Glittering seas and unbridled debauchery; It’s the dazzling summer cocktail that most of us are after, and Bodrum is the place to get it in 2024. This part of the Turkish coastline, dotted with luxury resorts along the turquoise Aegean Sea, has already proven that long before the season kicks into full swing.
All indications are there: in April, Roman Abramovich’s Solaris superyacht was spotted docking at Yalıkavak Marina, and last month Kate Moss set off for her first Med Bodrum festival, where she was photographed arm in arm with Skip Marley’s leading lady. Bob’s grandson. They join a long list of Bodrum fans, from Cleopatra and Mark Antony, who were fascinated by the view and visited on their way to Rome, to Mick Jagger, Princess Margaret and Michael Caine, who made it an exciting destination for late 70s revelry. .
Today, this attraction is coming back in full swing. The newly opened Maxx Royal, a sprawling 11.4-hectare hotel (“Bodrum is Turkey’s most magnificent riviera,” murmurs executive brand director Banu Akan), joins other ultra-luxury spots with familiar names. Bodrum’s glittering renaissance began 10 years ago with the opening of the Mandarin Oriental, followed by outposts Aman, Six Senses and EDITION. The latest from Studio 54 co-founder Ian Schrager has been bringing a taste of New York’s dimly lit party scene since it opened in 2018. Located in Tilkicik Bay at the western end of the peninsula, the smell of Le Labo and white slices of marble welcome those who come. Last month’s season launch party also featured a proper (well-arranged) mix of 24-hour partyers from Istanbul and London.
The general manager of the hotel, Mustafa Bulmuş, said, “As one of the first luxury hotels opened in the region, The Bodrum EDITION has long known the appeal of Bodrum for the rich and famous.” “The perfect coastline, clear Aegean Sea and privacy offered by our bay have attracted everyone from Kate Moss to Jeff Bezos. There is a good reason why the world’s most selective jet set prefers to spend their summers in Bodrum.”
As I perched on the sun lounger as the cream of the impressive group of kids living in E1 took a dip in the water, I began to understand the appeal. KITCHEN, one of the resort’s three restaurants, has just received its first (highly deserved) Michelin star. The beach waiter service is unique, delivering EDITION brand coconut and baklava flavored ice cream. But Bodrum is best known for those who go down after dark. Tatler called it a “hedonist hotspot” in its 2024 travel guide, and on a Friday night, with its 108 guestrooms, suites and villas packed to the brim, I was about to find out why…
Arriving by complimentary golf cart, the booming bass of the DJ grew louder before the sea-facing dance floor, filled with silk-lined dresses and floating linen shirts, came into view. Champagne was dispensed like tap water, and the waiter explained that Bodrum was like the Hamptons, pointing to the well-presented Turks. The city’s prominent people come here to relax and have fun; “Think of this as ‘Istanbul on the sea’,” they said. The British group was blown away thanks to Pixie Lott’s husband, model Oliver Cheshire, who opened his and Toby Watkins’ waterfront menswear store CHÈ Studios.
I find Cheshire in a corner wearing one of his own knit polo designs. Over a margarita, he said that Bodrum was “the perfect choice for CHÈ’s first holiday store because it feels undiscovered, fresh and new compared to other summer destinations, which reflects the spirit of our brand.” “It has a feeling of effortless, understated luxury, so it felt like the perfect fit for us.” Later, a Parisian transvestite was greeted with applause as he walked up to the bar wearing a feathered headdress and shouted Like a Prayer towards the ocean. One felt that such scenes were common occurrences.
Bodrum has achieved a return of one percent since the mid-seventies, when the lucrative sponge diving industry declined and 650 square kilometers of land was turned to tourism. World) and the 15th-century Bodrum Castle. International glamazons were first spotted in Maçakizi, which has become a five-star paradise that has hosted everyone from Bill Gates to the Delevingnes. The venue, which started life as a boarding house in 1977, quickly became a late-night hangout for Ahmet Ertegün, the American-Turkish co-founder of Atlantic Records, who owns a villa nearby and whose regulars include Jagger, Bette Midler and Chuck Berry. . . By 1979, the famous Halicarnassus Discotheque nightclub opened its doors to Sting, Yves Saint Laurent, Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock, and Bodrum’s name rose to the top.
After the decline in quality, 2017 regained its former form with the opening of Turkey’s brightest yacht marina, Yalıkavak. That year, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle “escaped undetected” during a trip to Bodrum before their wedding, staying for five nights in a private villa overlooking Yalıkavak Bay, according to their 2020 biography Finding Freedom. Markle’s jewelry favorite, Kismet by Milka, has an outpost next to the boats. Today’s beach has a restaurant offering Nobu, Zuma, Bagatelle and Novikov restaurants; Think of it as the Mayfair of marinas.
Turkish photographer Mert Alas, the first choice of supermodels and David Beckham, as well as the man behind the Jeremy Allen White shoot for Calvin Klein, should also be thanked for elevating Bodrum’s reputation; They both grew to love The LifeCo’s detox retreat. It has now invested in the region as well, and its Seventy One Gin brand (Madonna-approved) is available in many party centres.
You’re sure to find it alongside 2024’s A-list holidaymakers at Hanover Square haunt The MAINE Bodrum, also opening at The Maxx Royal, with outposts in Dubai and Ibiza. “We are introducing Bodrum to ‘food fun’ and more nightlife,” says founder Joey Ghazal. “There are already plenty of day options along the coast, such as Lucca Beach and Maçakizi, attracting the trendy boat crowd, but there is nowhere for the crew to go to spend the night; this will change.”
We’ll catch you at the bathhouse or most likely on the dance floor.