While I was in Turkey I wanted to take a boat trip in Bodrum. I pulled up google on my T-Mobile…read moredevice (unlimited LTE in 140+ countries) did a quick search for boat tours in Bodrum and this company came up with high marks. Tried to find it on Yelp but it seems that while Yelp is available in Turkey, no one has jumped on board and wrote any reviews. I went ahead and called them on What's App and asked for the details and prices. The young lady on the phone, Elizabeth, made this easy. She sent me pics and detail of the boats and the cost of hiring a private boat for the day. (If you would like to know the cost, please send me a message) While it was only three of us on the private boat, the boat can hold more, possibly 5-15 people, maybe even more than that. If there was a group of people, hiring a private boat is definitely an economical way of handling business. No need to be with strangers, if you don't like a stop, you can tell the Captain to take you somewhere else. Fishing off the boat is cool with them. Hell, you can even Captain the boat for a while if you want. Anything is possible on this boat trip. Lunch was delicious. I mean, after swimming half the day you will work up an appetite. We were served kofte, chicken, pasta, salad and bread. It hit the spot and in typical Turkish fashion, tea whenever we wanted. There is even an afternoon snack consisting of watermelon, kiwi, bananas and peaches. (See pics) Everything was so good and fresh. Trip started around 930AM and we came back around 6PM so that was a full day of swimming and being in the sun. I personally wanted to go to Orak so that is where I spent the majority of my day. They did make a few other stops on the way back but by far Orak was the best stop. If you are ever in Bodrum and want to take a boat trip be sure to give this team a call. You won't be disappointed.

From the owner: Enjoy a day on board of one our boats and spend the best day of your holiday…read more We will visit 4-5 beautiful bays and beaches around the Bodrum peninsula where you can go swimming and snorkelling.

We have been to a trip with Mira last year for a week. The boat was very good and comfy, crew was…read morevery nice and hardworking for providing the best possible service. Food was great, you need good food while sailing:) the places we visited was extraordinary, Turkish Aegean coast is worth to visit. We are planning to have another trip this year too, highly suggested to all people who are looking for a great blue voyage experience.

From the owner: We strive for you to have the best experience by planning your vacation from A to Z. Our yachts'…read morecrew is chosen carefully so that you are provided with the best service and quality possible. Just tell us the number of passengers and the dates you’d like to rent a boat, and we will provide the best possible boat for you.

A first on Qype - a gulet (traditional wooden boat) cruise with home port of Bitez west of Bodrum…read more Odysseus (22m) is a lovely vessel, built in the local boatyards about 15 years ago. 5 cabins all with ensuite facilities and AC ensured that I had a comfortable week long cruise in the summer temps. The route (often called the Blue Cruise) meanders along the coast line of South West Turkey, crossing seamlessly from the Aegean to the Mediterranean with non stop gourmet food provided by Mehmet. Fresh supplies were taken onboard when a fisherman offered his catch alongside; we visited small villages when moored at night and bought fresh fruit. However, it is the simplicity of starry nights and open horizons that are the real temptations on this type of holiday. The crew are in action all the time, providing a quiet efficient service. Definitely a room with a view, and open sea as the perfect swimming pool.

I had a Biblical tour and our tour guide was Hakan. He was fantastic! He has such a great…read morepersonality, professional yet easy to talk to, connect with and he adds in a bit of humor. His patriotism for Turkey made it all the more fun to connect with the places he has shown us and gives it deeper meaning. I have learned so much from this tour thanks to Hakan and his team, they have been very accommodating, on time, and thoroughly enjoyable!

From the owner: Private Istanbul Tours, Private Ephesus Tours, Biblical Tours, Pre and Post Cruise tours in…read moreIstanbul, Ferry to Greek Islands.

I wouldn't typically go through this much trouble to add a business to yelp, but this company gave…read moregreat customer service. Found this company through tripadvisor last minute the night before my cruise ship docked at Kusadasi. By last minute, I mean super last minute, I probably sent in a reservation request in at around midnight for a 9am tour. I half expected them to not even reply like some other private tour companies I had tried to contact. Unfortunately, the internet on the boat was inconsistent so I didn't get the message that the tour guide and driver had been waiting for us in the morning. By the time I emailed them they were back at the office and came back out to the port to pick us up and didn't charge a late fee. My original plan was to take a taxi or bus to Ephesus and try to DIY everything on our own since all the tour books highlighted the Terrace Houses as a "must see" but the cruise tours did not include them in any of their tour options and it has an extra admission fee. Then around 10pm the night before our day at port my brother asked me if it would be safe to travel on our own and I proceeded to spend an hour reading Istanbul taxi horror stories. Around 11pm I scrambled to find last minute tour options. Since we only had 4 people in our group, the price wasn't that much cheaper than the cruise tour BUT it was 100 times better. 1) You get your own private car. We had a large black Mercedes van instead of being packed like sardines in a bus with 50 other people. 2) You get your own private guide. Serkan was incredibly knowledgeable and patient with us. 3) Guide doubles as photographer. As an example of his patience, Serkan helped up take endless pictures for my Asian photo-happy family and suggested good photo spots. 4) You can ask questions. Licensed tour guides require a 4-year university degree and need to pass a license exam so they are incredibly knowledgeable. With a private tour you don't have to stand on your tiptoes or lean your ear over 10 people to hear what is going on nor wait in a line to ask a single question. 5) Tour is catered to you. We chose to see the Temple of Artemis and Ephesus, including the Terrace Houses. Apparently, going a little later was a good move because the place was practically empty. If you go on a large tour they tend to skip over this site since it is difficult to squeeze large groups into this smaller protected area with narrow staircases. It was definitely worth it. After Ephesus and the Temple (or single column plus rocks) of Artemis, our tour guide asked if we'd like to see some local crafts and try turkish coffee. This reminded me of some of the horror stories from the night before where patrons were taken to local vendors before their requested destination and required to buy things before they could continue on.... but someone in our group was interested in seeing a ceramics factory so we went and there was no pressure to buy anything. Our tour guide was present and made sure we did not feel pressured. I think this part is optional, whereas larger tours require you to stop at a rug shop for half an hour. You can pay cash or credit. If you pay credit, you need to stop by the office. They collect payment at the end of the trip. We had a great time. Thanks!

We planned a day trip to Ephesus during our weeklong trip to Istanbul. Ephesus Shuttle made what…read morecould have been a chaotic day relaxing and extremely enjoyable. Our guide Emray was waiting at the airport for us. He walked us out to meet our driver and we all got into a very nice Mercedes van. During the drive out to Ephesus, Emray explained the history of the area. When we arrived at Ephesus, he continued his interesting explanations. There is a lot to see over the 2 mile course of the excavation. He focused our visit on interesting aspects and kept us in the shade as much as possible. He was extremely knowledgable about the ancient history. My husband is a world history teacher who asked him many tricky questions; none of them made him bat an eye. I highly recommend taking a private tour as we were able to see much more than the large tours and spent a lot of time looking at interesting details. Also all three of us fit into small spots of shade that a 40 person group could not have. After we finished at Ephesus, we ate lunch together at an amazing restaurant. The owner cooks 30 or so different home style dishes each day and the restaurant works like a Thanksgiving dinner buffet (with Turkish food). It was one of the best restaurants we ate at our entire trip. Then we opted to head to Sirince village, which was lovely. Emray helped us get some great deals on gifts we wanted to buy and filled us in on the history of the picturesque area. By the time we were dropped back of at the airport, we felt like we had made a new friend. I highly recommend Ephesus Shuttle for anyone wanting to visit Ephesus.

The mission of ''Ephesus Tours by Locals'' is dedicated to the highest quality of Customer Service…read moredelivered with a sense of Warmth, Friendliness, Individual Pride, and Excellence. Service is what we offer. Our knowledge and ability to perform accurately, timely, professionally and courteously is what we promise to all our clients. Our commitment to great service is what drives our success. Our core values of integrity, client satisfaction, innovation and intellect differentiate us from our competitors. Our focus on developing and maintaining a measurable client satisfaction program has created a company culture where each of our associates delivers world class service every day. When you choose to travel with Ephesus Tours by Locals you are partnering with a company who cares. We are continually focused on finding ways to support our community and we participate in several philanthropic activities throughout the year. Our attitude toward great service and helping others makes our culture inviting and fun. We are always looking for the brightest and most talented people around to join us in servicing our clients and community! -Special tailored tours and discounts for you! -Freedom to decide when to start your tour! -Insured coach and professional tour guide with you all day long! -Sites explained by licensed tour guide! -No big group of people to wait! -Your very own pictures during the tour! -Private tours costing less than big bus tours of the cruise companies! -Chance to taste the best local Turkish dishes! -Complete local experience with a local guide! -You do not have to deal with pre-payment! -Chance to interact with your tour guide face to face!