The glitzy champagne soaked and sundrenched MACAKIZI on the Bodrum Peninsula, Turkey
Macakizi is the hotel to stay at on the Bodrum Peninsula of Turkey. And it knows it. That said, the whitewashed buildings that are on a bouganvilla festooned hillside leading down to the "beach"- lovely decks built above the Aegean Sea-- make it an ideal perch. The rooms are minimalist yet comfortable with window seats and postcard worthy perfect balconies (be sure to get a room with one and a sea view). The town of Turkbuku is a mere stroll down the hill along the water and was our favorite town in Bodrum (tied with Gumusluk, actually).
Now, the not so positive. During the season (which commences mid-June when we were there and reaches a crescendo by August), Macakizi is crawling with self-conscious, semi-flashy, ritzy Turks who all seem to know each other. And they definitely are all there to see and be seen. Unlike LA where celebs hide from paparazzi, Macakizi is where the Turkish pop and TV stars demand the most visible spot on the deck with hopes their pictures will be taken by paparazzi on jet skis. Although you might expect the staff to act like dicks since they are dealing with high maintenance guests all day, they are fantastic-- friendly and cool and professional. I wish I could say the same for the owner, a robust woman in her 70s who emits an air of being annoyed that all of these people are at her seaside estate....
The quick and dirty-- Macakizi would be a lovely seaside idyll in their off season-- late Spring or Fall. Proceed with caution during the summer months! Or just pack your rhinestone studded bikinis, drown yourself in rose and enjoy a good chuckle as you take it all in.