Muğla Province

Muğla Province is at Türkiye's south-western corner, on the Aegean Sea. Some of Turkey's largest holiday resorts, such as Bodrum, Ölüdeniz, Marmaris and Fethiye, are on the coast in Muğla. This was the Editor's 2024 tour and covers some of the main sites he visited from a base in Marmaris. The terrain is very hilly, although the roads are good. You will need a car to visit most of the main sites.

Marmaris
Marmaris is a busy tourist city in the the natural harbour that is Marmaris Bay. The old town drops down to the harbour under the castle that was rebuilt by Sultan Suleiman the Lawgiver, who used Marmaris as his base for the later siege of Rhodes. You can also visit Rhodes from Marmaris. It is a hours sail away by ferry. However, the ferry system and passport controls can add another couple of hours onto the journey time each way, so be prepared!
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The castle is the only historical site worth visiting. It has been rebuilt after the French Navy bombarded it in WW1 and is well worth the modest climb. There is a museum with exhibits from other sites inside.

​In 1800-01, General Abercromby brought 16,000 British troops to Marmaris Bay not to invade but to prepare for an amphibious assault on Egypt.

Knidos
This is the finest of many ancient sites in the region, situated at Cape Tekir, on the Datça Peninsula, about a two hour drive from Marmaris. Knidos (Cnidus) was founded by Greek colonists, both Lacedaemonians and Argives, and they moved to this site in the 4th-century, possibly earlier. The city is terraced due to the mountainous structure of the land. Subsequently, the sea between the island and the mainland was filled to obtain two separate ports. There are large and extensive excavations, although still a lot of work to do. The site is a lovely spot and the scenery en-route is also stunning.
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Amos
​The city of Amos, an hours drive down the coast from Marmaris, was an outpost of Rhodes. ​The small city was built on a hill overlooking the bay and harbour. The walls are relatively well preserved, if overgrown, at around four metres high by two metres deep. There is a good path and steps up to the top, from which you get a great view over the bay and back into Marmaris Bay. 

Stratonikeia
Stratonikeia is a 90 minute drive inland, near Yatagan in Mugla province, just off the main road. The Seleucids changed the name (after Antiochos' stepmother), but there had been a settlement here before then, as far back as the Carian period. 

This was a large city, as the amphitheatre could accommodate 12,000 people. It is still occupied to this day and there are later Seljuk and Ottoman buildings.

The administrative capital, Mugla, has a museum with some of the findings from Stratonikeia.

Beçin Castle
Beçin Castle and city is near Milas, two hours driving from Marmaris, up good if steep roads. It is only 30 minutes from Bodrum if you are staying there. The site was occupied since the Hellenistic period, and a modest Byzantine church indicates the settlement continued into the medieval period. At the end of the 13th century, it was captured by the Menteşe Beylik, becoming the capital of the Beylik, and it expanded rapidly.

The magnificent castle is being reconstructed, but you walk around the old city, which has the ruins of mosques, hamans, inns and the outer walls. ​The Ahmet Gazi Madrasa (religious school), has been reconstructed. It was named after the Bey who commissioned it and dates from 1375. There are informative displays in Turkish and English, which explain how the madrasa operated and fitted in with other schools in the region. 

Bodrum
We actually visited Bodrum by ferry from Kos in 2022. However, for completeness it should be covered here as it is in the province. The highlight is the Castle of St. Peter built by the Knights of St John or Hospitallers in the 15thC. Bodrum was known in ancient times as Halicarnassus. The city was once home to the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus, also known as the tomb of Mausolus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The museum inside the castle includes the old city's remains and the award-winning underwater archaeology museum.