Blue Gulet Voyage is In Press
1- The New York Times
WEDDINGS; Michele Plante, Eric R. Kemp
Michele Andre Plante, a daughter of Dr. Inge R. Plante of Princeton, N.J., and the late Dr. Marc A. Plante, was married yesterday in Bodrum, Turkey, to Eric Richard Kemp, the son of Dr. and Mrs. Richard Kemp of Hartford. Capt. Hilmi Nebioglu, the master of the yacht Sina, performed the ceremony at a castle ruin.
Mrs. Kemp, 31, is a national sales executive for Adrienne Vittadini, a clothing company in New York. She and her husband graduated from Middlebury College. Her mother is a psychiatrist in Lawrenceville, N.Y.
Mr. Kemp, 34, is a commodities trader at the New York Mercantile Exchange. His mother, Lorie Kemp, is a guidance counselor for the Hartford public school system. His father is the medical director of the Hartford Surgical Center.
2- CNN Travel
Gulet-cruising: Wood’s the way when sailing the Turkish coast
Turkey’s traditional wooden sailing boats are the best way to see the country’s remote areas
By Adrian Mourby
I leap off the prow of our two-masted gulet into the warm water and, with a splash, the night is definitively over.
After sleeping the night on deck on one of these traditional wooden sailing ships, a dawn plunge is a great way to wake up.
Gulets sleep a dozen or so guests in comparative luxury below deck, but sleeping in the open air, below the Mediterranean stars, is the better way to do it.
Like most out of the port city of Bodrum, our gulet voyage has kept close to the coast so far.
They call this the Blue Cruise route after the Turkish novel of that name, “Mavi Yolculuk,” published in 1962 by Azra Erhat.
It was this book that first encouraged Turks to holiday on their country’s southern coastline. Now the whole world comes here.
3- The New York Times
In Turkey, Sailing Into the Exotic on a Blue Cruise By TAYLOR HOLLIDAY
We would soon learn that sailing in Turkey is very different from sailing in the United States and Europe, where port towns are often playgrounds for the worlds rich and famous. The smaller ports we called on were more about local, everyday life than international, second-home escape, more about culture than consumption. And the people welcomed us more like guests than like tourists.
Cleopatra was definitely here, they say, at Cleopatra’s Beach — so named because the Egyptian queen once lived on Castle Island and, legend has it, Antony imported enough sand from Africa to make a beautiful white beach for her to sunbathe o
4- Usa Today Travel
The “Blue Voyage” or “Mavi Yolculuk” has been a popular element of travel in Turkey since the 1920s, when the country’s coast first caught the attention of international travelers on a wide scale. Ever since, a range of cruise operators offers excursions for various budgets, from private charters of luxury yachts to no-frills weekend cruises.
The Gulet
The gulet is the vessel par excellence for exploring the waters of Turkey’s coastline. The traditional wooden sailboat is a common sight along the popular Turquoise Coast or Turkish Riviera, the scenic stretch of coast that spans the Aegean and Mediterranean seas. Depending on the individual craft, the gulet may accommodate between eight and 12 people, plus crew. Gulets also range widely in their on-board amenities, sometimes outfitted in the style of luxury yachts and, in other cases, offering simply the bare essentials.
5 – Mail Online
Cruising the Mediterranean on a glorious gulet voyage
By Imogen Rowland
It is wonderful to stop and see some of the country and culture up-close, but we are always content to return to our boat and set sail again for the next mystery destination.
On our last evening, we drop anchor in an impossibly beautiful bay near a short stretch of pebble beach known as Kislebuku. As we dive into the glassy water for our late-afternoon swim, the crew begins to ferry a barbecue, cushions and crockery across to the beach, where our evening meal will be served.
By the time we are showered and transferred across to the beach, lanterns are aglow, low tables are beautifully set and the chef is hard at work.
It is a five-star castaway experience. Our glasses are constantly topped up with chilled rosé, and our bellies are soon filled with delicious morsels – lamb koftas, chargrilled chicken kebabs, fresh vegetable dips and meze.
It seems fitting that our final evening is spent with our splendid yacht in full view, as it if she is daring us to jump back on-board and see where she will go next.
If this is what life at sea is like, I might just make a sailor yet.
6- The Daily Telegraph
Turkey summer holidays guide: cruises
How to book the best cruise holiday to Turkey, with advice on luxury cruises, mainstream cruises, specialist cruises and no-fly cruises, by Sue Bryant.
While there’s no shortage of territory for cruise ships to explore, in reality most focus on the Aegean coast and Istanbul. Turkey’s Aegean shoreline offers one of the Mediterranean’s most alluring backdrops for cruising, particularly along the mountainous, forested Turquoise Coast named after the aquamarine hues of the body of water between Antalya and Dalaman.
Alternatively, opt for a much smaller, traditional vessel and take a cruise in a traditional Turkish gulet (wooden sailing boat). These range from the more basic to luxurious, fully catered and guided holidays on gulets. Visiting lesser-known ports such as the marble city of Knidos, Kaunos, famed for its rock-cut tombs, ancient Myndos and the pretty resort of Göcek.