Where to stay in Bodrum: the best areas and resorts

Bodrum town is the peninsula's handsome centre, two bays of whitewashed houses split by the Castle of St Peter, built by the crusader Knights Hospitaller and now home to the Museum of Underwater Archaeology. The western bay is all marina and yachts, the eastern one is lined with beach bars and the town's own bar street, and between them the bazaar lanes are full of fish restaurants, boutiques and bougainvillea. This was ancient Halicarnassus, and the remains of its Mausoleum, one of the Seven Wonders, lie a short walk from the harbour.

Most of the best hotels sit on the hills around town, looking straight at the castle. There's an adults-only hilltop hotel with panoramic views over the castle and the Aegean, a 96-room hotel and spa whose pools face the castle too, and an elegant adults-only hotel close to the centre and a Blue Flag beach. On Bardakçı Bay, just west of the marina, a low-rise, whitewashed beach resort tumbles down the hillside in terraces. Expect noise on summer nights near the bars.

Gümbet sits in the next bay west of Bodrum town and has long been the peninsula's party resort. A sandy beach lined with sunbeds and watersports gives way to Bar Street, where the music starts late and finishes later. Bodrum's castle, museum and nightlife are around 3 km away, a short hop by dolmuş minibus or taxi.

Hotels run from good-value apartments in the traditional low-rise Bodrum style, a few steps from Bar Street, to a hillside resort between Gümbet and Bitez and a beach hotel 30 metres from the sand. For views, one resort on the slopes of a private bay looks out across the marina to Bodrum Castle, under 2 km from the centre.

Bitez is what many people wish Gümbet were. The bay is sheltered and calm, the long public beach is lined with cafés and restaurants with loungers on the sand, and the steady breeze makes it a favourite for windsurfers. Behind the beach, satsuma orchards run up the valley, and Bodrum town is about 6 km away.

Hotels are mostly mid-sized and friendly: a four-star in big gardens 200 metres from the sea, a beach hotel right on the sand, a stylish hotel among satsuma orchards just back from the seafront, and a comfortable hotel that suits couples and families alike. Evenings are for long dinners rather than big nights.

On the peninsula's western tip, Turgutreis looks straight out at the Greek islands of Kos, Kalymnos and Pserimos, and its sunsets are the best on the coast. The town has a marina, a seafront promenade and a big weekly market, and it feels like a real place rather than a resort strip.

This is the peninsula's family heartland, with frontline five-stars on private beaches: an elegant resort and spa with views of the islands, a wellbeing resort with indoor pools and spa, and a family-friendly hotel with a 300-metre beach and jetty. Bodrum town is about 18 km away and the airport around 50 km, so allow time for transfers.

Yalıkavak was a sponge-diving and fishing village until its marina turned it into the peninsula's glamour address. Today superyachts line up beside designer boutiques and smart restaurants, yet the old centre still has family-run places and a weekly farmers' market. Sunsets over the bay are spectacular.

Choose a modern five-star resort 5 km from the village, a frontline hotel on a private sandy beach and pier in Tilkicik Bay, or a family-friendly beach resort with decked terraces down to the water. For self-catering, apartments and villas sit right by the sea.

Away from the main resorts, the peninsula's quieter bays are where Bodrum gets seriously exclusive. Torba, on the north side, has a calm bay and a handful of polished hotels; Gündoğan is green and unspoilt, ten minutes from Yalıkavak's marina; and Aspat Bay is a secluded spot of little harbours and water channels.

Hotels here are about space and privacy: a refined LXR resort with a private beach, spa and four restaurants in Torba, an 80-room Radisson Collection on Aspat Bay, a luxury resort and spa in Gündoğan, and an elegant boutique hotel overlooking the water 4 km from Bodrum town. Bring a hire car, or budget for taxis.