3 Best Sights in The Central and Southern Aegean Coast, Turkey

Known for its windmills, trendy cafés, boutiques, and gourmet restaurants, this pretty village has become wildly popular of late. On summer evenings, the main strip of Alaçatı bustles with hip crowds; to avoid the hubbub come in the afternoon, when the crowd is mostly locals and store owners, although it can get very hot and many restaurants don't open until later in the day. Wander the backstreets to see picturesque Greek houses (many turned into boutique hotels) and the Greek church-turned-mosque (Pazaryeri Camii), where a curtain hides 19th-century Orthodox icons at prayer times. Tiny outdoor cafés selling tea, lemonade, plum juice (erik suyu), and mastic-infused Turkish coffee cluster under the windmills overlooking town, a popular spot for wedding photos.

In the olive tree-covered hills above Bodrum, the “culture and arts village” of Dibeklihan is a pretty complex of traditional stone buildings holding artist studios, galleries, boutiques, and a couple of cafés and restaurants. It’s a pleasant place for shopping or dinner, and there is sometimes live music on summer evenings. It’s close to Yakaköy village on the outskirts of Ortakent, and best reached with your own transportation.

Only 7 km (4 miles) from Pamukkale, this down-to-earth village attracts visitors for its "red springs," where the warm water—which bears a red glow due to its mineral content—and gooey mud are popular for their supposed health-giving properties. A small section of the springs is open to the public and flanked by inexpensive restaurants—mud baths and pools that have dead-skin-nibbling "doctor fish" are also available. There's regular dolmuş service from Pamukkale to Karahayıt, which also has a busy covered market area with lots of small local eateries and cafés.