Is Marmaris Expensive? How To Have A Budget Friendly Trip | Türkiye

If you’re on Turkey TikTok, you’ll probably have witnessed the extremely strong opinions regarding Marmaris. I visited in a ‘throw a dart at a map’ style trip. I chose the CHEAPEST package to a destination I hadn’t been to before, and that was Türkiye, specifically Marmaris. I knew nothing about it and treated it how I treat ALL my other trips. Here’s how you can still have a budget friendly trip in Marmaris.

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I paid for everything in either Turkish Lira or I put it on my foreign currency fee free credit card. Other than one replacement backpack that I paid for with £10 cash, I did NOT use Pounds or Euros.

I was also travelling solo. Flights, transfer and a room only hotel were included in my Jet2 package, but here is everything I spent while there.

Budget Breakdown

• Migros Supermarket: 568.95TL (£12.77)
• Restaurants/cafes: 2825TL (£63.42)

(Food and drink total 3393.95TL/£76.19 = £12 per day)

• Tours: £21.17 and £25.41 (£46.58)
• Misc: 785.85TL (£17.58 + £10= £27.58)

Bingo Winnings: +£25

TOTAL for a 6 day trip: £150.10 (£25.10 a day)… technically £125.10 with the bingo winnings

Food & Drink

This was the most controversial point on TikTok, everyone was saying food and drink is expensive. And in some places, yes it is.

Once upon a time, Turkey was a cheap destination, but it got hit hard by inflation for both locals and therefore it’s been passed down to tourists…sometimes, yes, maybe a little bit too much. But if you eat locally, you can still find reasonably priced food and drink.

Supermarkets

My hotel was room only, I decided for most breakfasts, drinks and snacks, I was going to use the supermarket. There are a couple of choices in Marmaris, MMigros was closest to my accommodation, so this is the reason I went here. Costs in supermarkets are still very reasonably priced. I spent £12.77 and paid with card. MMigros also has a really good bakery area.

@englandandeverywhere

100 lira challenge to see what the equivalent of £2.25 can buy in Türkiye 🇹🇷 Individual prices from Migros in Marmaris Türkiye: Pepsi – 18.50 Cherry Juice – 7.50 (x2 = 15) Coconut Baklava – 18.25 5 apples – 18.42 Crackers – 10 Noodles – 14.90 TOTAL = 91.52 (£2.01) *The exchange rate is based on XE .com which is similar to the rate you’d get paying on a fee free card (like I did). You usually get a worse rate when exchanging physical cash. #travelwoman #backpackinglife #marmaris #marmaristurkiye #marmaristurkey #turkiye🇹🇷 #turkeytravel #turkeytravel🇹🇷 #budgettravel

♬ original sound – Kylie✈️Budget Conscious Travel

Day Tour Lunches

I also went on 2 day trips (more below), both of these had a hot lunch included. So these were meals that in theory I didn’t then have to pay for. As they were more like a dinner, I then didn’t eat so much in the evenings.

Restaurants & Cafes

I did a lot of research into where were budget friendly places to eat and drink. Often they were places that weren’t necessarily aimed at tourists.

Again, people on TikTok were saying that the tourist trap restaurants would have different menus depending on who you were, and they would add random things onto the bill. Maybe being solo it would have been harder to ‘hide’ something with only a main meal and a drink.

If I didn’t like the look at the prices on the menu, I walked on.

They also told me I was lying when I found a restaurant that had a small Full English Breakfast for £1.75. You can’t win!

No matter where I go, my rules are:

• Never eat somewhere without a menu WITH PRICES on display
• Take a photo of the menu at the door or when you sit down. Make it obvious so you can compare it to the bill.

Turkish food is often cheaper than what is often referred to as ‘Western Food’. If you are after steaks etc, you’re going to have to expect to pay tourist prices. If you eat locally, you’re more likely to still find places that aren’t so expensive. When I said this to people on TikTok, they said ‘why would I eat Turkish food? I want burger and chips’…

Here are the places I ate and costs of what I ordered:

• Marmaris Cafe: Chicken shish with rice, chips and salad = 250L (£4.87), Fanta = 65L (£1.27)
• Baris Cafe: Chicken wrap and chips = 200L (£3.90), Efes beer = 80L (£1.56)
• Blue Port food court: Chicken pide and salad = 210L (£4.09)
• Diane & Sisters: Full English Breakfast = 90L (£1.75), iced coffee = 150L (£2.92)
• Jimmy’s Martinis: Mushroom omelette, chips and salad = 250L (£4.88), mocktail = 150L (£2.93)
• Izmir Kumru: Jacket potato and double butter (instead of cheese) = 200L (£3.90)
• Dr Gelato: 2 scoops of ice cream = 80L (£1.56)
• Halk Cafe: Turkish coffee with Turkish Delight and apple chew = 25L (£0.49)
• Ekin Cafe: Kunefe = 200L (£3.90), pomegranate juice = 150L (£2.92)

I do appreciate that the holiday mindset is different from the traveller mindset. A lot of people said ‘I don’t want to have to think about what I eat and drink, I’m on holiday’. They want to eat 3 massive meals a day and drink as much as they want, whereas I’m happy just eating portion sizes similar to what I would at home.

I also didn’t realise that Marmaris had such a loyal (or maybe not anymore) following, with people returning multiple times a year, year after year. It is more of a typical ‘fly and flop’ destination, they go to relax and spoil themselves, rather than a destination where people are there to fully explore or are open to doing research.

In my mind, if I’m sensible with my spending, I can traveller for longer, further, more times etc. I’m not going to drop £40 on a steak just because I’m ‘on holiday’, when something local and cheaper will fill me up in exactly the same way. It’s also part of the joy of travelling, trying new things and not what you can get at home.

Nightlife

Being a solo traveller, I also didn’t experience the nightlife. This is also a big side of Marmaris that I didn’t really realise before I went. My hotel was in a quiet area and I was usually back to my room to unwind around 9.30pm, so it wasn’t even something I really even came across.

There has recently been a new rule come into place where bars have a curfew of midnight, honestly, I wouldn’t have even noticed if it was there when I went.

If I have a drink, I tend to have one in the day when it’s hot and a cold beer is refreshing (and often a similar price to a soft drink!). I also buy beer from the supermarket (cheaper!) and then sit on my balcony and people watch, journal etc in the evening. I feel a little safer this way.

Things To Do/Day Tours

Free Things To Do

I did a lot of free things while in Marmaris, such as:

• Watching the dancing fountains (9pm May – Oct/Nov)
• Walked along the coast path from Marmaris to Icmeler (I LOVED this route)
• Wandered the Marmaris Old Town and Marina area

Beaches

The beaches are split into 2 areas. The public beaches, DO have free straw type umbrellas, but you will have to sit on the sand.

Or the ‘private’ beaches, where restaurants look after the patch of beach in front of their establishment. Unlike similar destinations in Europe which often charge for sun bed and umbrella rentals, as long as you buy a drink, you can then use the sun beds for ‘free’.

When I wanted a beach day, I planned to have a late lunch/early dinner at Jimmy’s Martinis. I spent under £8 on my meal and a mocktail, and used the sun bed and umbrella for 3-4 hours.

Day Tours

I had 5 full days in Marmaris (and a very late flight on the 6th day) and I spent 2 full days on tours. One tour cost £21.17 and the other was £25.41 and as mentioned above they both included a hot lunch.

I bought drinks and snacks from the supermarket to take with me, rather than buying expensive drinks at the stops. Just make sure to pick something like juice that tastes OK when it’s not ice cold!

I booked both tours on GetYourGuide*.

I’m not too sure what I think of the Jeep Safari*, this is a VERY popular day trip in Marmaris, but it was more like a water fight rather than a guided tour! There was an off-road water fight, a visit to a waterfall, the barbecue lunch and a stop at Jesus Beach. (I did buy a slushie for 200L on Jesus Beach!)

I was expecting something similar to what I did in Madeira, but it had a different type of vibe. Maybe it was because I was solo it just felt a bit awkward.

I LOVED the Akyaka day tour* too. As well as a very good lunch at a beautiful riverside restaurant (to eat in the restaurant not as part of the tour, my meal was 300L (£5.50)), it included a boat tour along the bluest river I’ve seen. This was definitely worth the money, but it’s not a tour that runs daily.

Misc Spending

Shopping

I spent £27.50 on souvenirs and other spending. That also included a £10 backpack that I bought as a replacement when the seam on my day bag broke on the jeep safari…the other backpack went straight in the bin, so it was something I needed.

Bingo!

Within that £27 spending money was 100L (£1.86) that I spent playing bingo at my hotel bar one night. I was annoyed at myself because that plus a beer pushed me slightly over my daily budget (that’s not a strict budget, but I like to keep track). However I ended up winning the full house which was the equivalent of £25, which equalled a full day’s budget! Plus I’m a sucker for bingo, I love it.

Final Words

The airport is also extremely expensive, so I would advise trying to eat before a transfer or before you head that way. Often airports ARE generally expensive, but Dalaman was on a whole other level.

As a frequent traveller that always has my ‘guard up’, especially in new places, I got on absolutely fine and I did actually enjoy what I saw. Many of the things I do are just second nature to me now that I ironically, I don’t actually have to really think about them.

A lot of the negative comments I that I received on TikTok were regarding things I usually avoid: taxis over charging, problems in bars and clubs (set VERY firm boundaries), scams in tourist restaurants, people trying to get you to go into their shops (I either wear sunglasses and earphones and ignore or just go no thank you!…and keep walking).

It does maybe require a little bit of awareness in comparison to other ‘easy’ destinations, as you do have to watch out for scams. But it’s not impossible and it can be done on a budget (and enjoyably) if you are willing to put in the effort. Many people are instead just turning to all-inclusive resorts, so they don’t then need to worry about things costing extra, but it is still possible on a room only basis!

Last Updated on August 6, 2025