Hi Nicky,

If you go to Topic Altinkum Discussion and Questions(just below) and see what Joshman wrote. The apartments where he stayed would be ideal for you and your boyfriend. Weather wise, the days are still very warm but the evenings can drop in quite cool. Altinkum is the place for you and yes, your boyfriend can go diving here. Should you need anymore assistance don't hesitate to contact me.

Les

Hi Nicky

I know I may be a bit bias here but it sounds like Olu Deniz Area would suit you both fine, By Olu Deniz area, I mean Hisaronu, Ovacik. they are the places to stay, you have best of everything there, Olu Deniz beach area just down the road, Hisaonu is where there is countless bars and restaurants, Ovaick is just a few minutes outside of Hisaronu where it is a little quieter at night, but by a few minutes away, that is all I mean, Staying in Olu Deniz tends to more expensive, and invariably people tend to go to Hisaronu for the night life anyway.

Travelling in the other direction you have the main town of Fethiye, for me, it is a lovely place to visit for a day or night out and a proper turkish meal, but personally i would'nt want to stay there for the whole holiday.

I have no doubt other people will post different things about different places, but on here we all have our favourites, but I honestly believe that the Olu Deniz area has everything that you could wish for in a holiday that your looking for.

cheers Kev

Try Datca, it's a small place with a busy harbour on a beautiful peninsula classed as an area of outstnding natural beauty. We spent 2 weeks there this September and the weather was lovely. There is a diving boat there and some lovely beaches. There is very little British mass tourism there and no AI's or big hotels. You need to DIY for flights and accommodation, also transfers but it is easy enough and well worth it. Hope you have a great time wherever you go.

Nicky3

I agree with Cruisecontroller. Have had quite a few holidays in Altinkum and loved it there. Would recommend.

For a first time visit to turkey I would recommend Olu Deniz . Stunning surroundings,small - medium size resort , Plenty going on there but in a more relaxed way and not in your face and as kev says you also have hisaronu a short hop away if you fancy some extra nightlife.

My hubby and teenage sons all dive . They have dived from olu and fethiye a number of times and there are a couple of excellent diving companies down in olu. Obviously not the red sea or caribean but very enjoyable

we stayed in turgutreis this year which is on the bodrum coast . The diving there was much cheaper and he said if you get the right dive site more to see .

lyn

Try the Antalya Region.
The climate is warm in the winter months and hopefully you might come across a hotel that suits you requirements

I just posted this in another thread but it might be useful for you..

Here is an example of one more traditional village...frequented more by turkish families over the summer.

Cirali ( Çıralı ) is a very lovely and unspoilt area...with Olimpos Roman ruins scattered in a pine forest, a secluded 4km non-touristy beach, fertile fields, and the Chimaera, the world's oldest and best-known natural "eternal flame". Also a natural nesting-ground for carretta carretta (loggerhead turtles).

unspoilt location with good beaches, absolutely

plenty to do ..fantastic 4 km beach, family friendly environment, but NO motorized motor sports...due to the protection of the sea turtles...but there are daily boat trips from the Cirali beach to outlying bays, caves and inlets

As seen here with my photos !!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/canmom/2929703498

Cirali tends to draw more families and mature toursits...the hotels and pensions are anywhere from 150m - 750 meters from the beach. All within a 5-10 minute walk.

So what makes Cirali so special ?? !!! It is protected by the WWF and limits the amount development in the area.

It is not over crowded with 5 star hotels or loud bars etc. Just a nice place to have a quiet holiday. Most if not all travellers to Cirali book their own flights and acommdations directly with Cirali hotels or pansiyons.

Just so you know the area..cirali is located about 80kms southwest from Antalya..about 1.5 hrs from the Antalya airport..

But Cirali may not be for everyone as it does not have the waterparks, horseback riding, parasailing etc etc but it is close to the town of Kemer that has many of these types of activities. You can rent bikes etc to explore the nature and there are even some organized tours available as well but not to the grand scale that they are in other places...

A few other things that are available are sea-kayaking and scuba diving can be arranged as well...rock climbing is also a great sport in cirali however this is a seasonal sport as you would not want to be climbing in the heat of the summer months..

As another option you could try Turgutries (Bodrum peninsula).About an hour or so from Bodrum airport.

Enough to do at night but a lot less manic than Gumbet, good beach and plenty diving trips.

depends on what you want:

Datca http://www.hiddendatca.com is great for nature, and no mass tourism!

Barut lara beach resort is the best hotel I have ever been to! Very friendly, great food accomodation.

Don't bother about the weather septmber is normally good and around 30 degrees

Rgds Jeroen

just back from altinkum in sept and the weather was really warm it's a lovely place think you would enjoy here great places to eat and the shopping is good plenty to do .
hope you find somewhere nice '

I have to say thank you to everyone with all their comments and ideas!

I have looked at websites on Olu Deniz and have to say that I think this is the winner! It looks lovely and just what I am looking for. Thank you to Lyn and Kev for this suggestion! You are both obviously on the same wave-length as me!

So next question... Where do we stay! Again dont want to be in a hotel/apartments which is right in the middle of the bars and restaurants but certainly want to be able to walk to them and the beach (which looks devine!). Any recommendations on restaurants and bars also greatfully received! Can you also let me know what the temperature is like and of course what sort of prices food, drinks etc cost!

I need all the help I can get - clearly!

Nic

There isn't much in the way of self-catering in Olu Deniz, apart from the Flamingo at the back of the resort, so you will probably have to go b & b in a hotel. Suggest you check out the hotel reviews on here. It is a beautiful place!

To mehmeh1

Thanks for this - B&B is fine, any recommendations and websites greatfully received.

Thanks for your help.

Nic

No one has mentioned Icmeler yet but I think for a first visit to Turkey,you cant go wrong here.I have just been and went B&B for the first time and enjoyed it thoroughly as there are lots of excellent restaurants.There are many B&B hotels and apartment both in the main area of the resort and up towards the old village which is quieter.

Try checking out the Karbel Hotel in Olu (not Karbel sun or Karbel beach), it is based at the top of the main street down into the town so you are away from the bars etc of the street, however, you really are only 10 mins walk down to the beach through the street. The hotel is B and B, or half board, but there are so many places to eat I would only choose b and B.

The hotel has 2 separate pool areas, and it is one of the largest, but there is plenty of space. We've stayed there twice now, one in May and once in August, both times we've upgraded to have one of their suites.

We paid an extra £10 and had the room which has a jacuzzi bath, while it does not have pool views it is set in a quiet part of the hotel grounds, you don't get road noise or anything from outside of the complex, but the room is huge, with a lovely jacuzzi bath which comfortably holds 2

Because of the extra pool area, you get 2 pool bar areas too, so people are spread out a great deal, you don't feel claustrophobic or on top of each other and there is never any problem getting a sunbed, its very clean, the garden areas are extremely well tended and the food at the snack bars are also good. It is in an excellent location, can be booked direct too. We booked through sunshine.co.uk but then paid to upgrade direct.
hope this helps some, there are LOADS of reviews on this hotel here on the site, and it gets very good reviews and write ups.

hi nicky3.
i think altinkum would suit, beaches very good especially main beach. went there for 2 weeks last year,in june. this year had 2 weeks in icmeler,enjoyed it but would prefer altinkum if i go again. have been to marmaris a few times in sept. and the weather has been great each time,i think marmaris would be a non starter for you, to busy.

have booked for 2009 having a change this time going to kefalonia,somewhere new for us.

wherever you end up hope you have a good time.

all the best
percy123.