Discovering Dalyan - The Most Hospitable Apartment
Renting an apartment for your stay in Dalyan is one of the most popular options of accommodation. Sometimes with a more cost effective price tag than a hotel, especially for families, the home from home comfort of an apartment or villa is the perfect choice. For some, the luxury of being waited on hand and foot is what makes the perfect holiday, but for others, the ease, variety, comfort and freedom that an apartment offers can be what makes the getaway more fun and more personal.
A Home From Home in Dalyan
In Dalyan, many of the apartments on offer to tourists are privately owned second homes of people who are tourists to the area themselves. You know that they have bought the property from a deep founded love of the area and because they believe that the destination is the perfect holiday spot. This is certainly the case with the Chance's and their apartment in Dalyan, Kısmet.
Kısmet Apartment Dalyan
Phil and Dot Chance have been holidaying in Dalyan for the past seven years and are now familiar faces around town. Over the years they have fallen in love with the beauty of the area and have made lifelong friends in Turkey. As is the case with many visitors, they became spellbound by the town's energy and found themselves pulled back again and again. The friendly couple call this 'the Dalyan effect' and promise that anybody who finds themselves staying in Dalyan will experience the same magic that they have year upon year.
The Beautiful Apartment Gardens
Two years ago, British couple Phil and Dot made the decision to buy a second home in Dalyan, a place that they felt they would spend a lot of their free time and possibly retire to one day. In 2014, their dream became a reality when they became the proud owners of Kısmet Apartment in the popular and quiet neighbourhood of Gülpınar. Since then, Phil and Dot have worked hard to make their apartment a home from home, not just for themselves but for anybody who is lucky enough to stay there. Phil and Dot named the apartment 'Kısmet', which is Turkish for 'meant to be', which is exactly how you will feel about your holiday if you choose to stay here.
Watch our short film about the Chance family and their apartment in Dalyan!
Phil Chance introduces Kısmet Apartment
The apartment is set within the backstreets of one of Dalyan's most popular neighbourhoods, Gülpınar. A favourite area with expats and British and Dutch property investors, you can find a friendly face at every corner. Scattered with traditional Turkish homes filled with Turkish families, you find that the properties in the area feel distinctly Turkish in their features, such as big balconies and verandas which soak up the sun and marble flooring to keep the heat at bay. A walk through the area will give you a fantastic tour of some of the most impressive villas in Dalyan. However, the apartment complexes are attractive in themselves, with stunning gardens and private pools.
A Welcoming Pool and Kid's Area
In Dalyan you are never too far from anywhere, with the town itself only 2 km squared, but in Gülpınar you really do have everything on your doorstep. The local supermarkets Şevikoğlu and Micros are just a ten minute walk away, even less by bicycle which Phil and Dot kindly provide for their visitors. The corner shop is even closer should you just need drinks or ice cream and the ever welcoming Central Park Hotel is just round the corner, perfect for a spot of lunch or a drink with a huge menu which includes some comfort foods from home. One of Dot's favourites at Central Park is the baked potato with baked beans, bacon and melted cheese, served in tin foil with a teaspoon, which she'll happily follow with a game of darts!
The Perfect Two Bedroom Apartment
The Dalyan River is just a ten minute walk in the other direction where you can join the river path at the Pancake House and take a relaxing stroll along the water's edge into town. Just five minutes from Kısmet Apartment is the Gülpınar Road which takes you into Dalyan's centre by some fantastic bars and restaurants such as Istanbul Restaurant and Café Bar and fun family bar and restaurant Sinan's Place, which marks the half way point between Phil and Dot's apartment and the centre of town.
Area aside, it is the apartment itself and Phil and Dot's hospitality which makes Kısmet so alluring an accommodation. Their apartment is one of just eight in the complex and you will often find that you have the fantastic sized pool all to yourself depending on what time of year you are visiting. The complex is managed by local entrepreneur and Dalyan concierge Dale Colson and the grounds are incredibly well kept, with beautiful butterfly attracting flowers scattered around and manicured lawns. The pool is always clean and ready to use, with plenty of sun loungers to accommodate visitors.
Generous Sun Loungers by the Beautiful Pool
But what makes Kısmet the most hospitable apartment in Dalyan? Yes the area is fantastic, yes the grounds are stunning, with views spreading back to the mountains that surround town, but while these are important aspects, it is the service that you receive from Phil and Dot that really make this place special. Evidence of their love for Dalyan can be found all over their apartment, from the caretta caretta beach towels to the turtle magnets on the fridge and the impressive and comprehensive town directory in the living room. They have also stamped their own personality on the place with beautiful art work and several references to Dot's love of butterflies.
A Personal Touch
Phil and Dot Chance have done something that many others fail to do. They have made their second home theirs, without it feeling like you are staying in somebody else's house. They really have thought of everything to make your stay comfortable and go above and beyond to make sure that you have everything that you need while you are there, from shopping bags and hats to a Tassimo coffee machine with a welcome pack! Phil is also always on hand back in the UK to give advice or to guide you in the right direction should you need something at the apartment and he has a number of good friends just a phone call away on the Turkish mobile phone provided in the apartment for emergencies should you need it.
A Tassimo Welcome Kit
The apartment is really secure, with recently added, attractive iron grills on the doors and windows. At the front of the apartment is the perfect sized veranda with a table, chairs and a barbecue where you can enjoy afternoons and the odd late night by the pool. Phil has provided a recently serviced bicycle to help visitors get around town which can be bike locked at the side of the apartment.
A Bicycle for Your Needs
Inside there are two double sized bedrooms, one en-suite and a family bathroom, a utility room with a washing machine and ironing facilities. At the front of the apartment is an open plan kitchen, living and dining area with modern appliances, including a dish washer, and a widescreen television with an abundance of DVDs at your disposal.
A Fully Kitted Out Kitchen
The Tassimo machine is a prized possession of the Chance family and one that you will be glad of if you are a coffee lover! Some pods are supplied but you will be encouraged to bring your own selection with you. Rifle through the kitchen drawers and you will find everything you need, from spare batteries and torches to tea towels and plug adaptors. Back at home in the UK, Dot is an A&E nurse and she has made sure that the apartment has a fully stocked, state of the art first aid kit, just in case! There are plenty of sheets, towels, books, films, crockery, cutlery, hats and umbrellas. Whatever happens in Dalyan, if you are staying at Kısmet, you will always be more than prepared.
Everything you Need at Kısmet
Phil and Dot's welcome table shares the love that they have for Dalyan in their own comprehensive guide to the town and their favourite spots. Phil and Dot feel very strongly, as I do, that Dalyan is a town that deserves to welcome visitors and that it is the job of all of us who love the town, to make sure that we spread the word of its beauty.
The Welcome Table
Phil and Dot not only want you to enjoy their apartment, they want you to enjoy Dalyan and become one of the many, many people who want to come back time and time again. It is their love for Dalyan and their awareness of what the town needs that makes Kısmet one of the most hospitable apartments in Dalyan. Kısmet is a true home from home that you will not fail to fall in love with and Phil and Dot will make sure that you fall in love with Dalyan too!
Kısmet Apartment Dalyan
Disclosure: Phil and Dot have become good friends of mine since I hired their apartment in September 2015. They are some of the most generous and kind hearted people I know and would do anything to help anyone. This is why their apartment is my first choice in Dalyan. Whether you are a friend or not, they will go out of their way to ensure you have the best holiday possible. They have also both been fantastic supporters of the Dalyan Exposé, for which I will forever be grateful.
