The Bodrum EDITION — Hotel in Bodrum

Stayed for a week at The Bodrum Edition in early September. I’ve stayed at quite a few Marriotts recently, including the W Hotel in Verbier a few times in the last 18 months, so I was curious to try the EDITION brand as I understood it to be more boutique in style. On arrival it didn’t disappoint, suitably luxurious with a really slick welcome and even 4 different hotel-made ice creams to try in reception which was a nice touch.||The drive from Bodrum Airport is a bit longer than ideal at around 50 minutes, but it’s fine. What you don’t realise until you check Google Maps is that the hotel isn’t in Bodrum town itself but about 30 minutes north near Yalıkavak. I was genuinely blown away by the quality of the area, very Mediterranean Riviera with high-end homes and boutique hotels. Compared to some parts of Greece where things often look half finished, here it felt properly done and very upmarket and not what I expected.||Check-in was smooth. We had connecting rooms as we were travelling with our adult children. I used points for a Deluxe King, and they had the adjoining twin which we paid full price for. Their room was labelled as “garden view” but in reality it had the same view as ours which was a pleasant surprise. Worth pointing out that all rooms face north, so don’t expect sunshine on the balconies during the day. Some of the lower-level rooms also just look onto walls or retaining structures with planting. That said, our setup worked brilliantly. The space was huge, probably one of the best hotel rooms I’ve had, and the big balconies were great for evenings.||This isn’t really a hotel for younger kids. There were a couple of families, but there’s no entertainment or kids’ focus. Food and the general vibe are more adult-orientated, which suited us perfectly.||The only thing to be aware of is that the property also runs as a beach club during the day and open to external guests. This is common now in swanky resorts. It means there are cabanas and roped-off areas for paying guests, whether they are staying at the hotel or visiting for the day. On the first afternoon we unknowingly sat in a reserved spot which felt a bit awkward, especially as we were already there for the week as hotel guests and paying a reasonable amount of money. For a moment I questioned my choice of hotel. Once we figured it out, though, it was absolutely fine and for the rest of the stay we never had a problem finding sunbeds or a good spot. The cabanas themselves are very smart and a nice treat for a day, stocked with drinks, fruit and snacks. The pool only really filled up after lunch, but even then there were still beds available.||September is worth noting too. It’s the end of the Turkish holiday season, so the hotel got noticeably quieter after the first week. Some people would love that, but the evenings were very subdued and most guests headed into Yalıkavak Marina instead, which was buzzing and had some brilliant restaurants.||The hotel facilities are top-notch. The gym is excellent, the spa is huge, and the food was really strong across the board. The beach club, bar menu and BRAVA Italian all delivered, with the Zula burgers in particular standing out. Prices are high, especially for alcohol, but that’s the same across the whole area. Bodrum is not “cheap Turkey” (if there is still such a thing?) and is priced more like Italy, Croatia or the South of France, but the quality does match it.||What really made the hotel, though, were some of the staff. Many are young, but once you get chatting they’re warm, genuine and really try to make things special. Arran at breakfast was superb, remembering exactly how we liked things every day. Maki at the pool was friendly from the outset and looked after us brilliantly all week. Benedict from Hungary in the beach bar was full of good tips about the area.||Best of all was Alexandra. I’m not sure of her exact job title, but she was everywhere, making sure guests were happy and reservations were sorted. She really was the glue that held everything together, and every hotel in world could do with someone like her.||And finally Hakan, the Beach Club Ops Manager, deserves a big Thank You. He took on board some feedback I gave early on and made sure our last day was particularly memorable by arranging a great cabana spot that finished the trip perfectly.||Overall, The Bodrum Edition is a classy hotel in a brilliant location with great staff. We’d definitely go back and are now keen to try other EDITION properties based on...

This is a copy of a review i wrote in TripAdvisor, but i really wanna share it here also.

Best hotel experience in my life!

From the first moment i stepped into the hotel, staff can't wait to greet me and show me around while I wait for my room. As a high level Marriott-Bonvoy elite, my loyalty was very well recognized and the hotel even went above what marriott suggests them to do for high elites. I think they do value each and every guests, and treat every guests very well, and if u r also a high level elite, they will pay a little extra attention to you.

Hotel is very full as we are entering summer season, and it is priced in the luxury tier, and still, people booked and reserved in advance, people love this hotel!

I stayed alone this time, but i did not feel lonely, hotel staff were all so friendly, and many can hold long conversations, i felt like welcoming by friends in my stay.

Out of all the hotels ive stayed in, i think the EDITION has the most staff who r quite proficient in english conversation. I dont recall anyone who replied me "I dont speak much english". Im not saying it's a good or bad thing for people to speak or not speak english, but it is commonly spoken among tourists nowadays, it makes our dialogue a lot easier when we can just rely on english speakers. But tourists, we should learn to speak a few key turkish words and sentences also. I tried to speak some, and more conversations followed, and it is appreciated anywhere in the world to speak some local words. The staff made my stay a lot easier, so thank you for tolerating us tourists' ignorance.

Breakfast was such a happening part of the stay. It was busy but in a very fun way. Breakfast options are abundant, any guests will be so impressed how they do breakfast, they really wanna show you the complete turkish hospitality in breakfast.

Resort is beautiful, so well thought out, there r lots of details in every facility and amenity you encounter in the hotel.

The EDITION has a great team of staff who made my stay exceptional, memorable and "once in a lifetime". From first moment i arrived until i drove away. Thank you to the following folks who reminded me that people are genuinely kind and communal. I had lots of fun talking to each of you:

Yasmin from the Reception Coffee Bar - so much positivity and a joy to speak to. You are definitely the Little Ms Sunshine. Thank you for bringing me those delicious ice cream and drinks.

Bomed from the beach bar, thanks for helping me with my iphone and your care when I was dining there. Very fun person to talk to.

2 x Ece from Concierge and Guest Relation, very thoughtful and thanks for spending the time to tour me around the hotel and deep conversations. They were insightful.

Javid & Irem from Front office, they just made my stay from good to "out of this world". Thank you so much for the "Birthday Gift", it is truly my best one yet. It will be hard to beat for sure!

Emine the lifestyle host, thanks for liaising with me prior to my arrival, your breakfast and showing me to my room. It was much appreciated.

Dogec, Alexander, Ismail and the whole bell team, thanks for taking care of my luggages and ur buggy car ride. It was fun talking to each of you. Keep up that energy, many grumpy guests would need some of your energy

Cilem from the Inari restaurant, thanks for your food recommendation and your initiative to take me ice for my sunburn. It really helped!

Asena from the beach desk, thank you for all the small little and funny chats we had, they really made my day, its like talking to my friend from my school time.

SIbel from the gym, great and insightful conversation with you also. The gym is fortunate to have you here, otherwise it would be too boring for a workout.

I know my expectation for this hotel was set high prior to my stay, but they exceeded every single way. This may be the best hotel experience in the entire country! And my personal Best...

Overwhelmingly delighted.

From the gorgeous lofty entry with unbelievable views, to the modern and minimalist-themed rooms, The Bodrum Edition brings the luxury, beauty and relaxation I've come to "expect" from the brand's properties throughout the world. Surprisingly, the hotel was almost at 100% capacity. Tinted with marbles, woods and white accents throughout the resort, the design is simply flawless and Ian Schrager should be proud. Despite the jaw-dropping backdrops, architecture and Instagram-worthy scenic spots nestled throughout the resort, the property's people elevate this hotel eons beyond the competition. For the first time in all my travels, on the day of checkout, I truly felt sad to leave; we 100% felt as though we were family by the end of the trip. Every employee went above and beyond to make us not only feel welcomed and wanted, but they were also willing and wanting to be our friend. Every staff member works incredibly hard and it shows. That being said, all the folks we talked with absolutely loved working there and were so happy that the resort was not only open, but also thriving despite COVID-19.

From the special welcome gift and handwritten note from Ali, to the exemplary service provided by Nadit and the staff working at both KITCHEN (The Bodrum Edition's incredible all-you-can-eat Turkish style breakfast), we felt truly taken care of with every "stop" at the resort. From the moment we arrived, we received a personal tour of not only of our room, but of the resort; we also scored a special/personal line of communication with Nur and Zaynep who helped take care of us throughout our 6 days, helping us book reservations throughout Bodrum, arranging transportation and even spending some time with us during the "Friday Party" (definitely don't miss this, if possible)! Though we arrived late on Monday, Askin wet above and beyond explaining the menu(s), made some fantastic recommendations, and even helped reserve us a dinner table at the more upscale on-site restaurant, Brava. Mehmet and Osman took especially great care of us at the various restaurants throughout the week, including Brava, KITCHEN, Morena and The Beach Club.

Speaking of, while the beach can certainly be a deserving hotspot (potentially a poor choice of words), it never felt crowded and the service we had everyday was top-notch, with folks like Ese constantly ensuring every need was met. Perhaps the most memorable part of the trip was meeting one of the hardest-working individuals at the Bodrum Edition: Roula (or as we like to call her, the Greek Goddess). While her actual job title was something along the lines of "Beach Club Manager," I don't think it could ever accurately reflect the many roles and responsibilities she successfully owned; she unequivocally adds an immense value to this hotel. While we only knew her at first as the "Manager of the Pool and Beach," you'll surely see her given that The Bodrum Edition is in fact, a (if not, the) superior beach resort. We never once saw her slow down. It was abundantly clear that her staff holds her on a well-deserving pedestal and she treated us like family with hugs, holding shoulders and making the entire atmosphere of The Bodrum Edition one filled with love, energy and delight.

Overall, I'd recommend this hotel to anyone and everyone. Whether you have the luxury of staying here via points, dollars or a combination of the two, The Bodrum Edition is simply put, the absolute best hotel I've ever stayed at. Yes, everything related to the "hard product" of this hotel puts it on par with the most luxurious hotels in the world, but the the staff made this trip less of a hotel stay, and more of an extraordinary experience--one I was able to share with my new family at the...