In the Winds of Aegean: A Magnificent Journey from Gocek
Explore the world-renowned Butterfly Valley, and finding tranquility in the hidden gem of Sarsala Bay.
Join us on this maritime odyssey, where every moment is a harmonious blend, serenity, and exploration.
Discover the Maritime Symphony!
Embark on an exhilarating journey through the enchanting Turkish Riviera!
- Sail through the mesmerizing beauty of the magnificent seas on our extraordinary route from Göcek to Gemiler Island .
- Immerse yourself in the azure waters of Shipyard Island.
- Discover the historical charm of Kapı Bay.
- Find serenity in the secluded Sarsala Bay.
- Explore the renowned Butterfly Valley, home to a world-famous beach and crystal-clear waters.
- Feel the thrill of paragliding over Ölüdeniz and bask in the sun's warmth on Gemiler Island.
Located just 97 km away, Dalaman Airport serves as the perfect starting point for an enjoyable boat tour. With a brief transfer from the airport at the beginning of your journey, you can swiftly embark on your unforgettable sea adventure.
Gocek
Göcek is where the Aegean settles down — a sheltered gulf with twelve islands sitting in flat water, walled off from open sea by pine-covered ridges. The setup is built for first-time charterers: bays are so calm the anchor doesn't drag, distances between stops are 20-30 minutes, and you can swim off the back of the boat at every anchorage. The water is the kind of clear that shows the chain on the seabed five metres down. Onshore the marina has a few quiet restaurants, but the real life is on the water — pull into Tersane, Yassıca Adaları, or Bedri Rahmi Bay, swim, eat, repeat. Ancient Lycian ruins line the inland hills — a half-day inland reaches the rock tombs above Fethiye. The season runs May through October; July and August are warmest, May and September are quietest.
Tersane Island
Tersane Island is the largest of the Twelve Islands in Gocek Bay — and the one with the most layered history. Until the 1923 Greek-Turkish population exchange, the island held a Greek Orthodox village built around a shipyard that gave the place its Turkish name (tersane = shipyard). The old buildings still stand half-roofless on the slopes, and the harbour cove is fronted by a row of carved stone arches where boats were once hauled out for repair — now perfect for swimming through. From the anchorage, a footpath climbs 20 minutes to the abandoned village for views over the bay. Tersane is a 30-minute sail from Gocek. Season runs May through October; the cove is sheltered year-round.
Kapi Creek, Göbün
Kapı Creek — also known as Göbün — is one of the deepest natural inlets in the Gulf of Fethiye, cutting nearly a kilometre into the mainland between steep pine-covered ridges. The depth allows big yachts to tie stern-to against the rock face, and the cove stays glass-flat even when the meltem howls outside. A single family-run restaurant on the inner shore serves grilled fish and meze; bread comes from the village oven on the hillside. There's no road, no village, no infrastructure beyond the restaurant. Kapı Creek is 60 minutes from Gocek, on the way to Ölüdeniz. Season runs May through October.
Sarsala Bay
Sarsala Bay is one of the larger anchorages in Gocek Bay — a 600-metre-wide inlet ringed by Mediterranean pines that drop straight to the water's edge. The seafloor is sandy and the water shallow enough to see the anchor chain through 8 metres of clarity, making it a favourite for first-time charterers. There's no village, no road, no infrastructure beyond a single small restaurant on the south shore that takes a dinghy or swim-in customers. Half a dozen other anchorages sit within a 30-minute sail — Bedri Rahmi, Manastır, Tersane — making Sarsala a natural base for a slow Gocek loop. Season runs May through October; June and September stay quiet.
Turunc Pinari Bay
Turunç Pınarı Bay takes its name — Turkish for "Sour Orange Spring" — from a small freshwater spring that runs straight out of the rocks above the cove, a rarity on this part of the Aegean coast. The bay itself is a shallow horseshoe with sandy patches on the seabed and clear visibility down to 10 metres, ringed by pines and a few wild orange and citrus trees. A footpath leads from the beach up to the spring, where you can refill water bottles and look back over the gulf. The cove is unmarked, has no village or restaurant, and stays empty even in peak summer. Turunç village sits 30 minutes west by sail, Marmaris 90 minutes east. Season runs May through October.
Butterfly Valley
Butterfly Valley — Kelebekler Vadisi in Turkish — is a slot canyon that drops down to a 250-metre-wide beach hemmed in between vertical cliffs, accessible only by boat or a steep mountain-goat trail. The cliffs above the beach are part of the Babadağ massif, the highest in the area and the launching point for paragliders from Ölüdeniz. Inside the canyon, a footpath leads 30 minutes to a waterfall that runs year-round, with the rare species of butterflies that gave the valley its name flying along the way. There's a small camping settlement with a single restaurant and beach huts; no other development is allowed. Boats anchor in front of the beach in deep water. Butterfly Valley is 90 minutes south of Fethiye. Season runs May through October.
Ölüdeniz
Ölüdeniz — "the dead sea" in Turkish, for its perfectly still water — is the country's most photographed lagoon, a curving sandbar of white shells that protects a turquoise pool from the open Mediterranean. The lagoon itself is a protected nature reserve with no boats allowed inside, but the long pebble beach outside it (Belcekız) takes the anchor traffic and the views of the colour transitions are best from the water. Above the bay, Babadağ rises 1,960 metres straight from the sea — paragliders launch from the summit and float down in continuous coloured lines through the day. Footpaths inland lead to Butterfly Valley and the abandoned Greek village of Kayaköy. Season runs April through October; the lagoon stays calm year-round.
St. Nicholas Island
St. Nicholas Island — locally Gemiler — is a small Byzantine pilgrimage site that sits a few hundred metres off the Lycian coast between Ölüdeniz and Fethiye. The island held a major Christian community from the 4th to the 7th century; five churches, a covered processional walkway, hundreds of tombs, and the ruins of a sea wall still stand on the hillsides. Some accounts identify it as the original burial place of Saint Nicholas before the relocation to Demre. From the anchorage you walk straight up through the ruins for 15 minutes to the summit, with the open Mediterranean on three sides. The channel water is shallow and clear; swimming with the ruins above is the day's signature moment. Gemiler is 45 minutes from Fethiye. Season runs April through October.
Gocek Return
Gocek will be the final stop of our tour. After a magnificent blue voyage, an unforgettable holiday experience full of exciting discoveries, clean beaches and conversations warmed by the sun awaits you!
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