Eden Garden, Icmeler Old Village.

[Sunny]

Review - Eden Garden, Icmeler Old Village, Icmeler.
23rd June - 7th July, 2010

Well, our Thomas Cook flight was the usual, squash your knees to your ears affair and we were heartily glad to arrive in Dalaman early.
We found our taxi transfer easily enough and off we set for Icmeler although we had to stop a couple of times for directions as the taxi driver didnt seem to know where he was going. The Eden Garden is actually next to the Grand Aquarium Hotel.

When we stepped through the gates of the Eden it was clear we'd love it. The pool lights were on and there were candles on the tables and the garden was lit up and so very pretty... 'Eden' - Very aptly named.
We were checked in very quickly and informed that the bar was still open (24 hour bar) so we dumped our cases and had a couple of Effes as the sun began to rise.

All the apartments have 1 bedroom, with a decent sized living room/kitchen area, furnished with a small dining table and a couple of chairs. I think maybe these were chairbeds as the apartments can sleep 4.
The accomodation was light and airy and spotlessly clean and the towels and bedding etc sparkling white. I should add that the beds were wonderfully comfortable, there was plenty wardrobe space/drawers etc and a hairdrier in the bathroom.

The sunny balconies and terraces of the Eden all overlooked the pool area and the property itself is nestled into the bottom of the lush green hills and the whole area smelled gloriously fresh and piney.

The family that own the apartments are absolutely lovely, very friendly and welcoming. As mentioned in other reviews, the food is outstanding and very reasonable. There is a fun barbecue night often, with excellent food, the starters of dips and bread and then soup came up from the Lal Ottoman Restaurant and the chicken and meatballs were barbecued in the garden... Mario (the ever smiling owner) had organised place settings at the tables and there was a buffet style salad, potatoes, bread etc to accompany the barbecue meat.
After dinner there was a Belly dancer show and then a quiz and bingo etc if you wanted to participate.

The Eden only has 18 apartments so everyone spoke to each other and it made for a very friendly atmosphere as opposed to being a name or number in a big hotel. There seemed to be 2 sunbeds for each apartment and it meant there wasnt a Germanic rush to claim a bed for the day if you wanted to stick around the pool and just savour the peace and quiet and have a quick dip when you got too warm. Food and drinks could be
ordered any time of day or evening and eaten in the comfortable pool bar under the shady parasols...

Finally, the Eden's nearest bar/restaurant is Tommy's - around 5 minutes away and there is a 24 hour supermarket next door.
The old village is quite residential with some lovely homes and gardens and it was perfect for a stroll.
The main Icmeler resort is about 20 minutes walk straight down the dry canal side - again, a nice walk, passing several little gardens and parks with spectacular greenery and flowers... You can catch the dolmus into the centre though - they are frequent and cost 1.5 Lira.

As this is purely a hotel review, I've tried to make this as factual as I can, leaving out our own fun and adventures. I hope you find it useful but I will be happy to answer any questions.

So, would we return to the Eden Garden? In a heartbeat... this is a little jewel of a place with the owners being the perfect hosts.

Instead of booking a fortnight in the Dom Rep - my husband needed no persuasion to return to Icmeler again later in the season - yes folks, WE ARE ICMELER CONVERTS!
Unfortunately, living in the NE Scotland serviced by 'Toytown Airport' we were unable to match flights with the Eden Garden so our next stay is booked for the Chateau de Ville - which also gets excellent reviews..... fingers crossed.