Göcek and Fethiye by yacht
A wide bay of small wooded islands with sheltered anchorages close together: the gentlest cruising on Turkey's coast. June and September are the gentlest months. It suits families best.
Göcek sits at the head of a wide bay scattered with small wooded islands. Their anchorages are a few minutes to an hour apart, and many come with a jetty restaurant and a walk up through the pines. It is the gentlest cruising on Turkey's coast, and a short drive from Dalaman airport. Fethiye, with Ölüdeniz and the Butterfly Valley beyond it, is the next stretch of coast to the south-east.
Why go, and whom it suits
Families
The best fit on the coast: flat water inside the bay, short legs, and swimming at every stop. There is little time in transit.
Couples
Quiet bays after the day boats have gone, dinners on a jetty or on deck, and ruins to walk to in the cool of the morning.
Friends
Good for a relaxed group week. For nightlife, Bodrum and the Gulf of Gökova are the better base. Fethiye has bars, but this is not a party coast.
What's there
Göcek
A small marina town: the provisioning stop and the usual start.
The Göcek islands
Göcek, Yassıca, Tersane (the largest, with ruins from Ottoman times), Domuz and Kızılada, with sheltered coves between them.
Bays on the gulf's sides
Several, among them Bedri Rahmi Bay, known for a fish painted on a rock by the painter Bedri Rahmi, and Cleopatra's Baths bay, with sunken ruins of a bath house.
Dalyan and Ekincik
West of the gulf. Anchor at Ekincik, then take a river boat up to Dalyan, past the rock tombs of Kaunos, to İztuzu beach, a protected nesting beach for sea turtles, closed from 20:00 to 08:00 in the nesting season.
Gemiler island and Ölüdeniz
Byzantine ruins on Gemiler, and the coast off the Ölüdeniz lagoon.
The Butterfly Valley
A cliff-backed beach and valley, reached by sea.
Fethiye
A market town with Lycian rock tombs in the cliff above it.
01 / 07
When to go
May to October. The gulf's many bays give the captain a choice of anchorages when the afternoon breeze comes up. July and August are hot ashore, and the popular anchorages are fuller. June and September are the gentlest months.
What it costs
The fee is each yacht's own weekly rate, shown "from" on her page. A foreign-flagged yacht may take charter guests in Turkish waters only as a commercial yacht licensed by Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The yachts we show in Turkey hold that licence. A Turkish-flagged yacht charges 20% VAT; for a foreign-flagged one, any tax or permit cost is in the quote. The APA is paid on top for fuel, food, drinks and berths; budget up to 40% of the charter fee for it, and whatever is not spent is returned to you. Distances are short here, so fuel is a smaller part of the APA than on a longer route. Our guide sets out what a crewed charter costs, line by line.
The weekly rate on each yacht’s page. "From" is her lowest season.
An advance for fuel, food, drinks and berths, spent on your instructions and settled at the end.
Set by the country the charter starts in, added to the fee.
A sample week
Göcek, Dalyan and the islands. A round week mixing quiet bays with two good days ashore.
- Day 1: Göcek. Board in the afternoon. A first swim off one of the near islands, and the night at anchor.
- Day 2: Ekincik and Dalyan. West to Ekincik, then a river boat up past Kaunos's rock tombs to İztuzu beach, open by day. Back on board for the evening.
- Day 3: Bays on the gulf's west side. Snorkelling, paddleboards and the ruins at the water's edge.
- Day 4: Tersane and the inner islands. A morning walk among the ruins, and lunch on a jetty.
- Day 5: Gemiler island. Out of the bay to Gemiler's ruins, then a swim off the Ölüdeniz coast.
- Day 6: Fethiye. The market and the rock tombs, and dinner in town or on board.
- Day 7: Göcek. Back across the bay to disembark.
The yacht, the weather and the group decide the real route; this is one way it can go.
The yachts
Most of the yachts we show in Turkey are motor yachts, many of them over 40 metres. Every one of them also cruises Greece, so a week here may start on the Greek side or add a delivery fee, stated before you sign. The ones we show in Turkey hold the commercial charter licence. Soreto also arranges gulets, the wooden motor-sailers of this coast: tell us if a gulet is what you have in mind. The yachts on this site are a selection, not the limit of what we arrange: ask about any yacht, of any size.
Practical questions
Rene GaspersicYour broker
Which airport is closest?
Dalaman (DLM), a short drive from Göcek.
Is Göcek really sheltered?
The islands and bays give a choice of anchorages for the summer breeze, and the captain picks each night's bay for the wind.
Can we visit the turtle beach?
İztuzu is a protected nesting beach. Visits by day are allowed within its rules; the beach is closed from 20:00 to 08:00 during the nesting season.
Are there restaurants in the bays?
Many bays have a jetty restaurant you can tie up to or reach by tender. The crew can book.
Is this a good place for young children?
One of the best on the coast: short legs, flat water and swimming all day.
Can we combine Göcek with Rhodes or Kastellorizo?
Rhodes is a longer leg from Marmaris, and Kastellorizo lies off Kaş further east. Either is possible on a longer week, with exit and entry formalities at a frontier port such as Marmaris, Fethiye or Kaş (Göcek is not one).
Is it busy in August?
The favourite anchorages fill up. The crew knows the quieter ones.
Is tax included in the "from" price?
No. Tax, if any, and the APA are added to the fee; each yacht's quote shows both.
Talk to a broker
Tell us roughly when, how many of you there are, and what the week is for: a family summer, a honeymoon, a birthday with friends. Dates and budget can stay loose. We come back with a short list of yachts that fit, say plainly what each one is like, and stay your contact from the first email to the last day on board.
Rene Gaspersic
charter broker
Email info@soretoyachting.com · Phone +44 7342 933198 · WhatsApp +44 7342 933198
Plan
Göcek and Fethiye.
Two short steps. Dates and budget can stay loose. We reply personally, by email, phone or WhatsApp.