Welcome to the Melda Palace

For anyone seeking a family, beach break within reach of Turkey’s second largest city, then the Melda Palace offers a great option in a quiet, residential area of Konyaalti beach to the West of Antalya.

Melda Palace facilities

It’s a beautiful complex with buildings styled in the theme of boats and the cream and blue decor merges seamlessly into vivid cloudless blue skies. Several buildings are arranged along a pathway with a central pool area being the focal point. It’s a huge circular affair with gabled bridges leading over a separate waterway complete with fountains (although I only saw them turned on once!).

In the middle is a restaurant cum snack bar with a spiral staircase leading down to a small gym and hammam. The latter is decked out in cool, grey marble and conveys a sense of serenity belying the fact that a Turkish massage is a vigorous affair indeed.

I didn’t personally order anything from the restaurant, being content to make use of our kitchen facilities, but my step-kids were less than complimentary suggesting poor value for money and inconsistent service.

Melda Palace Apartments

96  apartments nestle along the central pathway, some with views over open scrubland to the mountains beyond or others with views over neighbouring residential properties.

These are great value with plenty of space for a family. We stayed in a two bedroom apartment on the first floor overlooking a children’s play area and neighbouring apartments. You enter directly into the lobby with the space age bathroom to your right.

This is one of the best bathrooms I’ve seen in a holiday rental with metallic, grey coloured tiles contrasting with metallic cream. A modern sink, western toilet and large shower cubicle fill the space and thankfully there’s plenty of storage room for the thirty lipsticks my fifteen year old step-daughter couldn’t travel without.

Storage is definitely in plentiful supply in this apartment with large wardrobes, a lobby wardrobe and gigantic cupboards to hide away all your holiday mess. There’s a lot when you are travelling with young adults!

The lounge

The lounge is furnished with bright funky furniture in greens and oranges which somehow work even though the thought of such brightness seems horrifying initially. There’s a large sofa converting to a extra bed and a dining area which seats six.

From here, doors lead onto the balcony with seating for two and plenty of space to hang wet clothing.

The kitchen

The kitchen is modern with a giant, American-style fridge, microwave and oven. The only downside is that it is not really kitted out with enough equipment to make cooking a pleasant experience. A lack of spatulas and kitchen ware for using with pans proved a challenging experience for us with our fried eggs looked more like scrambled eggs.

The bedrooms

Two good-sized bedrooms each have Juliette balconies overlooking the pool. The windows are incredibly well sound-proofed so that all you hear (if you are awake) is the gentle hum of the call to prayer early in the morning. I found the melodic tones to be incredibly soothing and enjoyed hearing them. They saved me having to look at my watch too!

Location

The Melda Palace is just a ten minute walk from the beach although you can also hop onto the complimentary shuttle every two hours from 9pm to 6pm (every two hours from 9am until 3pm and then the last bus at 6pm). This drops you by the World Athletic Club with a very cool bar out front, in my opinion the best drinking hole within walking distance. It’s a cool place serving shisha pipes, big beers and cool vibes throughout the afternoon and evening.

The beach

The beach is a busy pebbly beach where you can loll on sun beds, drink beers or participate in all manner of water sports. Just be sure to slap on plenty of sun cream as it gets seriously molten.

There’s a selection of supermarkets, restaurants, fast-food joints and a few bars, our other favourite being the Motto Cafe. This area is not especially touristy and would suit people seeking a more authentic experience, rather than those who like to be in the heart of the action with numerous pumping bars and restaurants.

Around a mile away towards Antalya there is a complex of more upmarket bistros. We highly recommend Shakespeare’s Bistro for great service, reasonably priced food and a great selection of items on the menu. The only issue is trying to decide what you want!

Local supplies

If you need any emergency supplies there is a small supermarket two minutes walk at the bottom of the road. You can stop up on drinks and bread there. I just hope the owner hasn’t gone into liquidation now we are no longer stopping by.

Getting around

You can jump on a bus to Antalya (06 or 08 take you to the old town) which takes around 25 minutes and drops you on the edge of the old town. Get off at the stop after the I heart Antalya and wander into the labyrinth of the old town by descending between the two towers.

Alternatively hire a car which the Melda Palace can organise for you for around £40 a day. You can definitely get better deals than this but you will likely have to pick up and drop off in Antalya. Bearing in mind the traffic can be a nightmare, if you want ease, I would recommend simply allowing the complex to make the arrangements for you.

We hired a car for a few days and took advantage of sightseeing opportunities to Goynuk canyon, Kemer, Termessos and Duden Waterfalls.

The roads are generally easy to navigate but watch out for the cars which randomly pull out in front of you with no warning! That aside, driving in turkey is largely stress free and the driving of a good standard as are the roads, not to mention that the area is absolutely stunning with verdant national park hugging the cliff side roads perched above the shimmering turquoise blue waters.

Verdict

This is a great complex for families and couples seeking serenity in an authentic Turkish area with plenty of local amenities. You can laze away days around the pool or use this as a base to explore the area in and around Antalya.

A special thanks also to Fifi and Timur who are part of the staffing team at Melda Palace and were incredibly helpful throughout our stay.

Have your say?

Have you visited Antalya and stayed at the Melda Palace? Maybe you have some recommendations of your own for eating and drinking in the area.

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Disclaimer: we received a discount off our bill in exchange for this sponsored post, however please note all views are our own and unedited.