Ancient splendour meets affordable luxury along Turkey’s enchanting coastline | Canada Voices

Morning light sparkles on the Bosphorus as cargo ships and ferries criss-cross the narrow strait separating Europe from Asia. From my hotel balcony, I watch Istanbul’s ancient waterway come alive. Below, fishermen cast their lines into waters that have seen eons of commerce and conquest. Beyond, the massive Hagia Sophia dome and the Blue Mosque’s six minarets pierce the morning sky, their silhouettes defining one of the world’s most magnificent urban landscapes.

I first visited Istanbul in the 1980s on a backpacking trip across Anatolia and back by Black Sea ferry from Trabzon. I explored Cappadocia and touched Mount Nemrut’s mystical stone monoliths, accompanied by a cab driver who claimed to be the best friend of the man who shot Pope John Paul II. And spent days negotiating the price of a rug in Malatya and inhaled half a lifetime’s worth of second-hand tobacco smoke on long bus rides. Now, I’ve returned with my wife, Anisha, to experience the part I missed – a taste of Turkey’s La Dolce Vita.

While the Italian coast has mastered laid-back luxury and the French Riviera embodies seaside glamour, Turkey’s Aegean and Mediterranean shores offer a compelling alternative. Resort towns like Bodrum and Antalya often deliver similar Mediterranean charm at lower prices, from boutique hotels to waterfront dining. The savings are most pronounced during shoulder season (April-May and September-October), when rates drop but the signature Turkish hospitality remains unchanged. Combined with generally favourable exchange rates, the Turkish Riviera presents an attractive option for travellers seeking Mediterranean splendour without the premium price tag.

Like Paris to the French Riviera, Istanbul is a gateway and an essential prelude to Turkey’s coast. This sprawling city straddles two continents across the Bosphorus Strait. On the city’s less-visited Asian side, we explore the labyrinthine Kadikoy Market, lunching at chef Musa Dagdeviren’s Ciya Sofrasi, where home-style regional Turkish cuisine comes with historic flair but without fine-dining prices. Amid spice merchants calling out their wares in centuries-old shops, each dish comes with a history lesson – this one from a village in the Black Sea region, that one a forgotten preparation from the Syrian border. The market itself remains happily frenetic and pungent, its narrow streets lined with fishmongers arranging their glistening catch on beds of ice and vendors selling every variety of Turkish labneh (thick strained yogurt), olives, and honey at prices that make stocking up irresistible.

The Turkish Riviera: Bodrum and beyond

Leaving Istanbul, we fly into reliably warm and sunny late October weather at Bodrum on Turkey’s Aegean coast. When the French Riviera empties and the Amalfi Coast shutters many of its hotels, the season continues in this city known for its white-washed houses with blue trim and bougainvillea-covered walls. Average temperatures hover around 25 degrees through October and calm seas are perfect for swimming well into November. Better yet, shoulder season brings hotel rates often 40 to 50 per cent lower than peak summer prices.

Bodrum is the birthplace of Herodotus, known as the “Father of History,” but it’s also known for its maritime heritage that spans millennia, visible today in its medieval castle and working harbour. The Castle of St. Peter, built between 1402 and 1437, houses the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. Here, the Uluburun shipwreck – the oldest ever recovered – displays its 3,300-year-old cargo of copper ingots, a testament to ancient trade routes. Below the castle walls, traditional wooden gulets still ply these waters, though now they mostly carry visitors rather than cargo. While luxury yachts now crowd the marina, these two-masted wooden boats offer a more traditional – and affordable – way to experience the Turkish coast.

Fall sees Bodrum’s restaurants serving heartier dishes such as slow-cooked stews and soups, while its market stalls overflow with quince, persimmons and chestnuts. In the narrow streets behind the harbour, family-run lokantas (casual restaurants) serve home-style dishes and the daily market offers fresh ingredients perfect for picnics along the peninsula’s many public beaches. Just 20 minutes around the peninsula’s curve, Yalikavak has emerged as the region’s answer to Saint-Tropez or Portofino. Where the French Riviera trades on generations of aristocratic patronage, Yalikavak’s Palmarina presents a more dynamic scene – a meteoric rise from fishing village to superyacht haven that mirrors Turkey’s own economic transformation. Yet unlike its Mediterranean rivals, it maintains a rootedness, with centuries-old windmills guarding Chanel boutiques and seaside mansions.

Further south, where the Aegean meets the Mediterranean, the region around Belek offers some of Europe’s premier championship golf courses. Modern courses set among pine forests and archeological sites provide year-round playing weather at fees that are often half those of comparable Western European destinations. Luxury resorts dot the coastline, but nearby villages offer homespun Turkish hospitality and access to pristine beaches without resort prices.

Set on cliff tops overlooking a turquoise sea, the nearby city of Antalya basks in sunshine throughout the year. In its walled Kaleici district we encounter layers of history lining narrow streets that wind past Ottoman mansions and Seljuk monuments. Hadrian’s Gate still serves as the grand entrance to the old town, which maintains its timeless rhythm. Coppersmiths still hammer out gleaming pots while espresso machines hiss in courtyard cafes where locals and visitors linger over Turkish coffee at prices encouraging long, lazy afternoons.

Hungry for regional cuisine, we lunch at 7 Mehmet, perched on a bluff overlooking Antalya’s coastline. Third-generation owner Mehmet Akdag has created a menu that spans centuries of Turkish cuisine, from slow-cooked kuzu tandir (a traditional Turkish dish of slow-cooked lamb) to modern interpretations of Mediterranean classics. Many recipes remain unchanged from his grandfather’s day – like minced meat pastries called kiymali su boregi – and come at prices that make exploring the menu a guilt-free pleasure.

As evening settles over Kaleici’s stone lanes, café owners set out tables in squares framed by restored Ottoman mansions. A mash-up of languages drifts around us – French, Italian, Russian, English – yet the ambience feels unmistakably Turkish. The historic neighbourhood comes alive with impromptu music performances and the clatter of backgammon pieces from café tables. Sipping a glass of raki, Turkey’s signature anise-flavoured spirit, we watch the light fade over tiles worn smooth by millennia of footsteps. Four decades after my first visit, this Riviera proves as magical as its French and Italian cousins, but with a value that makes it uniquely appealing.

If you go

Turkish Airlines offers non-stop flights to Istanbul from Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Their stopover program provides free accommodation in Istanbul for extended layovers – a great way to break up the journey and explore the city.

Spring and fall offer Turkey’s sweet spot – still warm enough for swimming but comfortable enough for exploring, with lower prices and fewer crowds than summer. Winter stays are surprisingly mild and quiet and have the best hotel rates.

In Istanbul, public transportation is efficient and affordable. The Metro and ferries allow you to explore both the European and Asian sides of the city.

Boutique hotels in Istanbul’s Sultanahmet and Beyoglu districts offer character and location at reasonable prices. Luxury options include The Peninsula Istanbul, which offers contemporary luxury in a historic setting on the Bosphorus, and the Ciragan Palace Kempinski, which provides an Ottoman palace experience.

Along the coast, family run pensions offer homespun accommodation and often include breakfast. Near Bodrum, the luxurious Six Senses Kaplankaya offers spectacular sea views and world-class wellness facilities. Look for shoulder season deals.

Local hammams offer treatments at a fraction of hotel spa prices and book gulet day trips through small operators for better rates than what you’ll find at your hotel tour desk.

The writer was a guest of Tourism Türkiye. It did not review or approve the story before publication.