Villa Mahal
Whites, blues and views
A cruise from Kalkan
Villa Mahal – a boutique resort on the Lycian coast with just 13 rooms – rests on a hillside amid olive groves and lime, fig and frangipani trees, all overlooking the glittering blue Bay of Kalkan. Beyond its natural good looks – and divine perfume – it has an infinity pool that appears to float, and romantic restaurants. And while the Beach Club may not have powder-white sands, here each guest gets a sunlounger-topped cliff-clinging platform to themselves. Run by an owner with a genuine love for the area and wish to please guests, it’s a rare Turkish confection.
Facilities
Rooms
13, including three suites and one standalone villa.
Checkout
Noon, but flexible, subject to availability. Early arrivals can laze by the pool or freshen up in an unoccupied room. Earliest check-in, 2pm.
More Details
Rates usually include a traditional Turkish breakfast: a spread of breads and pastries, muesli, yoghurt with local honey, fresh fruit and juices, olives, cheeses and eggs any way.
Also
Unfortunately, as the resort is laid out over the hillside, it isn't suitable if you have limited mobility. Be prepared for plenty of steps.
Hotel Closed
Annually from 1 November to 1 May.
Free Internet Access
Laundry
Pool
On-Site Restaurant
Room Service
Spa
At the Hotel
Spa, beach club, honesty bar, roof terrace, parking, free WiFi throughout. In rooms: iPod dock, Nespresso Coffee machine, minibar, kettle with a selection of teas, free bottled water, air-conditioning and Molton Brown bath products.
Our Favourite Rooms
We applaud the sociable beach club scene, but honeymooners and loved-up twosomes can seek some alone time in the resort’s only villa, the Cliff House. Bar infrequent visits from the friendly gardener, it’s utterly secluded, set mere steps from the coast and surrounded by aloe vera plants. A private infinity pool appears to run into Kalkan Bay, and there are sunloungers and cushioned banquettes on your terrace for cosy sunset-gazing.
Poolside
The view from the resort’s 17-metre infinity pool – lime, olive and fig trees descending into the blue of the bay – will make you want to up sticks and pursue the hotelier path on the Turkish coast (much like Villa Mahal owner, Ipek). A Jacuzzi, sunloungers and honesty bar complete the serene set up. The Cliff House and Pool Room each have private pools and guests can jump into the bay from the Beach Club’s floating platforms – a private deck is reserved for each room or suite.
Spa
Mahal Beach Spa takes a cue from the Flintstones, offering its decadent treatments (Balinese massages, clay face masks, foot and hand reflexology and crystal healing) in a low-lit stone cave where the gentle swoosh of waves reverberates off the walls. Claustrophobes can choose to take their treatment in a veiled pavilion by the shore.
Packing Tips
It depends on the pace of holiday you’ve planned: Kalkan’s hills call for hiking boots, but Mahal’s pools call for a floaty kaftan and a sizzling summer read.
Also
We’re rather partial to labour-of-love hotels: former graphic designer Ipek fell in love with Kalkan in 1982 and despite the remote setting (most materials arrived on boat or by donkey) she had built the villa from scratch by 1987.
Children
Over-12s are welcome. Extra beds can be added to most room types (except Moonlight Rooms) for €50 a person a night.
Gallery
Food & Drink
Top Table
Down a staircase carved into the rock face you reach a platform hovering over the turquoise bay, where staff can set up a lamp-lit table. Kalkan’s glittering lights in the distance and the peaceful lapping of waves make it oh-so romantic.
Dress Code
Barefoot, bikini-clad relaxation rules here, but Mrs Smith may want to slip on a pair of glam Grecian sandals and a kaftan come dinnertime, or tailored shorts and shirt for Mr Smith.
Hotel Restaurant
Decorated in Santorini-esque white and cobalt, and positioned for just-right views, Villa Mahal Restaurant is an idyllic spot for lunch and dinner. Dishes are trad Turkish (cheese-stuffed pachanga pastries, Anatolian piyaz bean salad),seafood heavy (rum-flambéed prawns, rock grouper fillet in champagne sauce) and meaty (shish kebab, meatballs with hummus). It’s only open for lunch on Tuesdays and Fridays, but a barbecue’s fired up on the rooftop terrace on these evenings, with mezze platters on the side. Mahal Beach Bar at the club has tapas-style fare, chilled wines and fresh juices; and on Sundays, brunch is served on the waterside terrace.
Hotel Bar
Sink into a bean bag or laze on a sunlounger at Mahal Beach Bar and sip a home-made lemonade with mint or a signature My Mahal cocktail (rum, Malibu, pineapple juice, blue caraçao and lime). Post-swim snacks include fried courgettes and cheese plates. Trusty Turkish wines (a glass of the Angora or Egeo goes down well) populate the poolside honesty bar – the brave can try a tot of potent Raki (a local anise-flavoured spirit) – and the rooftop terrace is the spot for sundowners.
Last Orders
Lunch at Mahal Beach Bar and Villa Mahal Restaurant runs from noon–4pm. Dinner is served from 7pm–9pm at Villa Mahal Restaurant, except on Tuesdays and Fridays when guests can dine on the rooftop terrace. Both bars run dry at midnight.
Room Service
The in-room menu runs from fragrant fare (chicken shish with lemon, sage and paprika) to home comforts (burgers, sandwiches and salads).
Planes
Dalaman Airport is the closest, roughly a two-hour drive. Flights from Europe and across the Pacific arrive via Istanbul; and US flights arrive via Germany or London and Istanbul. The hotel can arrange transfers from Dalaman in a private car (€110 one way), or minivan (€130 one way). Or guests can transfer from Antalya Airport, a three-hour drive away: a private car is €150, a minivan €180.
Automobiles
From the airport, follow the scenic D400 road to the hotel. This twisty-turny stretch of tarmac meanders past Mediterranean vistas, distant mountains, chocolate-box villages and a few Roman ruins; however, its sharp bends might unnerve inexperienced drivers. There’s parking close to the hotel.
Worth Getting Out of Bed For
The resort can arrange kayaking, jet-skiing, sailing and water-skiing; however, there’s a beach in name only. Pebbly, Blue Flag Kalkan beach, next to the harbour, has clear and generally calm waters to swim and snorkel in. Want to feel the sand between your toes? Head to Kaputaş Beach, a gorgeous stretch of gold, blue and green – the 10-minute drive there will make you look too. PADI-certified Kalkan Dive Centre (+90 242 844 2361) at Kalamar Beach Club (a 10-minute drive) ferries divers of all abilities to islands and reefs for underwater exploration (and fish feeding) in comfortably warm waters with excellent visibility. Cast a wider net: hire a Turkish gulet (sailboat) from Kalkan harbour and hunt down hidden coves, or head west to protected, sea-turtle-nesting site Patara Beach (visit in mid–late August for the best chance of seeing some hatchlings), before a trip to the Roman ruins close by. Myra’s rock-hewn tombs are a 90-minute drive away (90 minutes from Villa Mahal by car), and off the coast between Kaleköy and Üçağız, you can kayak amid the ruins of submerged ancient city Kekova.
Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt
This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .
