We've just returned from a last minute holiday in Olu Deniz Turkey. We adore Turkey; the landscape, food, beaches and blue skies, but had never visited Olu Deniz before. We spent our days soaking up the sun by the beautiful Blue Lagoon, doing a little sight seeing and shopping and enjoying time together.
To See & Do
The market at Fethiye on a Tuesday morning is packed full of locals stocking up on the most delicious looking fruit and veggies. Catch a dolmas early then avoid all the stalls selling tacky fake rubbish and instead look for embroidered tunics, traditional towels (as recommended by Gwyneth Paltrow on Goop) and cute silver trinkets.
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| Mixing with the locals and salivating over all the fresh produce. Dress by Gap, Sandals by Topshop, Bag by Miu Miu |
Paragliding. The scenery around Olu Deniz is simply stunning; high mountains, a turquoise sea and emerald green forests. While we didn't actually do the paragliding (the boyfriend is training for an Ironman and I'm self employed so neither of us could risk a broken bone) it was quite relaxing to sit on the beach, look up at the sky and watch people drift up in the air.
The Blue Lagoon is a national nature reserve and a must visit. The waters are crystal clear, calm and incredibly peaceful. The beaches around the lagoon are mainly private frequented by a mix of locals and tourists and we spent most of our days by the lagoon soaking up the sun and hand feeding the local ducks who would waddle around!
Away from the lagoon is a vast stretch of grey stone beach with aquamarine waters. We would go here every evening to play in the waves and watch the sun set.
As both the boyfriend and I are doing triathlons soon we needed to keep our training up, so each morning or evening we would run up the steep switch back roads past scary looking goats and even came across a tortoise! Running along dirt tracks and up the mountains rewarded us with stunning views of Olu Deniz and was completely worth the sweaty effort.
To Buy
Must buys include bright ceramics such as little dishes (perfect for holding jewellery on your bedside table), brightly printed coasters and stained glass candle holders.
The blue glass 'evil eye' talismans are a good buy, especially on items of delicate jewellery.
Olive oil soaps make a great gift and these tins will come in handy for trinkets even after the soap is all used up.
I love a rummage in a local pharmacy and discovered this delicious almond oil face cream by Bebak. It's super rich (so perfect for my sun scorced skin!), smells divine and at less than £3 is a bargain. The boyfriend unearthed this shaving cream with the best retro packaging.
We also stocked up on these stripey cotton towels that all the locals were using at the beach. You could use them as sarongs or scarves too.
Thank you for a great holiday Olu Deniz, we'll be back soon.
