Paradise Bay: The new destination for an A-list getaway

By Maureen O’Hare, Tom Bouchier-Hayes, Işıl Sarıyüce, Victoria Rubadiri, Andrew Waller, CNN

Bodrum, Turkey (CNN) — “What would you like? Dancing lobsters for the lunch?”

Sahir Erozan, owner of the legendary Maçakızı resort on Turkey’s Bodrum Peninsula, is showing us around the latest offering in his portfolio, the ultra-premium Villa Maçakızı.

Here, in the bougainvillea-laden tiers of this gleaming white 10-bedroom estate, wrapped by aromatic herb gardens that flow down to the sea, dreams can come true — for a price.

Erozan, known locally as “Mr Bodrum,” has made high-end hospitality his life’s work, having taken over the Maçakızı brand from his mother Ayla Emiroglu, who in the 1960s was instrumental in transforming this scenic Aegean headland from a quiet fishing community to a bohemian getaway.

Under Erozan, the clientele has got ritzier. While Maçakızı doesn’t reveal its client list, guests here are reported to have included Mick Jagger, Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell and Bill Gates.

The villa has a pool, a gym, a spa, plus an eclectic mix of artworks from Erozan’s private collection, but the bespoke dining – masterminded by celebrity chef Carlo Bernardini, who has flown in to join us – is the real star.

If this estate is a Wonka’s factory for grown-ups, then Bernardini is the twinkle-eyed maestro creating fantastical concoctions of delight and wonder, while the waterfall pours out Dom Perignon 2015, not chocolate.

”Whatever people want, whatever their wildest imagination, Carlo and his team here can really put that together and make it happen,” says Maçakızı’s general manager, Andrew Jacobs.

The villa is very private, he says, with no real access by road. Boats are the way guests arrive here in Cennet Koyu (“Paradise Bay”) and they have no shortage of high-net-worth neighbors nearby.

The peninsula’s northern shores are where the Turkish elite come for summer adventure, leaving behind the noise and grit of Istanbul or Ankara for sandy beaches and sparkling sea.

Paradise Bay, a stunning inlet just east of Göltürkbükü, is emerging as a top choice for the one-percenters, from local glitterati to international A-listers.

“Carlo is very good at doing parties down here,” says Jacobs, showing us around the waterside dining areas. “Very quickly on a day in July, 30 people can turn into 200 and we’re ready for that.”

The wine cellar, filled with rare vintages, is an essential addition to these spectacular celebrations. “I can’t really put a value on what’s in here,” says Jacobs, “but it’s a lot.”

The villa costs $50,000 a night in high season, although that can rise much higher, depending on the guests’ choice of bespoke extras.

Mandarin Oriental Bodrum

Villa Maçakızı opened in 2019, but it’s just one of several new high-end hotel brands to open around the bay.

The luxury hotel chain Bulgari, which has a handful of outposts in world-class cities including London, Tokyo and Milan, is giving Bodrum its seal of approval by building an enormous resort across the water from Villa Maçakızı, to the east.

The property is set to open in 2027 and will occupy ten hectares of terraced gardens, all of which are being landscaped from scratch.

Round the bay to the west from Villa Maçakızı, Mandarin Oriental Bodrum spreads over a hillside on an estate so huge you can visit individual rooms on Google Street View.

Golf carts zip around the slopes bringing guests from their rooms, apartments or villas to the restaurant, bar, or beach club.

“All our villas have a private pool and private garden,” says hotel manager Cem Akşahin as he shows us around one of the villas which can run to tens of thousands of dollars a night. They all, he points out, face Paradise Bay.

“We are attracting high-end clientele from all over the world. They come with the private megayachts and also they come with their private chef, the butlers, and we are elevating their experiences during their vacation,” he says.

The resort has its own designer shopping village, with 40 international brands represented in its pristine greenery-lined streets.

A range of big-name premium brands is represented in the restaurant offerings too. High-end Japanese restaurant chain ROKA opened a branch at the Mandarin Oriental Bodrum this summer, where guests can enjoy ROKA’s signature dishes, and some bespoke new creations, at an outdoor restaurant overlooking Paradise Bay.

Maxx Royal Bodrum

Around the bay to the west, Maxx Royal Bodrum and Scorpios Bodrum sit on opposite hillsides facing each other across the water.

Entering through Maxx Royal’s large and airy reception, delightful fragrances hit you before you stroll out to the sea-facing sun deck, all senses engaged as you drink a welcome tea.

Grass-roofed, pale-wood apartments, all with private pools, are slotted into the hillside as perfectly as an architectural model – like choosing a slice of Utopia off-plan.

The four-bedroom Hill Villas, which, like the Mandarin Oriental offerings, can cost tens of thousands of dollars a night, are the most stunning in the resort, says guest experience operations manager Dina Çelebi.

In Paradise Bay, competition is fierce to attract high-end clientele and the standout offering at Maxx Royal is its two-story, 5,750-square-meter spa.

There are 20 treatment rooms and offerings include everything from a hammam to a Himalayan salt room to a state-of-the-art longevity center.

“Our clientele is very well traveled, they’re very well informed,” says spa manager Banu Alagöz Najemeddin. “Wellbeing is a big sector right now as part of travel, but we really want to deliver a personalized connection.”

She believes its Bodrum location adds to the uniqueness of the spa’s offering. “This is the land of all the healers,” she says. “The Aegean part of Turkey is very special. It’s the flora and fauna, the sea is different.”

Scorpios

Grown-up beach club brand Scorpios built up a cult following on the Greek party island of Mykonos, and it expanded to Bodrum in 2024, opening for the summer season only.

Bodrum and Mykonos “match very well in terms of nature, the sun, the sea,” says general manager Can Erikan. “It’s also at the same time a good cross-bridge between the east and the west; both offer an international crowd.”

Scorpios caters to a high-end clientele, who, in crisp linens or flowing beach robes, balance out the good times at the restaurant terrace, bar and open-air dance floor with days focused on wellbeing and personal development.

“We’re not only a nightlife concept here in Bodrum,” says Erikan, showing us around the luxurious guest rooms and “ritual spaces:” focused on longevity and biohacking. “It’s a 24-hours experience for guests to enjoy their time here.”

The Season Closing Ceremony at Scorpios takes place the weekend of September 19 to 21, with guests dancing through the sunset for the last time in 2025. The yachts which have thronged the bay are fewer as summer gives way to fall, but the off-season quiet has its own appeal for visitors wanting a slice of paradise to themselves.

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