Aloft Bursa Hotel

Aloft Bursa does not only offer one of the best accommodation alternative in Bursa, it also offers a very good design, probably the best in Turkey. The hotel is at the hearth of Bursa, Nilufer District and offers a central location and nice accommodation to both business and leisure travelers. The Bursa city center (Ulu Camii area) is 20 TL or 15 minutes taxi ride from the hotel. If you are OK to walk a little, you can also take public bus from Aloft Bursa to the Bursa city center.

Aloft Bursa is a new hotel. It was opened in 2013. I have previously stayed in Aloft Bangkok and there realized that there is also an Aloft hotel in Bursa (the only Aloft in Turkey I guess). So when I was in Bursa, I have decided to stay in this hotel.

The warm and small hotel / hostel environment of Aloft Bursa, coupled with its friendly staff makes it a very nice stay. The design of the hotel is unique and quite colorful but comfortable. I must say the bed was ultra-comfortable, 40’’ TV was great and the room offers a comfortable retreat to both watch movies (if you have a laptop or a USB memory, you can connect it to the TV and watch your movie from the TV) or sit in the table and work while enjoying the view. I loved the bathroom in Aloft Bangkok and I loved the bathroom in Aloft Bursa too. The large bathroom area is ultra-stylish.

Overall, the room is so trendy and relaxing that, you would not like to leave it to go out.

The Wi-Fi  is available in every corner of the hotel so if you are one of those carrying a laptop around with you or just glued to your smartphone, you will love this hotel.

Aloft Bursa has a nice but small swimming pool and fitness facility.

What I liked most in W XYZ Bar are the cocktails and the comfortable couches to just lie down and relax. And I also loved the breakfast. But I did not love the fact that it was not free. It is also not very cheap but the total price of breakfast + room is still acceptable.

Summary : If you are looking for a nice hotel in Bursa, with a great design, comfortable stay and affordable price, Aloft Bursa is one of the best alternatives you have.

Bosphorus Cruise – Full Bosphorus Cruise and Short Bosphorus Tour

One of the things you must do in Istanbul is to take a Bosphorus Cruise. This unique experience will let you see both Asian and European shores of Bosphorus and Istanbul’s magestic silhouette from a fantastic angle.

But which Bosphorus Cruise you should take? You will be flooded with many cruise operators in Istanbul. Most of these are private Bosphorus Cruises and they are usually disappointingly short, expensive tours on small boats. The best Bosphorus Cruises in Istanbul are those 2 tours operated by Istanbul’s Sehir Hatlari: 4 Seasons Bosphorus Tours.

Sehir Hatlari operates 2 Bosphorus Cruises: Full Bosphorus Cruise and Short Bosphorus Tour.

Full Bosphorus Cruise takes 6 hours. It starts from Eminonu Terminal ( immediately east of the Galata Bridge) and stops in Besiktas, Kanlica, Sariyer, Rumeli Kavagi and then reaches to Anadolu Kavagi which is at the northern entrance of Bosphorus to the Black Sea. The Istanbul liner (large conventional ferry boats unique to Istanbul) will stop here several hours before sailing back to Eminonu.

This tour is very popular among foreigners and locals so be there early for the queue. In the high season there are 3 departures per day. The cost of Full Bosphorus Cruise is 25 TL per person.

Here is Full Bosphorus Cruise Timetable. As we have written it is a long 6 hour tour but a very good one.

If you do not have time for the long one there is also a Short Bosphorus Tour. This is a 2 hours tour which also departs from Eminonu and after stopping at Ortakoy returns from Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge. This tour basically covers southern Bosphorus, which hosts almost all of Istanbul’s famous historic artifacts.

Short Bosphorus Tour is 10 TL per person and here is the time table.

Below, you can see the Sehir Hatlari Bosphorus cruises on the map.

Istanbul Sehir Hatlari Bosphorus cruises map

If you cannot take these 2 tours there is a private company named TurYol which operates 1.5 hour Bosphorus Cruises which will cost 12 TL. This tours are more frequent and they return from Fatih Bridge. They are transportation only so no tour guide. If you would like to go for private Bosphorus tours, it is better to buy it as a part of a full-day Istanbul tour package.

There is also a night cruise in Bosphorus by Sehir Hatlari but this is a summer only cruise and only operates on Saturdays. Named Moonlight Cruise (Mehtap Gezisi) the boat departs from Bostanci and visits Kadıköy-Eminönü-Üsküdar-Beşiktaş-Rumeli Kavağı and stops over Anadolu Kavağı for 2 hours. Highly recommended if you can catch one because Bosphorus and Istanbul looks much different in the nights.

Best places for scuba diving in Turkey

Best places for skuba diving in Turkey are Bodrum (in Muğla) ,Kas (in Antalya), Dalaman  (in Muğla), Fethiye (in Muğla), Ayvalık (in Balıkesir).

If you enjoy scuba diving you can find beautiful underwater world in Kas ( in Turkish Kaş ).
Kaş which is a district of Antalya Province of Turkey. It is 168 km West of the city of Antalya.
You have to arrange boat trip for diving from a local diving club that you can find easily. These boats have all kinds of diving equipments such as diving suits and B.C. You can hire them on daily basis. You can also enjoy your lunch on boats that is included to trips.

In Kaş, there is a big pebble beach which faces the Greek Island – Kastellorizo, in Turkish :Meis .
On the right and left hand side there are two caves  in the sea. Both caves are not deep and can be entered from 7m to 9m. Divers can ascend in the caves which are both quite big. One of the caves is called “cold cave” because its always 14 degrees Celsius. Even when the water in the hot season is 30 degrees.

* Güvercin Ada, good for both experienced and beginners. You can make wreck and reef dive.

*Light House: There is an Ottoman Ship Wreck at 22m depth. Also a reef dive is possible in this area. Groupers are Kaş’s local fishes. The depth of dive is usually arround 18m.

*İnce Boğaz: It is at the side of the Peninsula. The other side is the biggest natural  Bay of Turkey, Bucak Bay. Carettas prefer this place. Flat rocks lays in the dive site 20m

*Stonehenge: It is an antique shaped stone dive max. 20m to 26m. You can also see caretta here.

*Hidayet Bay: There are two diving areas. One is great for training because it is quite shallow and the other is about 35m deep that 2 star divings can enjoy. You can see a lot of grouper fish and stingrays.

*Üçkaya: The top of the reef starts at 7 meters and goes all the way down to 35 meters and more. The best is 25 meters max. There is rich underwater life in this area.

*Panorama ,Işık Reef and Heybeli:  These three diving areas are very interesting but are quite far away. Divers usually go on to these sites on special request .

*Canyon: The Canyon is an amazing site to dive at. First, you are in a flat area which goes only 5m to 10m and then a sudden depth starts which resembles a canyon. It’s an impressive site to sea. There is a French cargo shipwreck at 25m and its propellers are at 40m. There are also caves and under rock areas which make the dive even more exciting.

*Flying fish : It is a reef, which starts at 5m and goes very deep. There is an Italian war plane with 3 propellers that crashed for unknown reasons during the Second World War and fell. The engine of the plane becomes visible at a depth of 40 meters, the other parts and the tail go down to the depths of 60 meters. Around the wreck there is still some unexploded ammunition. Except for the engine, the other parts of the plane lie under the sea complete, but of course time has done a lot of damage to the fuselage.

Phuket Kata Beach Orchidacea Resort

Phuket island is one of the most popular holiday destinations in Thailand. Although it is gradually falling victim to mass tourism and losing its natural beauty, Phuket still has a lot to offer for its visitors. It is easy and relatively cheap to access Phuket, there are many cheap flights to Phuket from around the region and also there are plenty of international flights directly landing to Phuket Airport.

It is important to know the wet and dry seasons if you are planning to travel to Phuket for holiday. The wet season is from April to November. As its names suggests the disadvantage of this season is rain but as long as it is not monsoon season, it is still quite OK and also everything is cheaper in this period. Dry season provides long sunny days but it is more expensive relative to wet season.

Here is a detailed guide for accomodation in Phuket named named where to stay in Phuket where we have told that Kata Beach is our favorite. If you are looking for relatively a calmer, family friendly place for holiday on Phuket awat from the busy nightlife of Patong, Kata Beach in the south west part of the island is one of the best places to stay in Phuket. A few minutes south of Karon Beach there are actually 2 kata beaches, 2 kilometer long one with white sand is Kata Yai and the smaller one on the south is named Kata Noi. We like Kata because it still keeps its village feel, it feels more family-friendly, and very peaceful compared to Patong.

The Orchidacea Resort which sits on a hill overlooking the Kata Yai Beach is our favorite hotel in Phuket. It is easy to access to nearby Kata Beach but you need to climb steps to reach your room so if you have problem with climbing steps, it is not a suitable place for you. But climbing the steps worth since the view is great. Honestly we preferred this hotel when we have travelled there first time because it is high up in the hills and memories of the tsunami was fresh at that time.

Phuket Kata Yai Beach View from Orchidacea Resort

The hotel is comfortable but average. The rooms, cleanness and service is overall satisfactory. And the price is just right. There is an active orchid nursery housed on the grounds of the resort and the resort takes its name from this nursery. If you stay there do not forget to visit more than one hundred varieties of orchid on display.

South end of Kata Beach has good coral reefs for snorkeling and there is also a nice Thai food restaurant named Restaurant Mama Kata. The Thai Food here is average and there are definitely better food in Kata but the view is just awesome. It is a wonderful place for a romantic dinner watching the sunset over the Andaman Sea.

If you stay in Kata do not miss Kho Saam Haad, “Three-Beach Hill”, a hilltop overlooking Kata Noi Beach, Kata Yai Beach and Karon Beach as well as the Pu Island. This hill is situated on the road between Kata and Rawai. The road to there is fairly quiet and although it is possible to walk up to this viewpoint from Nai Harn and Rawai, it’s a bit of a challenge.

View from Kho Saam Haad a.k.a Kata View Point. First beach is Kata Noi, the middle one is Kata Yai and the one at the top is Karon Beach. Patong is to the north of Karon Beach. Orchidecia Resort is on the hill between Kata Noi and Kata Yai (on the other side).

Where to stay in Termal (Yalova)?

Yalova Termal is one of the first places which comes to mind when talk about thermal and spa tourism in Turkey. With 2,000 years of thermal springs’ history, Yalova Termal is world-renowned place. Termal is only 12 km away to central of Yalova, is quite easily accessible place with the proximity to the big cities like İstanbul, İzmit and Bursa.  In addition to the spa, with the beautiful nature between two valleys, Thermal is ideal for a day trip or weekend escape from the city.

Thermal is only 2 hours away by ferry to Istanbul and 1 hour away by highway to İzmit and Bursa. And it is a place to go for all seasons. It is beautiful in the spring, when nature comes alive or autumn with glamorous defoliation, even though, thermal center is more enjoyable in winter months.

The first Turkish baths of Yalova Thermal Spring Resort were built by Byzantine Emperor Constantine (312-337) about 1600 years ago. And then, it was an important hot spring resort in the Byzantine period, but it could not compete with the spas of Bursa which is the first capital of Ottoman Empire and has been always in the background until the rheumatism of Bezm-i Alem Valide Sultan, mother of Sultan Abdülmecit, was healed here. Thermal came to the fore with the investments made in the last period of Ottoman, and then it has gone forgotten with the everlasting wars and disasters. In the Republic Period, it has gained again its fame and popularity with the help of Atatürk who liked here.

The healing waters of Yalova Thermal Spring Resort and its Turkish baths are beneficial to the rheumatism, digestive system, liver, gallbladder, kidney diseases and gynecological problems.
So where to stay in Yalova Thermal? Thermal offers good options with hotels providing services to domestic and foreign tourists. We are going to recommend a few hotels that stand out. Let’s begin with five star hotels.

Limak Thermal Boutique Hotel

Limak Thermal Boutique Hotel, the historic hotel who the first guest is Atatürk, is reconstructed by Limak Tourism Group in according to its original and welcomes guests. There are 100 square meters of thermal pool, Turkish bath, sauna, steam bath, and massage center in the spa center of 5 stars Limak Thermal Boutique Hotel and the thermal water with a private Jacuzzi in every room.

Limak Thermal Boutique Hotel

Black Bird Thermal Hotel and Spa

4 stars Black Bird Thermal Hotel and Spa which is opened with the architectural style of the White House in June 2013 welcomes guests with comfortable and stylish rooms. Indoor Thermal Pool, steam room, salt room, sauna and private treatment rooms, a private hot tub rooms and male and female-specific Turkish bath are offered to the guests. Thermo water ranging from 32-43°C with fluoride is beneficial in the chronic phase of rheumatic diseases, chronic low back pain, joint disorders, soft tissue disorders, orthopedic surgery, neurological disorders, stress and sports injuries, gynecological problems and it has rejuvenating effect to skin.

Blackbird Thermal Hotel and SPA

Thermo Vital Hotel

3 stars Thermo Vital Hotel is a little outside of the center of the Thermal and covered with pine trees in a lush green nature. It has spacious and comfortable rooms, a spa and bath, and thermal suites which are ideal for families with two bedrooms and two bathrooms. It is particular to the quiet, restful, clean and comfortable thermal hotel seekers.

Green Thermal Hotel

3 stars Green Thermal Hotel in Gökçedere district stands out with surrounding shopping facilities, rooms, baths, in-room Jacuzzi with thermal water. Even, the hotel is clean and comfortable to the families with two children.

You can have a look to Yalova Termal Hotels page for a wide range of thermal hotel list, comparative hotel room rates and user reviews. 

Kavala, an Aegean virgin

(Greek: Καβάλα) As we heard a lot about Kavala, we’ve never given a chance since Thessaloniki is just 2 hours away from this city, we always gave a miss to this city. Finally we made a trace trip on last October and stop by in Kavala for one night.

While I didn’t learn much about its history, as I made a quick search and I ended up with Thassians (the people from Thassos islands) who founded this city several centuries before, and they called it Neapolis, which means “new city”. What a contradiction for Kavala since it’s one of the oldest one in Greece currently! Oldie but goldie.. Let’s go on.

Old Kavala is settled on the skirts of a hill with a castle on the top, and the harbour at the bottom. New districts are settled on the coastal line, with most big hotels (and the one I stayed, Hotel Esperia as well) in the town. The main attractions of the city is in the small streets of old town and some parallel streets of the coastal road.

The main historical monuments in the city are the great aquaduct, which is built in Byzantian period and restored by the Ottoman empire Suleiman the Magnificent, the Kavala Castle which has a great view of peninsula, the Imaret, biggest edifice of the Ottoman period, which is used as an hotel now, and the Town Hall which is built by an Hungarian trader at 1895. There are signs and tables for a walking path and also informative tables about the buildings or the streets you’re in front of. You can visit many things on this path in a whole day and you can enjoy delicious Greek food while you’re having breaks.

Kavala Old Town

I strongly recommend you to watch the sun go down from the Kavala Castle. It’s one of the most amazing sunsets I’ve ever seen. After you’re finished with the city walk, it’s time for a great dinner at the harbour. You can enjoy many restaurants along the harbour. We’ve chosen Panos&Zafira (by the help of the kind receptionist of Hotel Esperia) at the corner of Plateia Karaoli and Dimitriou. We had many samples of Greek kitchen with an extremely competetant price.

In the morning we had a nice cup of Greek coffee in a café while the sun started to warm us again, watching the quiet sea. There are regular buses to and from Thessaloniki. From Kavala, you can also go to Thassos Island.

I’ve to accept that Greek food is as great as Turkish food. I’d expect some likeliness, but not this far!

As the weather didn’t let us to do, but we’re definitely sure that the beaches would give us a lovely chance to swim in an amazingly crystal clean and quiet environment in a warmer period. I’ve heard that it’s getting too crowded in the summer period but late summer, let’s say September would be a great choice of time to visit.

Antipaxoi

One last note about this beautiful city: Kavala is famous for its patisseries and a special cookie named as the city. Don’t hesitate to buy some for your friends..

If you are planning to visit Kavala and stay in Kavala, take a look at this Greece Kavala hotels page.

Bangkok Night Life : Red Light Districts

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