About Marmaris City Centre

Urbanization in Marmaris developed around the fort and spread. The part of Marmaris which spread out to a rather wide area today, from the ridges of Beldibi and Armutalan to the sea, to içmeler limited by the pier and the marina is named as the historic city center. All of the historical buildings in this area belongs to 16-20th century, the Ottoman period. The historic buildings around the fort have been protected and restored.Most of them are used as restaurants, bars and shop stores. There is also a few residental used. The streets are narrow, wooden buildings are furnished with balconies, just like the other Ottoman cities.

• Marmaris Fort and Archeology Museum

The only written reference mentioning about the construction of Marmaris Fort that is located at a high point at the back of the Yacht Harbor, is the travel book (Seyahatname) of Evliya Çelebi. Evliya Çelebi, who visited Muğla and its surroundings in 17th century, says that Kanuni Sultan Süleyman had ordered the repair of the fort before his Rhodes campaign and that the fort was used as a base during the campaign. In his Seyahatname Evliya says that “the fort was constructed on the main rock having four emplacements, that there were 400 foot walls made of smooth stones with an inscription on the entrance door, that there was one room for each of warden, imam, mosque caretaker and the guardians. Some sources on the other hand say that Kanuni had ordered the fort to be built after his return from the Rhodes campaign. Inside of the fort that had been destroyed during the First World War with the cannon balls of a French destroyer, had been used for settlement beginning from the pre-Rebublic period until recently 18 houses remained.

Marmaris Fort was restored between the years 1980 – 1990 and has been opened to service as Marmaris Museum in 1991. It has seven closed places. The cradle vaulted entrance is opening to the inner garden. The stairs on the right and left of the courtyard provides access to the city walls. Watching the environs and taking pictures from the city walls is pleasurable. Two of the closed areas that are entered through the garden are arranged as archeology halls. In these halls and in the garden, the stone opuses collected from the region, amphora belonging to Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine Periods, candles, bottles, figurines made of baked clay, various pots and glass opuses, arrow ends, coins and ornamental goods found in Knidos, Burgaz, Hisarönü excavations are being exhibited. In the ethnography hall, weavings, carpets, kilims, furnitures, copper kitchen utensils, guns and ornamental goods dated to the end of the Ottoman era are exhibited. The other places are used as an art gallery, office and depot.

Hafza Sultan Caravanserai

Another Ottoman building in the city is Hafza Sultan Caravanserai. The inscription on it tells that it was built in 1545, in synchronization with the fort. The Caravanserai covered with arches right at the entrance of the narrow street with steps leading up to the fort. The seven small rooms and one large room of the Caravanserai are private property and allocated to gift shops, cafe’s and bars.

Bedesten (Vaulted Bazaar)

The Historic Bedesten within the market is still a shopping center just like the old days. Only the shoppers and the products have changed, everything is for tourist. The Bedesten was restored true to the original. A one piece three storey marble pool has been placed in the middle. There are 32 shops and a cafe interesting for all, with its nargile and Turkish coffee.