Booked into the Marmara at the last minute after being let down by the Adahan in Yalikavak. It is a fabulous hotel with the best pitch in Bodrum (as long as you have a car or are happy to use taxis).
Views are breathtaking and the hotel has been designed to maximise them. But like many 'boutique' hotels, it is a bit caught up its own designed bottom. (Make sure you securely lock the glass doors of the loos in the reception area. If you don't they remain transparent!)
We drove from the airport using the web site directions but couldn't find the hotel. After driving around for an hour and several unhelpful phone calls we went into the Diamond of Bodrum hotel where a kind receptionist took pity on us and gave us a map and directions.
There is a hotel sign but it's tiny and says the word 'dinner' with Marmara written underneath in white. It's as though exclusivity takes preference over customer service. If you are driving, look for the Land Rover garage as you come into Bodrum and turn right just before.
Many of the reviews of this hotel mention high prices. But if you stay in a 5* you do expect to pay more. Also its location and the fact that there are no shops or bars in easy walking distance means you have to fork out.
With the Marmara it's not the prices but the perceived value of what's on offer. You feel you are paying well over the odds. The service is lovely and what you get is ok, there just isn't any wow factor. I can't remember staying in a 5* hotel anywhere in the world that charges extra for hot food at breakfast and the cost of spa treatments were stratospheric.
You could see that guests were simply not using the hotel facilities which you have to pay for - if they didn't have to.
Perhaps we shouldn't have been surprised about the prices given our experiences in Bodrum. If we found a restaurant full of Turks it was fine though pricy and poor value compared to Portugal, Spain and even Italy!
Yes, it was the end of the season and it hasn't been a great one for Turkish resorts but we were overcharged in several restaurants and bars. One evening in Yalikavak we were overcharged twice in different establishments! Bills bore no resemblance to prices on menus and when questioned they would argue saying we had picked the 50 lira, rather than 35 lira bottle of wine.
Initially we thought these were unfortunate, random experiences. By the end of the trip we knew better.



















