Hi,
I am currently drawing an itinerary for a 2 weeks and a half trip (june-july 2012) on the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean coast. I would like to know if there are such towns that are unspoiled by tourism OR that have a nice student/backpackers vibe. They must be a good base to visit the surrounding ruins or natural attractions.

Here are a few details. Me and my friend will be backpacking on a budget mainly on the coasts, but also in Capadoccia. We will be travelling by public transportation. Here are the main places that we want to see:
- Troy
- Pergame
- Éphesus (Prieme, Miletus, Didyma, Miletus)
- Dilek National Park
- Afrodisias
- Konya
- Nermut Dragi
Here are the towns that interest us:
- Bursa
- Marmaris
- Alanya
- Antakya
- Konya
- Goreme (or Capadoccia in general)
- Ankara (is it worth it?)

I know I might look for something that is rather impossible to find, but I will gladly take any recommendation. Please feel free to tell your opinion about the places you've stayed at!

Your list of towns which interest you and the main places you wish to see sort of negate your desire to travel to towns unspoiled by tourism.

there are many such towns and there are many such towns which are good bases to visit historic and natural sites in their vicinity:

Consider :

Busing from goreme to mersin and then,
Silifke
Ermenek
Anamur

or to Iskenderun and Antakya to the East but you will not have time for both and I would recommend the West for your first visit.

Forget nemrut. It takes too much time and the route is risky without a tour group.

Instead consider Istanbul-Amasra-Kastamonu-Corum-Bogazkale(Hattusas)-Goreme-Mersin-Silifke-Anamur-Manavgat-Olimpos-Ucagiz-Patara-Fethiye-Herakleia(Bafa-Kapikiri)-Miletus-Didyma-Doganbey(Dilek lagoon and park), Priene, Soke, Selcuk (Ephesus), Pergamon, Assos- Istanbul

Bursa is a very dull crowded industrial city.

There is an international philosophy conference at Assos at the beginning of July. Exact days will be posted soon. It will be on emotion and compulsion, I think. Check at www.philosophyinassos.com There will also be performances of some classical Greek plays in the ancient amphitheatre and a violin concert in moonlight (depending on how fickle the moon may be)

I have listed all those names but sincerely doubt that you can do all that within two weeks.

Good luck, in any case.

Thank you very much for this reply. I will plan a final itinerary and share it on the forum later. Thanks again for sharing!

Alright I have posted a new topic but here is what we came up with:

After a flight Ljuljana-Istanbul-Bursa, we will travel by bus to Dalyan. If you have any info about this bus trip please share. We will be flying during the night and will be arriving in Bursa around 8:30. Is it simple to get from Bursa to Dalyan? We are debating weather we should take a night to rest in Bursa or get directly to Daylan.
Dalyan: 4 nights
Patara (Gelemis) OR Olimpos OR Anamur OR Sifike (? I need your help for this choice): 4 nights
Gorème (or Cirali?): 5 nights
Istanbul : 5 nights
Flight back to Montreal from Istanbul.

For the tough choice on the Mediterranean coast, we are wondering: is Olimpos worth it? I know it is very much on the beaten track, but is the vibe of the place worth it?

Please go ahead and critique our choice or recommend places to stay if you have experience in these regions!

Kâmil Koç - http://www.kamilkoc.com.tr/ - have very frequent buses from Bursa to Izmir (5 hours), and again from Izmir to Ortaca (5 hours)(also a couple of direct buses each day), then it's a short dolmuş ride into Dalyan.
Also Pamukkale Turizm - http://www.pamukkale.com.tr/index.html

I had not heard of anyone flying to Bursa except on urgent business, but you must have found a cheap ticket, I guess.

The distance from Bursa airport to the Bus depot is not short but you have the ring road and if the timing is OK, taking a bus immediately as per Croesus' advice wil beat staying in Bursa for the night. I would have preferred flying to istanbul and then taking a cheap pegasus, atlas or onur flight to Dalaman immediately for not much more than the Bursa and bus trip and all the accompanying trouble.

Dalyan is a heavily British resort. The nearby village of Koycegiz is more local, closer to historic sites but further from the beach.

Patara is a small tourist village, but pleasant and cheap, some walking distance from the beach. Will need some mosquito repellent here. Also good idea to start antihistamines a week before to build up protection against sun and mosquito bite allergies.

Getting to Silifke by public bus from Patara will take two days and to Anamur, a very long day. Olympos is easier of'course, but consider Ucagiz on Kekova bay before getting to Olympos so that you can kayak over sunken city and snorkel and be close to Myra and Simena in addition to some other sites.

Olympos and Cirali are next to each other. Olympos is more youth oriented and Cirali is quieter and more middle age middle class. You can actually walk from one to other on the beach but the road that separates them is about 20 kilometres.

Goreme is in Cappadocia in East Central Turkey and has no relation to beaches or Mediterranean. It contains the fairy chimneys and the alien landscapes and the troglodyte dwellings and the undeground cities, canyons, ballon rides, cave hotels, carpet weaving, thousands of tourists as well as quiet villages.

Please check your maps again.

I am sorry, I have misled you. We are flying in to Bodrum, not Bursa.

And I know where Gorème is, we are looking to spend a few days in Capaddocia.

Thank you very much for the info, it is very helpful!