The village of Göcek was founded on the shores of Göcek Bay located in Gulf of Fethiye.  Geographically, Göcek is surrounded by the Taurus Mountains except to the south where a gateway to the sea provides easy access to calm and well protected harbours.

Modern day Göcek is a pleasant village situated in Muðla Province of Fethiye County which is located on the south west coast of Turkey.  It was a small and quiet village until the beginning of 1980 when tourists began to discover the beauties of Turkey.  In recent times, Göcek has developed quickly as its popularity increased in the region.  According to a census in 1997, the total population numbered about 3,500 people but a more recent estimate places the figure closer to 4,500.

Göcek has many attractions for visitors arriving by sea; numerous bays, each more beautiful than the other and a scattering of picturesque islands surrounded by turquoise waters all combine to create an inviting vista.  Göcek Bay’s fine selection of sheltered anchorages and harbours to explore makes Göcek a popular stop for vessels voyaging on the Mediterranean Sea and local accommodations include four different marinas that should meet the needs of almost any yacht.

Göcek isn’t just ideal for yachting visitors.  Arrivals by land or air will find a wide choice of hotel accommodation, restaurants, entertainment, technical facilities, travel agencies, provisioning, communication facilities, health services and all other vital necessities are readily available in Göcek. The yacht regatta, organized by Göcek Yacht Club, attracts vessels from many other regions in each May and November. In addition to this, each May, The Eastern Mediterranean Yacht Rally participants visit our coastline.

If you choose to spend your holiday in Göcek, you will find a variety of holiday choices that include social and cultural events, technical and health support and the ability to accommodate many special requirements. Regardless of how you arrive, Göcek is an excellent gateway to the South Aegean coastline and the Mediterranean Sea. It is an ideal starting point for many magnificent destinations over a variety of routes.  With perfect green shores, paradise bays and turquoise waters. Göcek’s reputation has spread all over the world and a long holiday season that starts at the beginning of April and continues well into November provides an ample opportunity for a holiday visit .

Getting to Göcek was made even easier by the construction of a tunnel through the mountains between Dalaman and Göcek. The 980m long tunnel, completed in 2006, accommodates a new multilane highway that connects Dalaman and its airport with the Fethiye region. The distance to the Dalaman Airport has been shortened to only 22km by the new tunnel, allowing many visitors, and a number of famous people, to take advantage of the shorter route and visit Göcek more frequently.

In December of 1988, the Environmental Protection Agency declared that the 805 km square area surrounding Göcek and Fethiye was a protected area. After the enactment of this ruling, new buildings could not be constructed with more than two and a half stories. Almost all of the buildings and accommodations found in Göcek today are two stories or less, which limits the number of rooms in hotels, apartments and pensions to provide a more personal touch for guests.  Most of the companies that offer accommodations in Göcek are operated by residents who combine hospitality and local character to provide an excellent holiday experience.

Many ancient ruins, left by the Lycian civilization, are waiting for you to discover and explore around Göcek. You can’t help but notice them whether you are walking along the bay or hiking in the mountains. You may even see a few in shallow water when swimming.  In the city centre you can find daily tripper boats to explore Göcek bays and there is a shuttle boat to Göcek Island every hour.  If you decide to spend your holiday in Göcek afloat, there are many professional travel agencies that can help you find a charter boat.

Göcek is surrounded by green pine forests, except to the south in the direction of the sea. It offers many choices to satisfy all holiday needs in a perfect natural environment. The Environmental Protection Agency, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry and the Turkish Marine Environment Protection Association, have started a Sea Management Project for the Göcek region. In an effort to protect the trees along the shore, 205 cleats have been located in the bays for mooring yachts and it is forbidden to tie your yacht to the trees. Charts with the locations of Göcek Bay mooring cleats are delivered to visiting yachts by the sewage removal boat.  Under the provisions of Forestry law Nr. 6381 you are subject to a fine if you tie your yacht to the trees.

If you don’t have a list of "things to do" before you are too old, we recommend you start it with “Explore Göcek”.

It’s the main attraction for many... It is priceless to be away from the crowd, alone with ones thoughts, communing with nature or spending some time with friends, waves, and wind when you are sailing in Göcek Bay.

There is an abundance of turquoise waters, good sailing and bright sunny days throughout much of the Mediterranean, so why choose the Aegean and Mediterranean coastlines of Turkey. The reason is simple enough. While you can test your sailing skills along almost any coastline of the world, the most important aspect is the places you visit after you drop anchor at your destination.  The serenity of the lonely bays along the Aegean Coast, the sincerity of the villagers you encounter ashore and the rich history of the area makes for a very special experience when exploring Turkey by the sea.

The region enjoys a virtually ideal climate, inviting waters, and a host of bays and islands, each with its own special attraction. The vast array of attractive coastal features and the hospitable face of modern Turkey’s coastline on the Aegean and Mediterranean seas have given this region a special name, the Turquoise Coast. The Turquoise Coast is almost 350 miles in length and extends from Kuþadasý in the north to Antalya in the South. The ins and outs of the many bays and inlets along the curving coastline effectively double the length of the coastline making blue water voyaging along its reaches a very special experience.

Muðla Province has 131 pearly bays along its 1124 km coastline. Göcek bays, located in Gulf of Fethiye, form a natural lace work, each with a different beauty but joined by a harmony of nature.  There is no place in the world, beyond the bay’s of Göcek, where you can see as many different hues of green and blue.

Both experienced and amateur sailors who want to experience the joys of being at sea and feel the wind on their face can rent a sailing yacht, motor yacht or Gullet or voyage on one of the daily trip boats to nearby islands. You can explore even more remote locations during a blue voyage aboard one of the locally built yachts called Gullets. The Gullet is a modern adaptation of a traditional Mediterranean sailing yacht and the name Gullet comes from the Italian word “gouletta”.  Gullets are locally produced from Aegean pine with wide decks and large comfortable cabins.  Captain, cook and crew join to form an image of natural harmony making a voyage aboard a Gullet an ideal way to fully enjoy the turquoise coast of Turkey.

A variety of tours begin in Göcek and many options are available. It can be quite economical to join a daily boat tour, and for longer trips every kind of comfort can be found aboard a luxury yacht touring along the coastline. If you have prior sailing experience, bareboat charters can be arranged through one of the many charter companies in the Göcek area. If you prefer daily trip boat trips, many leave between 10:00 & 10:30 in the morning, anchoring in six to seven magnificent bays before finishing between 18:00 & 18:30. Lunch is usually included and prices averaged about 25.00 YTL per person during the 2007 summer season.

Göcek Bay leads the way with its perfect nature and hundreds of smaller bays and islands. You can spend the entire summer in Göcek’s many bays and anchor in a different spot every day. Göcek also has four different marinas with a total capacity of 850 yachts. In addition to this an average of 2,000 to 2,500 yachts can be found sailing between Göcek’s many bays and islands on a typical summer day.

The trip to Göcek is very easily done and when you get here you will be free from all the stresses of modern day life.  Voyages on the turquoise waters guarantee that you will explore a creation of nature that cannot be seen anywhere else in the world. Perfect nature and peaceful harmony, Göcek…