The very first time I heard of the marina of Gocek was when a friend, who works as a captain on one of those beautiful classical gulets that take tourists on the fabled Mavi Yolculuk (the Blue Voyage) between Marmaris and Kas, told me he had his gulet parked in one of the marinas of Gocek for repair during the winter months. When I asked why he chose Gocek, the answer was 'because Gocek has a very beautiful natural harbour'. That remark left its impression on me, and I thought given the opportunity, I would stop by Gocek and see for it myself if the place is indeed as nice as it was claimed.
Tucked away about 500m off the main Fethiye-Dalaman road, Gocek is indeed a beautiful jewel, but also an expensive place to visit. In part due to the presence of four marinas in the harbour of Gocek and the absence of high-rise blocks of hotels, price of hotel accommodation in Gocek is fairy pricy. A simple room with partial view of the marina, basic en-suite facilities and air-condition, costs 50TL per day without breakfast. If you choose to stay at one of the nicer local hotels, be prepared to dish out at least 100TL per day with breakfast for a room without seaview. Just a cursory look around the tidy streets of the tiny centre of Gocek, and you know immediately that this village has positioned itself at the top end of the market and aims to attract only those who have the money and the time to appreciate its silent beauty.
As it is not a place for budget travellers, be prepared to spend quite a bit of money on dining out, especially if you choose to go to one of those extremely chic places along the waterfront. For those who are fed up with the usual Turkish food, Gocek is the place to go to, as there are several restaurants serving foreign cuisines which are quite up to the mark, at least when compared to what are available in other parts of Turkey. The fact that there is an authentic Japanese restaurant staffed with a sushi chef from Japan will tell you something about the calibre of this place: not even in cities such as Ankara, Izmir or Antalya would you find Japanese food prepared by real Japanese chef. To a large extent, the presence of all these 'exotic' restaurants reflect the cosmopolitan nature of residents in Gocek. Many are affluent non-Turks who own their own boats, who had seen the world, tasted the food all over the globe, and are now living on their yachts stationed in one of the Gocek marinas. They want to be able to taste different types of food, not just the usual Turkish fare.
Being a place where yachts top up their store and food supplies, Gocek's tiny town centre has five supermarkets catering to the demands of the ships. In addition to the usual Migros, Carrefour, Tansas, etc., there are also smaller private supermarkets which specialise in exotic food ingredients. A few steps away from the expensive Japanese restaurant 'Bunka' is a supermarket and delicatessen stocked with foodstuffs imported directly from Western Europe and Asia, whose owner proudly told me they have one of the most extensive selections of cheese, sausages, cooking sauces and condiments in the whole of Turkey. And I have to agree with him, after taking a look inside the shop; their cold storage shelves have far more varieties of French, Italian, German and Dutch cheese and cured meat products than some of the most exclusive supermarkets in Istanbul put together; and there are several types of powders and sauces which allow one to prepare a very tasty and authentic Japanese tempura or tonkatsu. It is evident that the rich non-Turks residents living on their yachts enjoy cooking foreign dishes on board.
When these people living on their yachts are not doing their own cooking on board, they dine out at one of the many places in Gocek. The choice is quite bewildering really, given the size of this small village. For those who have cash to splash out, they can choose between the terribly expensive restaurants at the 5-Star Swissotel Gocek or one of the equally expensive al-fresco dining cafe-bistros along the harbour. By now, one would think that everything in this village is expensive. But the twist is, while one pays almost 20TL for a simple lunch in Gocek, it comes as a surprise that a glass of cay at the tea house ran by local municipality costs just 50krs. And with free wireless internet too. Given the inflation rates in Turkey, it is very rare now to be able to find a place where a tea in a tulip glass goes for less than 1TL. Little wonder that this tea house in the centre of Gocek is always busy.
Scenerywise, Gocek is in a natural bay surrounded by beautiful, lush green hills and has a very beautiful marina and harbour. However, there is no natural beach within walking distance. People who are interested in sandy beaches have to take a shuttle boat which will take them to a beach about 15 minutes by boat away from Gocek at the next bay. As I have not been there I cannot comment on its quality or scenic beauty.
As to the town centre of Gocek, there are a few shops selling high-quality gifts and very well-made items for home decorations, but in terms of architecture or landmarks, there is nothing really special in town. Nevertheless, the entire village is very well-maintained and is attractive in a very relaxed and causal-stylish way. For one thing the people working in restaurants and shops in Gocek do not hassle the tourists, which makes it very enjoyable to wander through the centre of Gocek. One can stop to look at the displays inside local shop windows for as long and as frequently as they wish, without feeling the pressure to buy anything against one's will.
Although I heard that some gulets doing the Blue Voyage run will anchor near Gocek for a night, I have not seen any passengers from one of those gulets running around in Gocek during the four days I was there. Instead I ran into some activists from Europe by chance on one morning while I was having breakfast at the outdoor cafe owned by the hotel. Those gentlemen seemed to be in a very agitated state, busy talking over the phone all the time. It was not until later that the guy working at the hotel reception told me that those guys were on board the MV Mavi Marmara, the ship carrying humanitarian supplies to Gaza that came under attack by Israeli Naval Forces in international waters in May 2010 when trying to break through Israel's blockade of Gaza. Apparently the activists had another aid ship anchored in one of the marinas in Gocek, from where they were to launch another attempt to break the blockade, but that ship was found sabotaged shortly before it was scheduled to depart for Gaza; hence the great agitation at breakfast time. Here is the link for the related news coverage of this incident :
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2011/06/2011630155647950458.html
P.S. No one had noticed that Israeli agents had been at work in Gocek during those few days .... XDDDD Activists, secret agents, sabotage, expensive yachts, luxury hotels, beautiful scenery ... but no casino yet. Does that make Gocek the setting for the next 007 movie?
It is easy to get to Gocek. Regular mini-buses depart from Fethiye's main bus station on an hourly basis to Gocek's town centre. Alternatively, get on any bus that goes to the direction of Dalaman or Marmaris and ask the driver to let you off at the bus stop near the Gocek junction, from where it is a short 400m walk to the town centre. This little seaside village is quite expensive, but I actually quite like this place, because in spite of all the wealthy people running around, Gocek still retains its casual small village charm and its laid-back attitude, and is certainly not pretentious or snobbish at all. Which makes it much more endearing to me than the mega resorts of Fethiye or Marmaris.
Copyrights@2012. All text and photos by M40 the Secret Agent Beagle. All Rights Reserved.
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