fi is usually free and at a decent speed, in some places you need to enter a password, which will be provided with any order.
Mobile Internet can be connected when buying a SIM card, 4 GB of traffic at a good speed will cost about 100 TRY. There are Internet cafes in Marmaris, but they are few, and they usually serve as a hobby club for local teenagers who play “shooters”. It can be uncomfortable and smoky there, but it is quite suitable for urgent access. The cost of an hour is 3.5-7 TRY.
