About This Guide
Who writes this guide to Gümüşlük and the Bodrum Peninsula, why we do it, and the editorial rules we hold ourselves to.
This guide is written by a small team who live in Gümüşlük and host guests here at Hespera Suites. We are here in August, when the waterfront is full, and in January, when the wind rattles the shutters and half the village has gone quiet. Most of what is on these pages started as answers to questions our guests asked us.
Why we write it
People kept asking the same things. Which bay is sheltered when the wind is up? Is the dolmuş still running in October? Where do you eat when the harbour is booked out? What is open in winter? Much of the information online was out of date, written from a single summer visit, or quietly paid for.
So we started writing it down properly, for our guests and for anyone else planning time on the peninsula, wherever they end up staying. We would rather you came to know this place well than had a perfect week and never understood it.
How we work
A few principles we hold ourselves to:
- We go to the places we write about. We walk the paths, swim at the bays and eat at the tables. If we have not been somewhere recently, we either go or leave it out.
- No paid placements. Nobody pays to appear in this guide, and there are no sponsored posts dressed up as advice. When we mention a business, it is because we think it is useful to you.
- We are honest about the downsides. The wind, the summer traffic, the prices in August, the places that close for winter. Knowing these makes for a better trip.
- We update seasonally. Restaurants change hands, routes change, prices rise. We review our guides through the year, especially before summer and before winter.
- We are open about who we are. We run a place to stay here. We mention it on where to stay and keep it out of the way everywhere else.
Local note: Some details, such as bus times, festival dates and opening seasons, change every year. Where we cannot confirm something, we say so.
Help us keep it right
If something in a guide is wrong or out of date, please tell us. A closed restaurant, a moved bus stop, a price that has jumped: it all helps. You can reach us through the contact page, and we read every message.
If you are new here, the journal is a good place to start.