Cesme
A Turkish Aegean Resort Town With An Early 16th Century Ottoman Castle, An Ottoman Caravanserai, Windsurfing And Kitesurfing Beaches At Alacati, Thermal Springs And A Ferry Link To Chios. A Summer Favourite Of Izmir, Istanbul And Ankara Families, With A Lively Marina · Cesme, Izmir
Cesme is a seaside resort town on the western tip of the Karaburun-Cesme peninsula, about 85 km west of Izmir and facing the Greek island of Chios across a narrow strait. Its small centre has an early-16th-century Ottoman castle (about 1508, confirm), a restored caravanserai of about 1528 that now serves as a hotel (confirm), a lively marina and a square with a statue of the Ottoman admiral Cezayirli Gazi Hasan Pasha, remembered for the naval battle fought off Cesme in 1770. Around it lie sandy beaches such as Ilica, Pirlanta and Altinkum, thermal springs, vineyards and the famous stone-house village of Alacati, whose windsurf and kitesurf bay is a few kilometres away. Summer fills the town with families and young people from Izmir, Istanbul and Ankara, while a ferry crosses to Chios in about an hour (confirm). Evenings are for strolling the marina and eating fish, and winter is quiet and mild (confirm all hours, prices and dates).
Cesme, a seaside resort town on the tip of the Karaburun-Cesme peninsula about 85 km west of Izmir, facing the Greek island of Chios; coordinates approximate, Cesme, Izmir, Turkiye
Cesme is an open town, so the seafront, the marina and the castle exterior can be reached at any hour, though shops, cafes and clubs run mostly from about 09:00 until after midnight in summer and close earlier or shut from November to March. The castle museum keeps daytime hours, usually closed on one weekday (confirm). Chios ferries run mainly from April or May to October, with limited winter service, and bus services from Izmir run through the day and evening. Beach clubs open from late May and close in autumn. Confirm times for the day you plan.