Lykia World: A Childrens' Paradise

The huge family-friendly resort of Lykia World is just outside Olu Deniz on Turkey’s Southern coast, a region I visited some 20 years ago as a free-spirited student.  Of course the area had changed – it was more built up and touristy. But so had I with a husband and two kids in tow, I now plan my holidays in minute detail. And I want something altogether different from a trip abroad.

What hadn’t change was the region’s beautiful turquoise sea, blue sky and brilliant sunshine.  Lykia World itself is just so big – holding up to 2,500 guests at any one time – that it doesn’t seem crowded. For instance, there are 19 swimming pools in total! The impressive Lycian Mountains tower up behind it and it unfurls along nearly a kilometre of coarse sandy beach. The Village area close to the kids clubs (which are open, quite amazingly, from 8.30am to10.30pm and take kids from 3 months to 18 years) is home to the main village square, where much of the evening entertainment takes place. The Residence area is slightly quieter.

All 19 swimming pools, many of which are tucked away in smaller, more intimate areas, and two of which are adult only, all are surrounded by pine trees and well-manicured gardens.  The pièce de resistance for kids is the Children’s Paradise, an adventure and water-park at the top of the resort.  Eighteen slides, seven pools (some heated), a babies’ beach, water cannons, trampolines, swings and slides… the list is almost endless. Even the toilets are kid-sized, and there is a children’s restaurant.

Other on-site activities range from tennis, archery, scuba diving and paragliding to step aerobics and belly dancing.  A tennis lesson reactivated my passion for the game despite my hopelessness. Lykia world’s tennis academy has 19 courts so there is lots of opportunity to get a game, and taster lessons are available to everyone from age 5 . There are also tournaments for enthusiastic grown ups, and there is talk of visits ex-pros in the future. Group lessons start at 159 Euros for 270 minutes plus a fantastic free racket.

My other highlight was the scuba diving –something I have always wanted to try but was always a bit apprehensive about.  I needn’t have worried – the centre is run by a very affable Welsh chap with years of diving experience under his belt, Alf, and his Brit sidekick Sam.  Sam took me through the training, and when set off on my first dive, skilfully controlled my weights and held on to me so all I needed to do was kick and concentrate on my breathing.  Kids can start diving at the age of 8 and can begin Padi courses at age 10. Courses start with a Try Dive at 42 Euros or a Scuba Diver Padi 3 day course at 220 Euros.

All guests stay on an all-inclusive basis (or “full-board plus”, which seems to be the same thing).The quality of all the resort’s restaurants was extremely impressive. The three main restaurants are buffet style and have a huge amount of choice. A further five speciality restaurants charge a small supplement (about 7 Euros pp), and then there are two children’s restaurants.  My favourite was Sofra, a Turkish restaurant where you dine alfresco while being entertained by belly dancers, you can even join in (as I found out) if you’re brave enough!  In terms of accommodation, the rooms are a good size and there are plenty of interconnecting rooms for families.

The only let down was that resort prices, as often in hotels in Turkey, are in Euros  However, over all, Lykia World is a brilliant family resort, with reliably good weather (October half-term is a good time, outside the heat of summer) and a warm sea, masses of activities, fantastic food, a kids club (taking kids from 3 months to 18 years, split into 5 different groups with activities such as Judo, dancing, acrobatics, juggling, archery and football), plus a relatively short transfer time of 80 minutes from Dalaman airport.

I will definitely return to Lykia World, and next time I may even take a trick from Georgina Allen’s Crete feature and keep my kids on UK time, so that with the 2-hour time difference we can make the most of our holiday together by sleeping later and staying out later.

First Choice offers 7-night holidays in Turkey, staying all-inclusive at the Lykia World Residence, from £829 per adult, with a free child place* for the first child and £531 for the second child, based on two adults and two children sharing, departing from London Gatwick on 28 September 2009. To find out more about this holiday, or to make a reservation,  visit the First Choice page.

*Terms and conditions apply. Free child places have limited availability and are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Prices are correct at time of writing.

The resort is also offered by two or our other partners Thomson and Sovereign.