Cleopatra island with a gulet! Must see destination in Turkey.
Cleopatra Island is one of the most interesting beaches to check if you decide on a Blue Cruise in Turkey. In this blog post, we will try to explain why. If you give this beach a try you will for sure not be sorry as it is a very popular Blue Cruise destination.
Cleopatra Island is approximately 12 km from Marmaris and is best approached by boat.
Sedir Island (Sedir Adası) a.k.a. Cleopatra Island — north of Marmaris in the Gulf of Gökova, Sedir Island, known in ancient times as Kedreae, features an amphitheater and some other Greek/Roman ruins shadowed by the silvery green olive trees.
However, its biggest claim to fame is its Cleopatra Beach, with the golden sands virtually non-existent anywhere else in the Eastern Mediterranean, accompanied by milky turquoise waters of the cove.
The legend has it that Marcus Antonius have this sand brought in from Egypt for the honeymoon on the island with his lover, Cleopatra of Egypt, however, experts conclude that this unique sodium bicarbonate-containing sand is actually consisting of dissolved seashells.
The sands are under heavy protection and removing any quantity of sand from the beach is forbidden, so no towels or shoes are allowed on the beach and anyone entered the beach must have a shower before exiting.
Sometimes bags are searched upon exiting, too. Frequent boats to the island depart from the harbor near the highway north to Akyaka/Gökova/Muğla, about 10 km north of Marmaris (watch for brown Sedir Adası signpost) after crossing the mountain pass just after leaving Marmaris behind.
Boats cost 10 TL pp return, and admission to the island is a further 10 TL pp. There is a small kiosk on the island with fairly priced drinks.
The kiosk doesn’t sell any alcohol but it”s allowed to bring in from the mainland with you (as well as any other snacks and drinks).
The beach closes at 7 PM and it”s best to visit the island in the morning, as early as possible, because the beach gets overcrowded especially after 1 PM during the high season.
